Long Live the New Sex

Crimes of the Future (David Cronenberg, 2022)

Brandon Cronenberg's burgeoning film career appears to have reignited his old man's propensity for body horror. It's a welcome return for David Cronenberg, since he's been absent from helming a film for several years and his latest, Crimes of the Future is his first forray into the genre which dubbed him the "king of venereal horror" in over twenty years. Throughout that time, Cronenberg managed to seperate himself from his peers such as Wes Craven, Tobe Hooper and George Romero, by successfully crossing over into mature drama, which, along with the adulation and praise, negatively attracted "serious" cinephiles, aka poncy c**ts. 

The future doesn't seem so advanced in Cronenberg's latest film. Infections no longer occur, so people don't bother to wash their hands, even after using the toilet; I mean, that sounds like most of the people I've witnessed in various public places, to be honest. Also, our sense of pain no longer exists, resulting in desktop surgeries being the new fad. The world of Crimes of the Future is very dirty and regressive looking; accommodations look like a Dickensian tramp's temporary lodgings, which makes location shooting in a European shithole like Athens absolutely perfect, in my humble opinion.

A ninja clad Viggo Mortensen plays Saul Tenser, a famous performance artist suffering from Accelerated Evolution Syndrome, a disease that makes his body produce novel organs. Along with his partner Caprice (Léa Seydoux), they provide Grand Guignol style surgical operations for artistic entertainment. Saul is laid conscious in a crablike chamber while his organs are surgically extracted with robotic devices controlled by Caprice. The grotesquely literal display of an artist bearing their all isn't exactly lost here and if you're fairly familiar with some of his prior films, it's the type of symbolism you would come to expect from a man like Cronenberg. These acts are perceived as sexual, to the point where he has a zipper modification for easier access to his internal organs; which leads to him receiving a disturbing stomach job from Caprice. Tenser also happens to liken these performances as rebellious acts of defiance against his body's condition.This stance has him aiding with a police divison (known as New Vice Unit), where he works as a mole to uncover a collective of radical extremists who consume purple candy bars made of plastic. The food of choice for modified digestive systems which allows them to eat plastics.

Despite the obvious controversy surrounding Crimes of the Future, there are some philosophical and ethical questions raised which resonated in my mind. This had me pondering over a completely irrelevant and fictional subject matter (at this present time at least) that struck a cord with me. That's worthy of some kind of respect, in my opinion. Mortensen and Seydoux work well together on screen and their chemistry helps the bizarre relationship seem believable. The rest of the supporting cast, including Kristen Stewart as the oddball New Organ Registry officer, aid with the illusion of this dystopian world, which in all honesty looks like it was mostly filmed in various abandoned crack dens.

Although not exploitational, there's an explicitly voyeuristic nature about Crimes of the Future, that forces the viewer to be a casual bystander, in the same manner as the audience watching Tenser's performance shows. Along with the people getting off in slashing and and stabbing blades in a consenting partner's body, it's extreme debauchery that will no doubt offend some peoples' sensibilities. I got the feeling that the concept of doggin' was fed into Cronenberg's brain and this was what he came up with. It's all very macabre and shocking, yet it does serve a sincere purpose as part of the world building process.

Big fan of the breakfaster chair that moves about and groans to aid with digestion. That thing was hilarious on screen. Viggo Mortensen pulling weird faces trying to eat what seems like a green steak and kidney pudding was one of my favourite scenes in the film. The rest of the weird tech are also bizarrely organic looking and are the only real props in the film that suggest this is set sometime in the not too distant future.

Worth pointing out that Howard Shore's mix of synthwave and acoustic sounds really accentuate the two contrasting factions presented within the film. Other than the main theme, Klinek stood out the most for me with its cyberpunk vibe.

Crimes of the Future feels like Cronenberg's most satisfying film since pehaps eXistenZ (1999). Largely because it's a return to the types of movie I have forever associated him with. It's also due to the fact that I objectively find this his most balanced and complete production amongst his later films. Definitely a personal highlight for me this year. Really grateful this doesn't have anything to do with Croneberg's 1970 film with the same name, because I found that dire. You've come along way since then, Dave! 

Thought I'd hung up my extreme cinema pass long ago, yet this and Mad God (2022) are both films that would be classed in this category and I've thoroughly enjoyed them.