What Makes This Movie (And It's Big Twist) So Horrifying

[@kevindavies-voiceovertalent]

The film was excellent, but I think it's unfair to leave out the name of the author and playwright: Wajdi Mouawad. He grew up in the Lebanese civil war and escaped to France with his family when he was 8, eventually moving to Montreal in 1983. He is a fantastic author and theatre director, and doesn't get enough credit for creating this fantastic story. Denis Villineuve gets most of the credit for bringing it to cinema, but it wouldn't exist without Mouawad.

[@SarahSchimidt]

Thank you for bringing this to light!

[@simonduus2020]

THIS. The original play is amazing (too)

[@Traxanemporas]

Even the theatrical is based on a true story during the Lebanese Civil war.. the person was a journalist if I remember correctly..Villenevue was shocked after watching the theatrical, asked Wahdi's permission for a movie, and prepared this MASTERPIECE for 5 years, to be as accurate as possible to the theatrical he watched.. Biggest movie in history.

[@omilner2148]

I was just about to comment this! What a book! Adding this comment to help the algorithm so hopefully more people see it

[@merchernel123]

@@omilner2148 I have never heard of this man nor had I heard of this movie but I'm doing the same because I am blown away but what I just watched. This is truly brilliant storytelling and the story itself is so powerful and awful and possible enough to be likely that you can't not be moved in some way. Just...wow...I want to read this book.

[@shara1979]

And the irony of the kid she had with the good guy she loved, turned out a monster, while the kuds she had with the monster, regardless if who he turned out to b, turned out good

[@brmitchener]

A clear commentary on nature vs nurture (this being a clear exposition on the importance of nurturing)

[@rxt740]

Damn

[@לךתזדיין-פ1ת]

It all has to do with how you are raised for sure.

[@mylababar182]

Bish- the "monster" in question was BRAINWASHED.

[@לךתזדיין-פ1ת]

@@mylababar182 M0R0N- He was raised with a good brainwashing session.

[@morganleanderblake678]

That particular kind of gasp, my old theater director called an anguished gasp, where you have to try and scream while you gasp. It's a uniquely horrible sound and usually you only hear it a few times in your life but it puts the hair up on the back of your neck.

[@al_3x912]

I absolutely agree, I felt my spine lock up and I was panicking. The gasp was nightmarish.

[@extofer]

I experienced it when I learned my mom died of a heart attack a couple years ago. It’s a profound shock to your system and you’re never the same after.

[@burtan2000]

Bc one must consider WHY we gasp. It's involuntary and sudden. One cannot gasp AND cry out simultaneously, which is why it soounds so awful. GAsp is primal. It's something from our lizard brain. Our bodies' way of doing what it can to prepare for something bad. Bc whatver the bad thing is, we're gonna need some O2 in our lungs if we want to survive.

[@markjackson3531]

@@extofer sorry. that's terrible.

[@cotillion]

yeah i saw that part and recoiled physically

[@alenemarie1726]

The horrible thing is he never knew who she was. That’s just awful and horrible and heartbreaking in every situation. That poor mother. The poor son. The poor siblings.

[@TheBHNetwork]

Don't know how much sympathy I can feel for Nihad

[@RobDaCajun]

@@TheBHNetwork exactly this. The only thing that rattled him was he found out he did this to his own mother and fathered children by it. I don’t think anyone despite their conditioning and belief system. Can truly not grasp that he is the monster. Stripped bare of all blinders and excuses.

[@vb_blokeboi7251]

​@@TheBHNetwork I think its important to remember Narwal actually forgives him as her son. As crushing as the twist is, it ends on a bitter-sweet note.

[@alejandrogoralewski4972]

@@TheBHNetworkhe is a child of war. A product and victim at the same time. Ultimately the greatest sin is his but he is also the result of many sins.

[@ximono]

​@@TheBHNetworkI know it's hard, but he is also a victim in this story. Although his actions were horrible, what caused him to do it was his conditioning. He was born innocent but went through hell as a child, which made him commit the ultimate evil, towards his own mother. There are so many layers of tragedy to this story.

[@DiscoverMontréal]

Great video! I have a great story about seeing this in theatre in Montreal in 2010. I realized the twist in the preceding scene when Simon is told their brother worked as a guard at the prison. I gasped out loud in the theatre and someone a few rows ahead of me turned quickly to look at me as if "what did I miss?" When Simon asks Jeanne afterward "does 1+1 make 1?" he then gasped out loud having realized the twist. My friend sitting next to me still didn't understand, until the film then explained it and then she gasped. It was a theatre of people gasping at different moments as they realized the shocking twist. One of the greatest theatre experiences of my life. I rode the metro home after in complete silence, the film playing in my head over and over. I'll never forget this film! Great video analysis!

