Aeterna(2019): Lux
The film begins with a deceptively calm dialogue between Charlotte Gainsbourg and Béatrice Dalle, both playing versions of themselves. They sit on chairs, backlit by a soft neon glow, exchanging anecdotes about their careers and the inherent madness of film sets. This conversation grounds the film in reality, presenting the industry as a shared history of trauma and performance. Gainsbourg and Dalle act as the emotional anchors of a narrative that is about to dismantle itself.
Compare it to his other "sensory assault" films like or Enter the Void . Lux AEterna(2019)
The premise—the filming of an experimental movie about witch trials—is an explicit homage to cinematic history. Noé punctuates the film with quotes from legendary directors like Carl Theodor Dreyer and Rainer Werner Fassbinder, alongside clips from silent-era films like Häxan and Day of Wrath . By doing so, he establishes a parallel between the historical persecution of "witches" and the contemporary mistreatment of actresses under the directorial "male gaze." Visual Anarchy and Split-Screen Synchronicity The film begins with a deceptively calm dialogue
In the filmography of Gaspar Noé, a director defined by his sensory brutality and "bad boy" reputation, Lux Æterna (2019) occupies a unique space. Originally commissioned as a promotional short for the fashion house Yves Saint Laurent, the film evolved into a 51-minute "essay on cinema" that blends meta-narrative, experimental technique, and a visceral reflection on the history of women in art. It is a work that captures the chaotic, fragile intersection where high-fashion commerce meets avant-garde extremism. The Meta-Narrative of Chaos Gainsbourg and Dalle act as the emotional anchors
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Technically, Lux Æterna is defined by Noé’s aggressive use of split-screen and stroboscopic lighting. For much of its runtime, the frame is divided, forcing the viewer’s attention to dart between simultaneous perspectives of the collapsing set. This "diptych" approach creates a sense of frantic, uncontrollable energy; while one side of the screen shows a producer plotting to fire the director, the other shows the director herself trying to manage a distracted crew.