Love (2015) review

American 'filmmaker' Murphy (Karl Glusman), living in France with his 'girlfriend' (Klara Kristin) and young child, reminisces about his past relationship with "the love of his life" Electra (Aomi Muyock) and how it went so wrong (drugs and promiscuity and jealousy, etc.). Best seen as Noé's combination of The Brown Bunny (Gallo is a 'friend' of his) and Blue Is the Warmest Color, it's an imaginatively shot but emotionally dead and unnecessarily protracted project - the chemistry between Glusman and Muyock is strangely lacking (neither are particularly good actors), and their explicit sex scenes become a chore rather than a delight - with some atrocious 'philosophical' voice over and 'arguments' that feel manufactured. Despite the flaws, sneaky moralist Noé finds a way to conclude the picture on a strong note - the final scenes were particularly affecting (for me, at least) - with Murphy full of regrets in that bathtub; Noé includes enough hints (including a cameo! with a wig!) to suggest it's partially autobiographical. Side note: The filmmaker made a 3D version of this (I only watched it in 2D) so he could literally fire a cumshot at his audience's faces ... clever lad.