Giuseppe S
In 1975, Marco Ferreri, in his masterpiece "Le Grande Bouffe," unearths the bones of decadent bourgeoisie in a visceral feast of excesses. Ferreri's masterful direction is evident in the intense characterization of the protagonists: Ugo, the misunderstood chef; Michel, the divorced television presenter; Marcello, the priapic pilot; Philippe, the magistrate subservient to the childhood nanny.
The plot unfolds in a villa near Paris, where the four friends retreat for a supposed "gastronomic seminar," which turns out to be an epic binge of food, sex, and self-destruction. Ferreri employs powerful visual symbols, such as the Boileau linden tree and the Bugatti, to emphasize social decadence.
The culinary orgy is a celebration of obscenities, with details ranging from Parmesan to animal flesh acrobatics, reaching its peak in Michel's aerophagic performance. The presence of three prostitutes and the schoolmistress Andrea adds layers of perversity.
In a fetishistic climax, Marcello ignites the Bugatti, an icon of lust and speed, symbolizing the acceleration toward their final destiny. Ferreri challenges the audience to explore human decadence through the blend of pleasure and self-destruction.
In short, "Le Grande Bouffe" is a decadent symphony, a provocative reflection on declining bourgeoisie. Ferreri transforms food and sex into instruments of social dissolution, inviting the audience to a cynical feast that flings open the doors of decadence.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
02/04/24
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g j
A repulsive masterpiece in the same vein as Pasolini's Salo
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
10/20/23
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Audience Member
La Grande Bouffe is a film about a group of friends who decide to spend a weekend in a house together where they will eat themselves to death. They feed into some of their other desires as well, but that’s pretty much all there is to the plot. The film didn’t start off well for me because they never establish a reason why these men wanted to do this, and why this was their chosen method of suicide. (It even takes a while before they establish what they are doing, but I had read the plot description on the back of the DVD box before watching.) The characters all have unique personalities, but they seem a bit exaggerated as if they are caricatures. None of them are all that likable, but I’m not sure if they were intended to be anyways. My guess is that the characters are supposed to be a symbolic representation or something like that, but I rarely “get” symbolism unless it directly relates to something in my own life. The one positive I can say about La Grande Bouffe is that it created a powerful reaction in me. I was disgusted early on, and that didn’t change for most of the film. I also wouldn’t say that I was particularly bored by the film, because it seemed like there was always another course coming and the characters were like a ticking time bomb. More than anything I was puzzled by the movie. It all seemed so needless and pointless. They managed to make some of the most decadent food unappealing, which is an accomplishment (I guess,) but not something I enjoy in any way. They also introduce a female character who sticks around for at least half of the movie, and I couldn’t figure out why she remained with them. Motivation for all the characters was a mystery to me, and I guess I need that to be clearer to fully enjoy a movie. I didn’t despise La Grande Bouffe, as I expected I would, but it did nothing to make me like it either.
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
06/10/19
Full Review
Audience Member
It is very gross and dark and I guess to some a bit disturbing. But it truly is art.
It takes a concept and goes off the wall with it by not slacking off but being absolutely ambitious.
La Grande Bouffe (The Big Feast) is a great movie.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/03/23
Full Review
dan m
Watched this on recommendation by Anthony Bourdain. It's 90% watching people eat, and I'm thinking what the hell is the point of this? Four older French dudes just going to town on food, hire some hookers for the weekend and that's pretty much it. There's some very odd scenes, the oddest featuring one of the guys, and I'm not making this up, shitting himself to death. I guess it's funny in a morbid sorta way? Actually I can see why Bourdain likes this.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
The more grotesque, disgusting and atrocious, 'La Grande Bouffe' gets- and goes quite far...-- the more memorable it becomes. Since its excessive repulsiveness corresponds to the excessiveness of the orgy depicted, this Franco-Italian curiosity achieves to be as nauseaus as eating its grub while sick--that is, physically disturbing. A disagreable but remarkable effect which justifies a perhaps too generous rating for such a peculiar film. Rotten, certainly, but fascinatingly rotten as well.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
02/13/23
Full Review
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