[@thegreenreels]

First of all, thank you for the kind words! Really appreciate it. And ohhhhh shit, that sounds amazing hahahaha! I wish I could've watched this movie in theaters, or at least with other people. I'm definitely with your friend on that one, I think because it's such an effed up taboo the idea didn't even cross my mind, then it throws the big reveal at you and in retrospect it all kinda makes sense. I will say that, just like with you, this movie stuck with me throughout the night. Unforgettable film indeed!

[@Kill0it0with0a0Lemon]

I actually guessed it when they said that she was r**ed in prison. I just thought, how could this be even worse. And they always specified the name. Seriously they were all victims. If they just had let her leave in the beginning.

[@dumbidea1007]

I remember reading the book it was totally trash I hated all of it The ending was pure shock. The writing was sounding so self righteous and annoying. The thing is that the brother hated his mother and never wanted to even bother with it but the sister pushed him, It was the epitome of pretentious writhing. Honestly I only think it got so popular because the writer was an immigrant and this was distributed as an important book rather than a good one. That was pretty much the big sell. Like the brother who was a boxer couldn’t win until he delivered the letter. and the mother was supposedly seen by all as pretty much a saint. The more down to earth story of Villeneuve is without a doubt an upgrade. The child/dad was describe as pretty much the devil with every little detail shown as having deep significance This only show how much of a chad deni Villeneuve is as he managed to make a great movie from that trash of a book. I think that peoples underestimate the talent needed to make an adaptation great

[@constancep7632]

I saw this as a play in Montréal, I think it was 2005? It was well-made, well-acted and extremely shocking.

[@DanFromHR]

@@dumbidea1007 lol you sound angry. Have a kit kat

[@Msmithjonesraven]

Today people don't realise how shocking this was at the time when this movie came out, like I remember watching and when I put everything together I was like how the sister reacted. It was insane as my body went cold.

[@JamesBond-hm3bw]

I just couldn’t move and think around 15 minutes after watching it.

[@LeonardoKlotz]

"We've been searching for our brother and our biological father. But what if I tell you, that one plus one, equals... one?"

[@1sobre2]

It’s crazy that this movie is so criminally overlooked, even after Villeneuve went to Hollywood

[@DanFromHR]

I am so angry that I just learned about this movie yesterday!

[@AaronHatcher]

May of his older movies like this one and especially polytechnique are overlooked really because they didn't have a lot of marketing to push them and they came out at a time when no one knew Denis like they do now. Even now that a lot of people know him they still haven't seen his earlier works because they arent ever mentioned when people talk about him or like when he's interviewed he's never asked about them or anything. It's not like how Nolan had his rise from basically a mainstream platform from the beginning but Denis started out having to find much smaller production companies and distribution companies to pick up his film and give him the money and also give him final cut and 100 percent final cut\final edit. Which big studios just aren't going to give you unless you are good enough that they can't make an argument against letting you have final cut /edit. It's a lot rarer than people think. Nolan does have it. And so do alot of the like you know legendary directors but they didn't always buy at the same time some of them always had final cut/final edit from their first big studio film and the reason they secured that type of contract is because of the contract they literally negotiate with the studio when they sign on to make however many films fir how ever much percentage etc. And alot of directors who don't know better don't think about having that in their contract.

[@helloman3676]

It’s not as good as this guy makes it to be….its okay at best.

[@DanFromHR]

No its actually really good @@helloman3676

[@wrestlinginfodude2644]

Lol it's one of the best work of him

[@LeDodgyLodger]

That name is so genius then. They aren’t decendants of their father. They are Incendies of their brother.

[@DanFromHR]

I love that they are both

[@nanardeurlambda]

they are fires from their brother? what does that mean?

[@LeDodgyLodger]

@@nanardeurlambda rather than DEcendant, they are INcendant.

[@LeDodgyLodger]

But the name is clever because it means all of those things. They are aflame from the conflict as well. @@nanardeurlambda

[@alliestevens5264]

​@@nanardeurlambdaincendant = descendant born from incest

[@openbooksalot]

i had never heard of this movie until i stumbled on your video, and i realised a few minutes in that i didn’t want the twist spoiled for me so i went and watched it and then came back. what a masterpiece! even knowing there was a twist, i wasn’t ready for the reveal until the moment the warlord character said the brother ended up at the same prison as their mother. and then my heart just sank, and it was agony to watch them figure it out. the final sequence starting from their mother’s moment at the pool when she’s finally reunited with her son, only to realise he was the man who abused her, to him standing at her grave alone, was gut wrenching but beautifully executed. thank you for posting your thoughts on the movie here, or i might never have known it existed

[@jasonbeaver1061]

EXACTLY WHAT I DID! I wanted to experience a great plot twist so as soon as "spoilers" was mentioned, I went and saw the movie. Glad I did.

