Speaking to Fandango, Joaquin Phoenix emphasized that IMAX is definitely “the way to see it!” He explained why:
“I was definitely squirming in my seat. First of all, I’m laughing at the whole damn movie. There’s a couple of sequences where I’m squirming, I mean, things that [Ari Aster] I did with the sound design, it was really cool. It’s such a rich world, and there’s so much detail to see in it. It is one hundred percent a movie that you feel. There are so many rich and complex themes in this film, but it is such a visceral experience to watch. Then you leave, and when that feeling wears off, you start thinking about it.”
Ari Aster himself also expressed that the big screen format is “the definitive way to see the film” in an interview with CBC News, explaining that “it took him a long time […] bury a lot in the tapestry” and that the IMAX conversion felt like a new experience after “watching the movie hundreds and hundreds of times” in the editing room. He went on to say:
“Seeing it in IMAX was the first time I was really able to see some of this detail in the deep background and it came alive again for me. […] Seeing it in this format encourages the viewer to search the frame and see what they can find.”
“Beau is Afraid” is an intentionally overwhelming mind-bending odyssey that some have called a “three-hour panic attack” in a very wryly affectionate way. It only makes sense to see this kind of maddening spectacle in the biggest and loudest venue possible.
“Beau is Afraid” is already playing in theaters.