You Were Never Really Here (Review)

Comparing this film to Taxi Driver doesn’t do this film justice. It’s far more humanistic and empathetic than Taxi Driver. While watching I knew there was a European filmmaker’s touch on this film. I thought it could be Tarkovsky but that was certainly a stretch. Then my mind went to Bresson. I think this is more plausible. Bresson’s approach to visual storytelling was almost pure cinema. No flamboyant actors trying to take the audience away, a strong focus on the mixture of both sound and vision, and telling a story with the utmost compassion. All of these devices are present in You Were Never Really Here but they’ve gone through the ring of 70s Hollywood crime film such as Taxi Driver.

Like the crime films of the 1970s, there’s violence in this film. Except the major difference is how grounded it is here. A punch actual hurts. The grounded violence makes the violence in other 70s crime films, in retrospect, feel more stylistic. In Taxi Driver, Travis Bickle’s actions are a form of escapism, an unwillingness to face his demons. Violence in films is often a form of escapism for the audience and a filmmaker gives into this to make their films more marketable. Tarantino is THE notable example of this. Ramsay uses violence cautiously. Violence forms Phoenix's character (Joe) and it still does. He uses violence as a way to deal with his violent Ramsay even takes out the FBI/military background of the character (in an explicit way) that was in the book. These organisations are often used for adventure/drama films that offer this escapism. The kind of violence in the film mixed with the poignant visual storytelling makes for a violently meditative film. One that is very hard to market and doesn’t give into audience expectations.

Phoenix’s career as an actor at the beginning was certainly overshadowed by his brother, River, but in the last 10 years, he’s made a name for himself. Her, The Master, Inherent Vice. These are all roles that show not only that Phoenix is confident as an actor but that he knows what he’s doing. He can sell a moment with a look in his eyes and Ramsay capitalises on it. Joe has built up a wall to avoid facing his emotions and Phoenix manages to give us just enough hints to humanise his character.

Ramsay’s control of mise-en-scene is probably the strongest aspect of the film. The use of flashbacks is only ever used in a visual way that lets the audience connect the dots. This lets Ramsay try more concealed connections between moments. There are two times Joe goes into a building to rescue a girl. The first is shot using CCTV cameras rotating in an almost hypnotic rhythm. The second… well, I’ll let you watch the film to work that out. It’s this level of control that lets the film be a gateway into a mind in a way that couldn’t work in a book or a physical encounter. By treating the character with dignity instead of awkwardly following a mentally uneasy character around there’s room for catharsis for both the character himself and the audience.

Along with mother! and Beyond the Hills, this has some of the best sound design of the decade. It fixates on what it needs to in order to immerse ourselves in the film. At points, there are moments the sound of something you think we should hear isn’t there and it gets your attention. Joe’s connection to the world is almost nonexistent. His last connection is his mother whose relationship is compared to the mother-son one in Psycho. The world is filtered through a traumatic past for Joe and the clear-cut sound design often triggers the flashbacks and by the end of the film, we can almost expect when they will come. We have truly entered his world.

Jonny Greenwood delivers another great score here. He brings more tension to the film than anyone else in the film. His score drives the opening sequence. This score is more avant-garde than anything else he has done. There are some moments it could be a CAN song. It’s gritty and dirty and it’s both a perfect aid and extension of the film.

This movie may be a crime film with violence that actually hurts but Ramsay’s touch is undeniable. It’s undoubtedly the film of a woman. They say an actor shouldn’t judge their character. Well, nor should a director. Ramsay follows this approach to extraordinary effect to make one of the best films of the year. Yet the film still manages to be gripping fun in its own devoid way. This is certainly not Taxi Driver.

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