[@lenaboyer6981]

Same here, it took me a few months, but I finally just finished the movie and immediately came back to this video. Wow. I figured it out during the scene with the warlord too, and spent the rest of the movie with my hand over my mouth in shock. Phenomenal and devastating.

[@PeloquinDavid]

My favourite Villeneve film also... A modern Greek tragedy that I've taken to calling the most horrific yet inspiring "Mother's Day" film ever - largely because "the Gasp" at the revelation wasn't even the most emotional point in the film for me. What hit me hardest was the reading of the letters - the two to the One and the one to the Two - as well as the dedication in the very final credits "À nos grand-mères" ("To our grandmothers")...

[@dumbidea1007]

The movie is good but when compared to the book you just realize how great Villeneuve is. The book was trash and clear emotional manipulation. The characters had little to no real personality. They wet just props. Here they feel like cold peoples but at least peoples.

[@The_Mosaic]

@@dumbidea1007dire the book end the same as the movie?

[@dumbidea1007]

@@The_Mosaic the father is dead years ago so basically he never learned about it. She basically threw a grenade in her children’s that she mistreated life and left The thing is that they try to make it a big hopeful message but that’s just because they force the character to not have any agency except being props They don’t even really let them feel anything At least in the movie they are actual people

[@jmaguire2232]

I saw this in a theater with my mom around the time it came out lol

[@victorlraines3690]

I appreciate the irony of the addressees of the letters, as you point out, Mr. Peloquin.

[@Jerzius]

I still remember realising everything after she gasped for air. I was with a friend who got it at the same time and turned to me while whispering "i think im having a heart attack". After the movie was done, we stayed in our seats for 15 minutes just sitting there, next to eachother, shaking no with our heads. That film changed my perspective on what cinema can be forever!

[@Aikidjam]

Did you know that Incendies is actually an adaptation from a Theatre piece that is part of a trilogy made by Wajdi Moawad (Lebanese Canadian writer) If anyone has the chance to see them, they are beautifully put on stage, with a stunning scenography and a heart wrenching plots

[@cassiopee26]

Is the trilogy called Incendies or there are different names for each part?

[@Aikidjam]

@@cassiopee26 It's one of them. Another is Littoral I think . You can find them with his name on wiki

[@Andy-o2f]

Incendies is to drama what Hereditary is to horror. A masterpiece.

[@DanFromHR]

I have been quoting you all day on reddit!

[@manuelo4787]

I think Midsommar instead

[@Marc-x6r]

That both are overrated?

[@manuelo4787]

@@Marc-x6r how dare you? Lmao

[@Andy-o2f]

@@Marc-x6r Hey, we don't all see "Top Gun" as the high point of cinema.

[@alm08e]

Vaguely reminds me of an old (2001) rap song by Immortal Technique-- "dance with the devil", but followed out to show the damage inflicted on all parties.

[@sharks9555]

i was just thinking this

[@The_Mosaic]

What do you think happened after? Did Nihad find his children/ sibling. Did they find peace.

[@nightangel3578]

​@@The_Mosaic doubtful

[@DanFromHR]

In the book they did - brother turned out to by gay and was sleeping with one of nihads other kids @@nightangel3578

[@braidedgirl757]

That song broke me...

[@whatisraga3401]

No scene has ever shocked me this much.

[@sedlyholmes3722]

What was the twist?

[@dominickscalpi5686]

​@@sedlyholmes3722their father and brother were the same man.

[@dominickscalpi5686]

Idk check out the movie Antichrist with Willem Dafoe. I've sat through a lot of fuuuuuucked up flicks but that one really messed me up for a while. There are scenes from that film that were so horrific they are burned in my brain and will be there forever

[@yurilouback6331]

Honestly...Didn't impress me much. Incest in fiction is such a cheap tool to shock the audience. Have seen it dozens of times. The most disgusting example probably came from 'A Serbian Film'.

[@derricktalbot8846]

wouldn't those kids be something closer to abominations that perfectly formed and thinking individuals?

