In the opening scene of Gaspar Noe's Climax (2018), the books and VHS tapes on the shelf are significant stylistic and thematic influences. (Explanation in comments)

[u/Ulysses1984]

Climax begins in a mockumentary fashion with characters being interviewed for a prestigious dance group. Director Gaspar Noe presents these interviews on an old-fashioned tv set. The books and films on the shelf surrounding the tv are significant influences.

For instance, one character quotes German philosopher Nietzsche in her interview (“what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”) and a book by Nietzsche can be found in the stack to the left of the tv set.

The VHS tapes to the right of the tv set include examples of transgressive arthouse films, including Argento’s Suspiria (a violent film which also features dance), Pasolini’s Salo, and Zulawski’s Possession. Noe’s Climax follows in this tradition of confrontational arthouse filmmaking.

Source: Interview with Director Gaspar Noe for Polygon

[u/M4rkusD]

Great movie. Saw it for the first time in a small independent theatre in Lithuania. I learned that day that French and Lithuanian have the same word for nightmare: cauchemar/kosmaras.

[u/waltjrimmer]

Today I learned that Eraserhead was reissued as Labyrinth Man in some foreign markets.

[u/BeMancini]

I won’t say anything bad about this movie. I understand who Gaspar Noe is, but I was disappointed at this movie as it wasn’t what I thought it was going to be.

What I was expecting was a trippy, breaking of reality film, where the hallucinations and reality bleed into each other. I thought that characters who die or get killed would reappear, and then the bodies found again, leaving the audience confused as to what happened or what was happening. What is the hallucination, and what is the reality? I thought we’d leave the dance studio despite the reality of the movie all taking place within the dance studio. Go places and then re enter the dance studio space to confirm we actually never left.

Instead, we see with a sober eye, from a third-person perspective (albeit very artfully shot), people freaking out for a long time. And that’s fine, I was just disappointed. Watch it for the opening dance scene, and then the one part where she stares at the painted forest mural and screams and moans a whole bunch.

[u/Ccaves0127 → u/BeMancini]

I think the honest answer to what you said is that he already made that movie, and it's called Enter the Void. He wanted to do something different this time.

[u/anko_sensei]

Such an excellent and stressful film I will not watch again 😅 I do love that the director did this in the beginning and throughout the film. Lots of little details.

[u/pratik-10]

What doesn't kill you makes you STRANGER ~ JOKER

[u/toomanymarbles83]

Did Noe refer to the DVDs as VHS tapes or is that OPs error?

You all can downvote me all you want. Or, you could take a closer look at the movies. I'm in my 40s. I had a VHS collection as a young kid. Guess what, unless it was one of those Disney clam shell cases, the tape wouldn't be round on the sides. It would be flat. Some of these movies are very, very obviously not VHS tapes.

[u/Ulysses1984 → u/toomanymarbles83]

These are vhs tapes. The film is set in 1996, which explains the tapes and the old fashioned television set.

[u/toomanymarbles83 → u/Ulysses1984]

Harakiri is literally in a bluray case. VHS tapes never looked that round unless they were the Disney clamshell covers, which these aren't. Guess what, movies are smoke and mirrors. Noe printed out the VHS covers of the movies he wanted, which were probably more than the size available on screen, so he used DVD cases. If they were VHS covers, they would look as flat as the books on the left side.

[u/ellzray → u/toomanymarbles83]

Im with you. These are not VHS clamshells. Too thin, too round. They wouldn't have been clamshells anyway; they'd have been carboard sleeves. Super square, all exatly the same size, wear on the edges.

I grew up alongside VHS, worked a Blockbuster for years. I know a VHS when I see one. None here lol.

[u/toomanymarbles83 → u/ellzray]

Also missing is the little crescent cut out of the bottom for gripping the tape.

[u/C0gD1z]

I absolutely hated this movie. It felt like I was watching a racist, anti-drug propaganda movie, made by the government in the 1940’s.

The opening dance sequence slaps though. I’ll give it that. Everything else, awful, bigoted and over the top.

[u/8BlackMamba24 → u/C0gD1z]

Did not get any of those vibes lmao

[u/C0gD1z → u/8BlackMamba24]

Really? The African immigrants devolving into animalistic rapists didn’t come off as a bit racist to you?

[u/thataintapipe → u/C0gD1z]

Everyone lost their mind?

[u/C0gD1z → u/thataintapipe]

It’s funny. Everyone I’ve talked to who has taken LCD agrees that it’s completely over exaggerated and everyone who hasn’t says it’s completely plausible and that’s what happens when you take drugs.

Bad trips happen and a bunch of people getting dosed without knowing very well could lead to terrible things happening, but to make the black men overly aggressive and rapey is just overtly racist and not even trying to hide it.

[u/thataintapipe → u/C0gD1z]

It’s a horror movie, that’s not what happens on “LCD”

You are reaching, do you also think the director believes women are stupid because the one actress gets stuck in her own pantyhose?

[u/C0gD1z → u/thataintapipe]

Look it’s not much of a reach when there are articles on mainstream news sites about it:

Yahoo: Noe perpetuates barbaric racist stereotypes

To each his own. I’ll admit I’m not a fan of Noe. I think he goes for shock value and calls it art. His whole career has been marred by accusations of homophobia, racism and misogyny that are always deflected with comments about his films just putting a mirror up to society and not actually being a reflection of his thoughts. But where there’s smoke…

[u/thataintapipe → u/C0gD1z]

I would say that op Ed by a light skin woman is also a bit of a reach. At same time maybe edge lord noe did it on purpose for controversy

[u/robinfeud → u/C0gD1z]

She poured at least a liter of acid into that punch bowl. Just a sip of that, even diluted, would fuck your brain for life

[u/Thelastmathdebator → u/C0gD1z]

I 100% agree with you. Sucks that instead of talking about disagreeing you’ll just get down voted. I dont hate Gasper Noe, but i fuckin hate this movie