Black Heaven (L'autre monde “The Other World”) is a 2010 French thriller / noir film directed by Gilles Marchand. It tells the story of young Gaspar, who is lured by a beautiful girl into an obsessive, deadly video game…
An innocent young man becomes enamored with a mysterious girl. He is lured into ‘Black Hole’ – a dark, obscure video game world of avatars with deadly serious intentions in the real world.
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Reviews
“French thriller Black Heaven is a dangerously seductive film noir for the internet generation…Louise Bourgoin (The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec) is absolutely stunning as the seductive femme fatale, while Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet possesses great sex appeal and an air of innocence that really draws you into his dark journey. And while I really felt for poor Marion (Pauline Etienne), who gets left out in the cold, I was fascinated by Vincent (Melvil Poupaud), who you just don’t know whether to trust or not. The gorgeous scenery of the real life action (it’s all shot around Marseille) is a stark contrast to the CGI world, but it all seems to work. It’s as though Hitchcock’s Vertigo has been fused with the dark eroticism of a David Lynch movie, with a dash of Tron-like techno touches stirred in to produce a heady seductive brew. Sinister, intelligent, suspenseful and sexy. You won’t be disappointed.” Film.com
“…a thought provoking and fascinating look at the pitfalls of excessive online gaming, losing yourself in an avatar and pseudonym to the extent the real world becomes alien..When it ventures into very dark territory, the film loses its way slightly but is always an interesting and thoughtful watch.” Film365.co.uk
“Black Heaven is three things: sexy, intriguing and full of unsolvable
questions. The story is told on two planes, as well. There is the virtual world,
where the beautiful and troubled hide out from reality. The second plane of
existence is the day-to-day physical world, where the duller Marion exists.
Guess which world Gaspard is drawn to, in search of physical beauty? This is no
Lawnmower Man, but Marchand updates the love triangle theme by introducing
distracting elements that are everywhere in people's lives – technology. The
result is an interesting film, which does not shy away from asking the
characters to make difficult choices and secondarily, to invite viewers to
question their beliefs.
Black Heaven is a French film, with enough style and fluidity to draw in most
viewers. Just don't get pulled in too far, as the final scenes will end in
shocking fashion…In a world of disposable film, this thriller will show
viewers that there are some films that can be rewatched again and again, to find
deeper meanings.” 28 Days Later Analysis – Writing/plot/story: 8.5 (a few
twists and turns, characters reveal themselves to be a little more devious than
initially thought, a solid underlining message of spirituality, existentialism
and simple existence), Acting/believability/interpretation: 8 (strong
performances from young characters), Overall: 8.25 out of 10 (recommended for
those who like slower paced European thrillers).