[@BloodSynthetic]

The point is it wasnt so much plot twist ,he gives you all the infos to make you suspicious of the twist from the scene we see him in prison because his face is very similar to the kid in opening scene HE IS THAT KID ,from that scene i started to figure out whats happening . The film is masterpiece because Villeneuve dont care about the typical plot twist ,he gives you all the informations from almost the middle of the film ,the power of the film at the end is the two separate letters to the same person and how everyone reacts to the truth

[@_regine]

The information starts close to the beginning, see Collatz conjecture (Jeanne's math talk).

[@skelletorjo3227]

I had a hunch that was what would happen. Kind of wish I missed it, it's more impactful that way.

[@Aeraleach]

@@skelletorjo3227for me it was when the warlord said that their brother worked in the prison and didn't work together with the rapist.

[@Peanut77743]

I expected this when I saw the guy torturing her. He looked EXACTLY like an older version of the kid, but then I thought how could he have grown up so quickly? So I thought that's not possible, but then it was exactly that

[@MrKrtek00]

While I really like the original Oldboy, this twist sounds way more natural than the final twist of Oldboy

[@ggthewhale]

This is much more poignant and gut wrenching. Oldboy's is more of an "oh sh*t..." moment

[@dariolivaja978]

Oldboy is a masterpiece!

[@jacobf2833]

I just watched Oldboy about a month ago and Incendies tonight and after seeing this, Oldboy's twist ending was the first thing that came to mind as well, as they are very similar.

[@lucajack007]

Oldboy has nothing against this

[@dariolivaja978]

@@lucajack007 yes, Oldboy is a better movie

[@amberrobinson5118]

I watched this back in the service, around 2012, maybe? I think about the end’s plot twist to this day. Just,..randomly. And it still jars me. It never doesn’t.

[@Faby07aleixo]

I literally cried with the twist. I cannot imagine the pain.

[@suzygirl1843]

So, the mother gets raped twice? First by some dictator and again by her own son? She gets the twins by her son?

[@fennydobson1378]

That is the gasp you make when you're at home and realised you've been on mobile data for the past 8 hours.

[@naivenostalgia]

😂

[@comicallylargename]

U JUST FUCKING REMINDED ME THANK YOU

[@Lanya_24]

I love Denis Villeneuve, but I never watched that movie and don't think I will. I watched the play when I was younger and I still remember the shock and horror of this plot twist. Everyone in the theatre gasped at the same time and you then felt a kind of deep silence setting in afterwards. I was just silently crying in my seat for the remainder of the play. I'm sure Denis Villeneuve did an amazing job, because to put that story on screen and conveying these emotions surely wasn't easy. But feeling this shock once was enough for me. It's been around 15 years and I still remember it as if it was yesterday.

[@pattidean4109]

I stopped your video halfway through to go rent the movie. MOST INSANE PLOT TWIST EVER!!! And it was presented so masterfully it was beautiful. Thank you for sharing this movie with us!

[@fraydizs7302]

I literally did that as well lol. I stopped watching right after he said "Spoiler warning" and immediately rented the film. Best decision ive made in a while. It was fantastic.

[@pattidean4109]

@@fraydizs7302 I'm SO glad I watched it. Now I can't stop thinking about it!

[@opo3628]

When it was mentioned that the siblings had both a father AND a brother that they never knew, I figured out the twist.

[@SuigaRou]

Same. But if I'm being honest, I might not have if I was just watching the movie. The title of this video already had me front loading the worst case scenario, which was the father being the brother.

[@SingingSealRiana]

Knowing there will BE a Plot Twist makes IT extreamly easy to guess, now I got to watch the movie whatever IT IS AS obvious there or not

[@valentine9178]

Watching the movie I found out what the twist was when she was raped by Abu Tarek at prison. I think that if you watch the movie knowing there's a twist at the end it's pretty obvious to find out, but watching it without having a clue must be really impactful

[@mrragaman7270]

The thing about movies is you can figure out the twist before the act but you still watch the whole movie cos you just want to confirm which makes you haven't figured it out to be true... You just hope that you figure out the twist at the end of the movie

[@DanielRaez93]

That gasp is the biggest jumpscare in this movie.

[@anthonyshoop575]

The Marquis de Sade actually wrote a story very similar called Florville and Courville. I might have spelled it wrong. I remember finishing the story and thinking that if the devil decided to write a story it would be this.

[@chriswelter3859]

I saw this movie YEARS ago. I had no idea it was a Villeneuve joint. That dude has ALWAYS been good

[@pushindaisies5327]

Your video just showed up in my feed today. I watched this movie about 8 months ago. It is burned incandescent into my brain. There aren't a lot of movies out there that affect you so viscerally. The muted colours of the clothes and the backgrounds, except for certain scenes, the character development, the way things are revealed to the audience, this is the kind of movie that deserves recognition. Thank you for your analysis of the twist.

