THE DEFINITION OF "IS"

Exterminating Angels

Audiences confused by the detailed sensuality in Exterminating Angels should understand something: French filmmaker Jean-Claude Brisseau has essentially created autobiographical porn. The director went to trial late last year to face charges from disgraced actresses who claimed he forced them to masturbate for him while auditioning for his 2002 thriller Secret Things (they didn’t land the roles). Indeed, Brisseau seems to have coaxed several women into pleasuring themselves during private rehearsal sessions, but if you believe the stance put forth in Angels, his motives were entirely professional. The court’s verdict was a suspended jail sentence and a hefty fine, but now viewers have the option of judging the case for themselves.

Read the rest of the review in the New York Press...