Cinematically, there's a fine line between using graphic content to prove a point and using so much graphic material that the film becomes exploitative. It's a line "Irreversible" repeatedly crosses.

In fact, with its unflinching and graphic sexual and violent content (including the much-discussed, nearly 10-minute rape scene), this "urban-horror" film could be accused of being "art-porn." For one thing, it lingers when it shouldn't — and long after the point's already been made.

But perhaps the biggest problem here is that its characters are as repellent and uninteresting as large portions of the film itself. And yes, the rumors are true, the film does unfold backward, "beginning," if you will, with the end credits.

That's about as much of the movie as most audiences will want to see, though. This is one of those "emperor's new clothes" situations. Once you strip away all the artistic pretensions and the showy storytelling methods, all that's left is a fairly standard revenge yarn.

To prove that point, and for the sake of coherence, here's a quick recounting, in reverse order of the way the scenes appear in the movie: Marcus and Alex, a couple (real-life couple Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci), are planning to go to a party with her ex-boyfriend, Pierre (Albert Dupontel). But they wind up getting into an argument when Marcus gets high. Then, while walking through an underground tunnel, Alex is confronted by and sexually assaulted by a pimp who leaves her for dead. The enraged Marcus roams the streets of Paris looking for the pimp, with the reluctant Pierre in tow.

The material is definitely shocking, but it's not nearly as deep as writer-director Gaspar Noe apparently believes it is. Then there are his pretensions about being the next Stanley Kubrick. (We get the point, Gaspar, you didn't have to show us the "2001" poster to prove it!)

It's difficult to judge the quality of the performances because the characters are so underdeveloped as to be caricatures, especially Cassel's Marcus, who is downright unlikable.

"Irreversible" is not rated but would certainly receive an NC-17 rating for brutal scenes of violence (beatings), excessive use of strong sex-related profanity and crude sexual slang terms, full male and female nudity, a lengthy scene depicting rape, graphic gore, simulated sex and sex acts (both gay and straight), simulated drug use (cocaine) and racial epithets. Running time: 95 minutes.

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E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com