[@miragaiamaia8966]

oh i watched this movie, somehow i am glad i forgot the tittle, but as soon as 00:22 in i recognized it and shivers went down my spine... i will never forget this movie but i don't want to ever watch it again and i never talk about it with anyone... the level of evil is too high for me to describe it. makes me wonder how some minds reach this dark places.... and yet, reality is not much different sometimes...

[@Moritz19081980]

"and yet, reality is not much different sometimes" Believe me: Reality is more evil and can be more gruesome than any movie could ever depict.

[@MollyHJohns]

Fiction is often based off of reality, but diluted or exaggerated depending on what they want to show you.

[@mrbenn1489]

@@MollyHJohns "...they want to show you...." Interesting, as I thought a silly little girl, reared on indoctration rather than education. Saturated in all that is liberal and left, steeped in blinkered hypocrisy. Nevermind one day you'll grow up.

[@MollyHJohns]

@@mrbenn1489 sir this isn't Reddit

[@The_Room_2_Doggys_Revenge]

wow, bringing the song of healing at the end was just the icing on the cake

[@tutiens7943]

I watched this movie. That 3 dots tattoo scene by swimming pool, really made shocked, angry, sad, until today.

[@SelfPhoenix]

If you like the movie, I suggest you read the play, from Wajdi Mouawad wich the movie is adapting. There is a lot that Villeneuve had to skip for it to make a movie that hold in a 2 hours film. The play is incredible (pretty much everything wajdi mouawad did is incredible) and has so much depth in it, you wont be surprise by the twist, but it's pretty fast to read and is so engaging.

[@durvangbrid3764]

Where can i get the script??

[@SelfPhoenix]

@@durvangbrid3764 the play has the same name, so pretty much everywhere where you can buy some theatre books I think

[@ianlogan6632]

Thanks Pretentious. I stopped your vid as soon as the title came up and I watched the movie, then came back to your video. Quite agree; what a story! And how well paced, shot and cast ...

[@S133pyy]

One of the best movies I have ever seen. Left me speechless

[@darceysinclair8929]

Incendies? more like Incesties

[@amandabeaty1492]

I saw it coming. I just knew. They wouldn't have featured the torcherer so prominently if he didn't play a major twist in the plot. What's worse is that they let him into Canada...

[@karol-ys5ow]

the way this is the only movie where i predicted the plot twist correctly... yet the realization was just as shocking and terrifying

[@diazpayne2075]

One of my most favorite movie! The end really devastated me and left me emotional an hour after the credits roll. That's how much impact it had on me. I'm overjoyed with all the success Denis Villeneuve is getting these days.

[@mirandachristina3412]

You've done this film justice. It's truly horrifying.

[@partypooper2591]

I've watched a LOT of movies in my life and normally, if it's a good film, I'll tell people, "you should watch it". "Incendies" is the only movie I tell people, "don't watch it!" I've banned my wife and children from watching it. This movie is too raw. He made EVERY SINGLE character in this movie into a real human being, even the warlord. They are not cartoon characters; each one of them has humanity. That's not something you get from Hollywood. That's mostly just dumbed down stuff. Cheap trills. This, this thing is a real story. It feels like these are real people. And it made me think, "all over the world, there are people, just like this, living lives wrecked by horrific events outside their control". That's why this movie is terrifying.

[@arturgaudenzi9767]

I just had goosembumps right after you said you had goosebumps at THAT part. That is a timeless plot twist that everytime will crawl under our skin

[@dommyboysmith]

Ughhh. Thanks for this video essay. Some movies I'm glad I didn't watch... This was one of them. I'd be thinking about it for months.

[@mlisaj1111]

Yeah. This seems like a really well done and important screenplay, then movie….but not one I would sit through, as there are enough shocking or depressing stories around irl. But glad it was made and that others watched.

[@sydneylawson484]

clicked on this video on a whim - never heard of this movie. Now I'm devastated and subscribed.

[@michaelmccauley648]

Great synopsis of one of the most powerful films I’ve ever seen. “Incendies” and “The Kite Runner” are two of my very favorite international films and both are difficult to watch. Audiences who don’t care for foreign films due to the language barrier or captions miss out on fantastic movie experiences.

[@MlleAudree]

It would have been great to mention that this movie is an adaption from a theater script by wajdi mouawad which is the masterpiece in itself, even better and gutwrenching than the movie. Yet Villeneuve did a great job but the credit is not all his.

