Amoeba Music

What is the message behind films that intertwine unrelated characters? Where does the relevancy of “six degrees of separation” show itself in such a story? There is a vast difference between the various methods in which this plot is used. Some directors, like Quentin Tarantino, used it for suspense. In Pulp Fiction, characters met at random intervals and changed the course of the action, or in some cases sequences were jumbled so that suspense and interest could be built. Many foreign films, including Amélie, Dog Days, and Almodóvar's Bad Education present this technique as something cathartic and full of important lessons in love and life. There seems to be a touch of destiny leading characters to their fate, and thus these are a statement on humanity and inevitability. The effect can be either beautiful or hopeless, but they all have one thing in common: they rely on the presence of a person or series of people to start the chain of events.

Carnage is different in that respect. While it does open with a bullfighter in Spain, it is not his presence that begins the action. Facing him in the ring is a bull with a secret. It appears normal, but was born half-blind. This rare trait gives the beast an advantage. His adversary in the ring cannot notice that it's different until they've begun. All probability and familiarity with its movement is absent. The skill and experience of the fighter is no match for a bull that doesn't fit a general pedigree, and the man is struck by the beast. But the fighter was brave and very skilled; the bull suffered several blows and ultimately bled to death. Its body is butchered and, according to custom, certain parts are given to the fighter. Others are more valuable and sold around the world. The bull's limbs and bones are shipped to Belgium, France, and Spain until they find suitable markets. The people who take a part of the bull end up finding pain, redemption, death, and in some cases, each other.

A bright little girl (Raphaëlle Molinier) with Epilepsy goes to a market with her parents and they buy one of the bull's bones for their dog. Her teacher is a nervous woman who is uncomfortable with the child's wisdom, and her frantic and disturbed mother (Ángela Molina) carries a secret that haunts her. An Italian actress (Chiara Mastroianni) with a troubled family life tries a bizarre group therapy that will help her find her inner self. A scientist receives the bull's eyes for research, and his fascination with them drives him away from his depressed and pregnant wife. His estranged brother lives with their mother in a trailer. The two are taxidermists and for his birthday she gives him the horns. Each character lives a life of ennui and displacement, and yet they enjoy playing the victim. They're all struggling to find their place and, in a strange way, the bull's remains shift their lives and offer a change that is long overdue. They begin to meet one another and start to repair themselves, and for some, closure only comes in death. While the chance aspect of the story was interesting, I found that the message behind mortality prevailed. There was the sense that some things must die in order for life to go on; some people must die so that those attached to them can carry on and be independent. The cathartic experience was shifted in a way that takes the anxiety from death and transfers it to your responsibility to go after your own happiness.

The rest of the film is just as pleasing as the plot. The scenes were never rushed and give you enough time to become invested in all of the characters. On that same note, the dialogue was well-executed and paced in a way that added both comedy and pathos. Considering that this was the director's debut film, I found it to be an almost perfect achievement. The actors, especially Ángela Molina (from Almodóvar's Live Flesh and Broken Embraces), offered classic performances that were a delight to watch. The music was also one of its best features, as well as the various filming locations and diversity of the actors. Instead of weaving a spider's web that presents life as this serendipitous wonderland, or a place where destruction is always around the corner, Gleize offered a new approach to the “chance phenomenon.” Where movies often make it appear as though these people have no control of their fate and circumstances, Gleize uses death and pain as a tool that gives these characters some accountability and direction. Highly Recommended.