If pushed, I could probably make a compelling case that Roman Polanski’s Repulsion is, in fact, the first real modern horror film. At a time when tremendous cinematic breakthroughs were happening, Polanski made a psychological horror that revealed the genre’s potential. It is ground-breaking film that still holds up remarkably well today.

Repulsion is a film about Carol Ledoux (Catherine Deneuve), a twenty-two-year-old woman who, quite frankly, is the last person you should ask to housesit while you go off for a weekend. Carol has a severe neurosis (I will not spoil it) that she is able to hide by living with her sister and taking a job as a manicurist. She seems functional, but the truth is that Carol is just barely functioning. To make matters worse, her sister’s new boyfriend and the unwanted attention from a Londoner named Colin seem to be triggering additional anxiety. After Carol’s sister runs off to Rome, Carol is left alone with her thoughts and eventual delusions. Carol is about to hit her breaking point, and it is a wild ride.

Repulsion is not an easy film to go into knowing little about, but honestly, the less you know about it the better. Catherine Deneuve really owns this role. To truly appreciate the nuances of her performance, particularly in early scenes, you really need to watch the film twice. At first, she just comes across as being odd and stand offish, which helps explain how she has functioned for so long without anyone recognizing her psychosis. Her obvious beauty and French accent give her unwanted appeal, while allowing Londoners to attribute her neurosis to her just being a foreigner. Repulsion is a film where characters interpret events more by how they want to see it as opposed to how it truly is, so even though Carol lives her life like a walking cry for help, understandably, nobody is going to see it.

To fully appreciate Repulsion, viewers need a keen eye for detail. But everything, from the gloves Carol wears to the way she crosses a street, tell a story. Polanski uses makes use of objects to help illustrate the extent of Carol’s neurosis, with my favourite object being the recurring image and mention of rotting meat. There is also twisted dark humour in the manner the apartment deteriorates, similar to Carol’s own haunted mind. But Polansky also keeps some details hidden, never giving us a definitive understanding as to the causes of Carol’s psychosis, and this leaves viewers with something to think about long after the credit’s role. 

Younger viewers who believe older horror films are too tame might be in for a bit of a surprise when they watch Repulsion. The film contains some very effective jump scares. There are also multiple scenes with rape fantasies and a few scenes of uncomfortably blatant sexual harassment. The scene with the landlord stands outs as being particularly memorable. But Polanski saves his biggest chill for the last scene, where he shows the power a well place image can have to leave an audience floored. In fact, it is amazing how modern Polansky’s film techniques feel almost sixty years later.

Polansky would go on to make other notable psychological horror thrillers like Rosemary’s Baby and The Tenant, but the formula set with Repulsion has likely been his most influential, even though it is Rosemary’s Baby and Chinatown that are generally regarded as his best films. You can see the direct influence of Repulsion on so many films, like Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan or Rose Glass’s Saint Maud, or any other film where a female protagonist walks an interesting line between femme fatal and victim after losing sight of reality. In many ways, Carol Ledoux is the quintessential delusional repressed female archetype, and her tale is one that will be tweaked and retold for generations. And Repulsions most nightmarish images are still copied by filmmakers today.

Hands down, Repulsion is the most innovative film Polansky ever made.