[@saky29]

"One plus one, that makes two... one plus one is two, it cannot be one... Jeanne...One plus one, does it make one?" Heart plunging and gut wrenching the realization. Masterful cinema piece. A demonstration that life does not give a shit and some people encounter themselves in the worst situations, victim of outside circumstances, personal, social, political, economic...Whatever that is, life doesn't give a shit. Cruel as that may be, is the truth, that is life for many people.

[@camh1149]

This gasp, is the most significant, poignant moment of acting in movie I had ever seen. It stayed with me for days, if not weeks.

[@eli_s315]

I found this video while scrolling on YT and decided to watch it, but I stopped right before you revealed what the actual twist was. Then, several months after, I decided to watch the movie (just finished it). I guess it was because I knew there was a twist coming and was actively looking for it, but I took a wild guess and got it right. Regardless, when the contents of the letters are revealed, I bawled my eyes out. It really is an amazing piece of art, this movie, and I couldn't have known about it if not for you, so I came here again and finished watching the video. Thanks for this; I'll never forget this film.

[@hey_its_heather]

i have never heard of this movie, knew nothing about it but THAT gasp…I knew…I just knew to be that sound it had to be that and I was right 😭 and it did indeed make the hair on the back of my neck rise and made my heartbeat increase and also probably elevated my blood pressure. that is an absolutely horrific plot twist

[@BirdArvid]

I love his films; he's by no means the greatest film-maker ever, but it's a testament to his greatness that he can make blockbuster-scale films, like Dune (I & II) Blade Runner 2049 and Arrival, just as intense and interesting as his small-scale dramas, like Polytechnique, Incendies and Enemy; by focusing on the people, their dramas and thus the core of the stories, he refuses to let his blockbusters disappear in mindless explosions and gun-battles. We care about Chani, and Joe, and Louise and her daughter, just as much as we do the twins in Incendies, or Adam/Anthony in Enemy. That's the skill which to me elevates Dune I&II over most other blockbusters with the same sort of budget. Incendies was the last of his films I saw; I had a hunch it would be gut-wrenching and difficult, and well... it was. Great film.

[@gringopistolero]

A modern version of Oedipus Rex?

[@tata_maikeu]

I recommend y'all to watch Oldboy (2003) directed and co-written by Park Chan-wook

[@lubomir3122]

This channel is about to be so big. Keep up the good work man!

[@blackdynamite_5470]

Yeah, in 8 years It's been a year since your comment and subs are currently at 4800

[@kjd-s5b]

This movie is basically the real-life Greek tragedy.

[@EnoVarma]

The same plot twist idea is found in John Sayles's masterpiece Lone Star. While the circumstances aren't as brutal (and on the nose) as in Incendies, the emotional punch is far more devastating. In a far more subtle and better movie.

[@Ummuri2000]

Watched this for French class in high school. I don’t think that was the best choice

[@Cjeska]

I started to watch this video, then paused it before any spoilers, watched the movie and came back to finish the video.

[@merchernel123]

I wish I had decided to watch it before I finished this video, but WOW. I want to cry after just watching this. How absolutely devastating to to the souls of every character. For what? For whom? Persons and ideals that doesn't know they exist and could care less what they had to suffer.

[@merchernel123]

For what..? Exactly how the film wants you feel at the end. Well, let me not write like I just spoke with the director, lol. I do think that was the big question he meant to be suffocating the whole tragic story. But the brother and sister are the hope and the healing. The breakaway from the horrors that brought them there. Oh...I'm doing it again. My b.

[@javierkrick6418]

What I liked about how they reveal the information that Abou Tarek is the brother is that they give you time to figure it out on your own. First, the leader of the rebels hints that Nihad (the brother) worked as a torturer, but not necessarily with Abou Tarek. That already made me suspect the possibility. In the next scene, the brother repeatedly says "1+1=1," which gives you enough information and time to confirm it (or discover it if you hadn't realized yet). Then, I took the final sigh as a reward for having understood where the plot was heading. Excellent movie, and as you said, it's a horrifying plot twist. I just finished watching it.

[@rickybobbysdriver555]

This is the first film of his I got to see. The twist is so insane that I had to rewatch it to make sure I got it correctly. The idea of that twist and the realization that the characters have to express that with their faces is just amazing. Great film.

[@JerryRios_]

This movie was a true story telling. A masterpiece. I could not pause the movie to do anything else. The actors are superb. The writing, incredible. Cinematography so real and took me to a place I could never imagine.

[@clayes4143]

I am very Glad I paused this video, watched the movie and returned...wow.

[@Xerosch]

I did the same. Finished the movie 10 minutes ago and even though I knew something was coming I was completely unprepared.

