Critics have often debated Noé’s relationship with feminism. While Lux Æterna highlights the vulnerability of women on set, some argue that it lacks an authentic female perspective, treating Gainsbourg and Dalle more like "props" in Noé's grand audiovisual experiment. However, by making the audience experience the same "mental and spiritual gauntlet" as the characters, Noé forces an aggressive form of empathy. The film suggests that in the pursuit of "Eternal Light" (the literal translation of Lux Æterna ), the process of creation often burns those it intends to illuminate. Conclusion
Underneath the flashing lights, Lux Æterna functions as a critique of power and the "tyrannical behavior" inherent in creative industries. The "film-within-the-film" requires actresses to be tied to stakes, mirroring the very witch trials they are portraying. The chaos on set—driven by male producers and paparazzi—becomes a modern-day trial where the female creative voice is sidelined or "sacrificed" for the sake of the image. Lux AEterna(2019)
Technically, Lux Æterna is defined by Noé’s aggressive use of split-screen and stroboscopic lighting. For much of its runtime, the frame is divided, forcing the viewer’s attention to dart between simultaneous perspectives of the collapsing set. This "diptych" approach creates a sense of frantic, uncontrollable energy; while one side of the screen shows a producer plotting to fire the director, the other shows the director herself trying to manage a distracted crew. The film suggests that in the pursuit of
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In the filmography of Gaspar Noé, a director defined by his sensory brutality and "bad boy" reputation, Lux Æterna (2019) occupies a unique space. Originally commissioned as a promotional short for the fashion house Yves Saint Laurent, the film evolved into a 51-minute "essay on cinema" that blends meta-narrative, experimental technique, and a visceral reflection on the history of women in art. It is a work that captures the chaotic, fragile intersection where high-fashion commerce meets avant-garde extremism. The Meta-Narrative of Chaos
The premise—the filming of an experimental movie about witch trials—is an explicit homage to cinematic history. Noé punctuates the film with quotes from legendary directors like Carl Theodor Dreyer and Rainer Werner Fassbinder, alongside clips from silent-era films like Häxan and Day of Wrath . By doing so, he establishes a parallel between the historical persecution of "witches" and the contemporary mistreatment of actresses under the directorial "male gaze." Visual Anarchy and Split-Screen Synchronicity
Detail the (like Häxan or 2001: A Space Odyssey ) mentioned in the film.