‘Demonlover’ turns 20: Revisiting Chloë Sevigny’s most underrated performance
Olivier Assayas‘ dizzyingly stylish cyber-punk neo-noir thriller Demonlover divided critics upon its release in 2002. Scored by Sonic Youth and performed in a mixture of languages (French, English and Japanese), the film follows in the footsteps of the director’s 1996 film Irma Vep. However, Demonlover is more violent and confronting in its themes, instead falling into the New French Extremity subgenre.
The film sets its tone by instantly introducing themes of violence and betrayal. Immediately, we see a character drugged by her own colleague and thrown into the boot of a car. The culprit, Diane, wants power – and the acquisition of productions from an innovative Japanese hentai company. The lines between good and evil, truth and dishonesty, are blurred as the film progresses, and we are sucked into a world that exists in liminal spaces. No one is tied down, and scenes take place in cars, planes, clinical office buildings, and hotel rooms. Characters appear in Tokyo, speaking through translators, and there is a sense of anonymity in the locations in which they appear. Demonlover blends images of real life with the violent and over-sexualised virtual world, reflecting the disorientating nature of the film’s plot, which makes more metaphorical sense than it does literal.
Demonlover is most interested in exploring the effects of technological advancements and media saturation in a post-9/11 world, where audiences can witness anything their perverted minds can conjure up. The characters are all-consumed by power, greed and money, corrupted by capitalism’s innate competition. In their quest to achieve their aims, the characters lose any sense of morality and humanity. Assayas’ film comments on the coldness of capitalism and the violence that hides behind grand houses, luxurious office spaces and swanky business meetings. He also points to society’s desensitisation towards graphic imagery. Porn is watched indifferently by the characters, and their resorts to violence are treated with a similar detachment.
The film offers some incredible performances from its leading characters. Whilst Nielson shines as Diane, whose name alludes to the mythological figure of the same name – goddess of the hunt, Chloë Sevigny gives a severely underrated performance as the calmly calculated Elise. The American actor speaks in perfect French as Karen’s assistant. Now working for Diane, who she openly expresses distaste for, Elise’s presence increases as the film progresses, and our opinion of her is constantly called into question. Sevigny gives a memorable performance during a later scene between her and Nielson, in which she holds a gun to her colleague’s head and demands she put her foot on the gas.
Although her role is not as significant as Nielson’s, whenever Sevigny appears, she commands the screen, and her presence is truly unforgettable. Her ability to hold her own whilst performing in a foreign language is impressive, and her sudden English-language outbursts are often unexpected yet make her performance even more electrifying. As the film nears its conclusion, who Elise is loyal to becomes apparent, and her hatred for Diane is finally fulfilled. Transporting her to a mysterious location, Diane is forced into a latex bondage outfit and locked in a dungeon-like room. It turns out the company Demonlover is just a cover for The Hellfire Club, a website that livestreams actual images of sadomasochism.
Diane’s coldness backfires, and she becomes a pawn in her own game, forced to endure the tortures she previously saw as profitable. Assayas’ final message is that capitalism and the excess of choice have slowly stripped away our morals, ending with the image of an American schoolboy playing Diane’s torture in the background whilst completing his homework.
Demonlover, tinged in cold blues and often filmed with a shaky handheld lens, creates an unstable and unpredictable atmosphere. The characters’ fates are unimportant, and who is working for who is just secondary. What matters most is the effects that technology, globalisation, capitalism and an oversaturation of choice have on members of society. These characters are devoid of love. Instead, Assayas paints a terrifying picture of a future we are now living in, dominated by powerful figures who will not stop until they get what they want.