[@clayes4143]

@@Xeroschyup jaw still dropped haha

[@alejandroa.1209]

I just watched it for the first time and I’m sure that gasp will give goosebumps for years to come

[@cookingandmakeup]

One of the best movies I've ever seen

[@madz2013]

My brain literally would not let me comprehend what was happening. My first thought was "wait that's not the torturer is it?" and I was confused for a few minutes because I literally could not accept the fact that they would have a twist that vile. Actually sick to my stomach. The casting was almost too good because I often got Nawal and Jeanne mixed up for some reason

[@Mr.Hamburger]

I'm sorry but, can someone breakdown the timeline? What age the mother was when she conceived the first child, how old the mother and first son were when they "met", how old are the current children respectively, and how old was the first son when the siblings met their father? Cus all of that was just crazy!

[@batool2000rox]

The mom was 60 when she died (she was 18 when she had her oldest son, and was probably in her 30's when she had the twins)

[@steveshirato3620]

Disturbingly POWERFUL. Something I have taken for granted all my life, the experience of being a refugee during wartime. What a horrifying depiction, unimaginable. The humanity...oh the humanity. I only recommend this film to certain people. This film is NOT Marvel comics. D. Villeneuve and entire crew (production to actors) demonstrated excellence. BRAVO!

[@vb_blokeboi7251]

Arguably my favourite Villeneuve film, it blew me away the first time I watched it.

[@kobikobikobi]

Pretty late to the pary but the source material for the movie was the play Incendies by Wajdi Mouawad (idk if it's mentioned) but yeah, it has a few different things in it that are also very interesting and tie even more into the themes of the cycle of violence, a really gut wrenching read, not very long, if you've got the time, i recommand y'all read it !!!

[@byronwilliams7977]

This film left me feeling depleted, sick, and emotionally exhausted. Extraordinarily well done, but not a film I could watch more than once.

[@MarianelaAyelenlourdesSajama]

My dislexia or maybe the fact you didnt explain it,I didnt realize that the baby that was taken had been taken many years before the birth of the protagonist,so yeah,it was a really big plot twist for me

[@logansrevenge1214]

Ok. But why send your children through that? No way of knowing if your kids will even survive. Did she just hate her kids? She sent them with no knowledge of who or what they were getting into. A war lord, and torturer, that could have just robbed and killed them.

[@Cxwzkeys]

It is one of the few movies i remember how i finished it watching. My brither told us to watch it and as we did, bot my mom and i (watching it on different times btw) had to put pause when we reslized. I still got chills and i dont remember many other movied that made me feel like that

[@teejaykaye]

I watched this movie and had been tossing an apple to keep my hands occupied. And then we found out the brother went to work in the prison, and I dropped the apple, and did not move for the next twenty minutes of the movie. I knew there was going to be some kind of twist. But that's not what I had been expecting. Not at all.

[@cassjane3]

This was an excellent video! I appreciate the editing and your insights.

[@CMDR_Verm]

I couldn't agree more with several of your choices, especially Blindsight which I re-read regularly, and Cixin Lui's novel which was enormous in its scope. More proof that the critics don't have to be listened to, it's personal taste.

[@will_the_don]

This is a really great first date movie!

[@leftifornian2066]

Did you get to third base ?

[@will_the_don]

@@leftifornian2066 😏

[@sarahingreen9734]

I will never forget this film or the twist. It's so horrifying and perfect. Just watching that scene again, I got the goose bumps all over again. What a horrifying moment of realisation.

[@redfeather22sa]

I wouldn't say it shocked me . but it deeply moved touched me like no others have..

[@ShaneMichealCupp]

If you haven’t heard the song “Dance With The Devil” by Immortal Technique i recommend it. It’s a lot like Incendies

[@Aggaleiden070]

That gasp still sends shivers down my spine

[@ILoveLamp_1995]

Just listening to this is emotional. Especially since there are people who have lived lives very similar to this film, or are currently living them. It's heartbreaking 💔

[@Ira__L]

I liked Prisoners and then Politechnique even more. Prisoners was the first movie by Villeneuve that I saw in 2013, it was in Ukraine, in a cinema in a mall that of course later ceased to exist thanks to russians. Anyway during the screening, in the first half of the movie, there was a blackout for 10 - 15 min, but no one got up and left, everyone waited. Usually if it's a mall some people tend to go and return or not return at all because there are other things you can do outside, but everyone felt how good that movie was. It was perfect in terms of plot, editing, score, everything. I have rewatched it 2 or 3 times and I'm almost incapable of rewatching anything even once (except Nolan films merely to understand the plot better), but Prisoners to me is something else, it's perfect as a film. And it's not a blockbuster, not an Oscar worthy drama, just a humble mystery.

