Trouble Every Day (2001) – Film Review

Director: Claire Denis
Cast: Vincent Gallo, Tricia Vessey, Béatrice Dalle
Certificate: 18

By Sarah Morgan

Picture the scene. It’s Saturday lunchtime, the sun is shining and your humble reviewer is settling down to have something to eat, accompanied by, hopefully, a good film.

What do they choose to watch? Perhaps an old favourite, something gentle and easy to view; a cosy classic, maybe.

No, they make the mistake of stuffing Trouble Every Day, Claire Denis’ erotic thriller, originally released in 2001, into the Blu-ray player. Maybe they should have read the accompanying press release beforehand…

“Blood lust”

Denis is one of France’s most revered auteurs, whose 1999 film Beau Travail is regarded as among the greatest films of the decade. Critics and fans were expecting her next project to be along similar lines, but instead, were somewhat taken aback by the blood and violence of Trouble Every Day, Denis’ entry in the often controversial New French Extremity movement.

It certainly doesn’t pull any punches in its depiction of two couples. Dr Shane Brown and his new wife June arrive in Paris on their honeymoon. They appear to be very much in love, but Shane is hiding a dark secret, one he shares with Core, the other half of his former colleague, Dr Leo Semenau.

Shane becomes increasingly distanced from a confused June as he obsessively tracks down the Semenaus. And he has good reason to locate them – like Core, he has developed an unquenchable blood lust, which can only be temporarily sated by feasting on those they seduce, leaving both June and Leo in danger.

Shane hopes that Leo can help him find a cure for their cannibalistic urges, a sort of extreme vampirism, but before they can begin work together, more people are going to die in an orgy of pleasure and pain.

“Dark desires”

As you would expect from someone of Denis’ standing, this is not your average horror movie, but rather a musing on the dark desires of human beings and the pleasures of the flesh.

It’s incredibly gory too. Audiences who saw it at the Cannes Film Festival are said to have walked out in disgust, horrified by the violence on screen. It is, at times, difficult to watch – thank goodness I was able to skip through some of the most vomit-inducing moments thanks to my trusty remote control.

Although far from easy viewing, it is a hugely intelligent piece of cinema featuring strong performances from its lead cast, which includes Vincent Gallo and Béatrice Dalle. Just remember not to watch it while having a meal, particularly if you’re about to tuck into a nice, juicy steak.

Sarah Morgan( Writer )

Sarah Morgan studied film journalism at post-graduate level with the BFI and has been writing about TV and film for PA Media’s newspaper, magazine and new media customers since 1996. She’s also written for a wide range of other publications, both online and in print, including the book Offbeat and Intermission magazine, and is a regular contributor to the Talking Pictures TV podcast. When she isn’t watching movies, she’s collecting and reading vintage crime and horror paperback books or, for her sins, watching her beloved Sheffield Wednesday.

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