[@redfeather22sa]

Sir , I salute you for putting that so well together. It was a horrific deep film. Wonder what else in life is like that. It probably all is if you go far enough. I salute you ❤ in the very least for bringing attention light to this extremely well made film with brilliant actors that needs to be seen by all..

[@KunalKumarMoorjani]

I remembered when this first came out and I was probably 1 out of 10 people in a small Vancouver theatre. I cried knowing the twist and it put me on a dark mood for the rest of my day. I also felt exhilarated because this was such emotional storytelling and direction. Now Villeneuve seems to be making grand but dry movies without much emotional heft. I guess the power of money and the promise of grand storytelling won over his roots (see also the pretty horrific Polytechnique)

[@DanFromHR]

I randomly came across your video yesterday and I only stayed because I heard "The Last of Us" soundtrack - I had no idea I would get into a rabbit hole of obsession and being completely overtaken by this incredible story. Thank you.

[@checkpeck]

quite agree, the twist blew my mind

[@wadewilson8011]

Dude you must have never heard of Oldboy. Pretty similar twist at the end of the day. Just a shocking and sick.

[@Thathorrorguy12FU]

Lol. I recognized the twist immediately. And I didn't watch the movie. Just this video. As soon as I saw the guy investigating her and breaking her down. I said that's the brother and their father. Don't ask how. I've just seen a lot of movies man.

[@guillermomedina7793]

Same

[@connar-zm3gx]

I thought it would be something similar because I immidatly started to think of old boy

[@sparda9060]

yeah soon as the scene of mother being tortured and then bit later said she was graped in the torture, i knew that twins was the children of that torturer. Then I went back to look at the kids face and see that he looks too much like torturer and that mother's first born was taken away and turned into child soldier, i already figured out that the torturer was the son and brother.

[@TheBHNetwork]

You're so cool bro

[@TheBHNetwork]

@@sparda9060 Do you not feel pathetic lying to strangers on the internet to seem smart? 🤣

[@Coffeeandcandycanes]

I remember watching this for my french class, when everyone realized who he was we were all freaking out! I still think about this movie sometimes.

[@JacobR-p4y]

Great vid man, I just feel sorry for anyone who watched this before watching the actual film.

[@roger2599]

i guessed that abou tarek was the first son since the guy's chin matches the boy's chin in the intro who had the 3 dots in his foot, and i kept telling to myself "nah that would be weird asf"

[@atenistaako9672]

Letting people know that there's a twist is a massive spoiler. It's like ruining a surprise. Nice work.

[@bellacruz6763]

After that gasp, I kept repeating "no..maybe not...maybe...nooo...."

[@monfisch]

This movie is so good. It’s so painful. The plot twist was gut wrenching. It’s some of the most taboo stuff in human nature and this movie portrayed it without judgement. That final scene with the 1st son at his mother’s grave is so sobering.

[@ShinyGolduck5]

We watched this movie in French class in High School and the twist left us all with mouths wide open, just....

[@rajarajanmohan5249]

If this twist wrecked you, Oldboy (2003) might kill you!

[@Charliem1994]

I doubt it, this twist is much more horrifying. The son raped the mother and had offspring which is much more disturbing than Oldboy

[@rajarajanmohan5249]

@@Charliem1994 This is horrifying, but in Oldboy it’s not non-consensual or forced (barring the hypnosis part). The father was made to fall in love and made to connect emotionally with his own daughter. Even in the end it was left ambiguous if he made himself forget Mido is his own daughter or the fact that he had sex with his daughter. The open ended implications felt much more horrifying for me.

[@vidaenello]

Nah, oldboy was cool but when you watch it you know it's just a movie, it almost feels like an anime. This is real shit.

[@thenablade858]

⁠@@rajarajanmohan5249 It being forced is worse. At least Mido doesn’t know what’s going on, while Nawal knew her son was her torturer.

[@artpot]

i was so sure he was going to off himself after reading the letters but there he was just standing at his mothers grave. gut wrenching is an understatement. horrible situation for everyone.

[@HZ-fg9sf]

Wow just wow... Thank you for introducing the movie to those of us who have never heard of it before. I would have been too young at the time of release to watch it and understand all the themes and layers of critique the film presented. Upon stumbling on this video essay, I immediately went to watch it. It was such a griping experience. Felt like I was holding my breath the whole time in anticipation and dread, waiting for the shoe to drop. Such a smartly constructed film and still so relevant to what is going on right now.