Rendez-vous With French Cinema '11

Highlights from Rendez-vous With French Cinema 2011 film series

Rendez-vous With French Cinema provides interested cinephiles a mirror into the current state of that nation’s industry every year and 2011 did not disappoint. For one thing, this year’s selection proves that ambiguous morality, well-filmed sex, and drinking coffee out of bowls remain strong thematic elements. However, those factors do not sully the wealth and breadth of solid work that is still pumped out. Whether it is by established treasures like Bertrand Tavernier and Claude Lelouch or younger filmmakers like Angelo Cianci and Valerie Donzelli, this program proves that not only are France’s legends still producing quality films but there is no significant shortage of talent coming up behind them. The legacy of the Nouvelle Vague appears to still be intact and Francophiles again had plenty to feast over. Here are a few highlights:

Love Crime (Alain Corneau, 2010) – The final film directed by Alain Corneau before his tragic death in 2010, Love Crime is a fitting end to a long career with a tale that could easily have been conjured up by Claude Chabrol. Playing corporate hunter and prey, Kristin Scott Thomas and Ludivine Sagnier engage in a vicious war of wits and emotions in this darkly comedic thriller. Thomas plays Christine, a high-powered executive at an agricultural multinational whose success lies squarely on the efforts of her intelligent but meek assistant Isabelle (Sagnier). While Christine displays a façade of love and caring for her assistant, Isabelle knows that she is valued only for her abilities and nothing more. When an opportunity arises to distinguish her to the company’s American executives, Isabelle capitalizes on it and effectively scuttles Christine’s own plans for advancement.

Soon the gloves come off as Christine emotionally humiliates her young adversary at every turn, with each attack more vicious than the next. Thomas is deliciously evil in her plotting and one clearly sees the relish she takes in reminding Sagnier who is master. The tale takes an unexpected turn though as Isabelle, backed into a corner, sets out along her own path for revenge which is equal parts shocking and ingenious. Becoming more like Christine than she’d ever imagined she could, the prey becomes the hunter in the most devious manner possible. Together, Sagnier and Thomas play worthy adversaries equaled perhaps in power to John Wayne and Montgomery Clift in Red River. Their performances and the ingenious plotting pay fitting tribute to Corneau’s directorial skill and leave him with a final hurrah to be proud of.

Deep in the Woods (Benoit Jacquot, 2010) – French director Benoit Jacquot returns to the screen again with his frequent muse, Isild Le Besco, in their latest collaboration, Deep in the Woods. Akin to a dark fairy tale in tone, Deep in the Woods follows the exploitive relationship between Josephine (Le Besco), a hysteric, doctor’s daughter and Timothee (Nahuel Perez Biscayart), a grubby, cunning, svengali-like trickster who preys upon the young girl and her family in 19th century-southern France. Attracted to Josephine, Timothee immediately insinuates himself into their household and quickly overpowers the girl sexually. Shamed and frightened yet mysteriously drawn to him, Josephine pursues Timothee into the forest and quickly becomes his prisoner and sexual slave. Yet, through his strange mind control-like presence, her perception of him turns from fear to desire.

Jacquot is sure to offend audiences with his politically incorrect, borderline misogynist tale of young desire; the rape scenes themselves are brutally captured as are the masochistic games Timothee plays with his prisoner. However, Le Besco and Biscayart is an extraordinary pair to observe, whose chemistry never comes into question. Playing a fine line between fear and desire, Jacquot’s female lead is unflinching in her willingness to bare herself on-screen while toying with the audience’s perception of her captivity. Is she really bewitched by Timothee or simply going along for the ride? Biscayart is perfectly suited to play the filthy yet clever huckster whose cruelty is tempered by moments of subtle gentility and thoughtfulness. In its own way, Woods plays out its central romantic dynamic muck like Sissy Spacek’s and Martin Sheen’s doomed tryst in Badlands, where the line between personal responsibility and coercion is muddled.

Living on Love Alone (Isabella Czajka, 2010) – Billed as a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde, Living on Love Alone instead plays out as a cautionary tale for any young person, fresh out of college, facing the tension between pursuing one’s dreams and facing reality. Anais Demoustier stars as Julie Bataille, a fresh college graduate who moves to Paris in order to pursue her first job as an advertising agency assistant. Initially excited, Julie is quickly worn down by the demeaning attitude of her employers and thankless, lackey duties. She quickly leaves and bounces from one job interview to the next, unfulfilled with the opportunities but realizing she has rent to pay. To stave off her sadness, she drinks and enters into meaningless affairs with older men. All the while, Julie struggles between her idealized version of what life should be and the increasing financial pressures on her back. It is only when she meets Ben (Pio Marmai) that she finally finds a soul mate of sorts.

Living his life by his wits and shady assignments, Ben excites Julie and wins over her confidence, only to expose her to danger she’d never anticipated. The highlight of this film is clearly Demoustier’s performance; attractive, intelligent, and bursting with sensuality, her turn as Julie highlights the frustrations everyone feels when reconciling their ideals with the real world. She is clearly able to make the audience identify with Julie’s romantic yearnings while also generate disgust at her selfishness. This film is less about crime and more about the pain of growing up and is handled realistically, up to the very sad but inevitable end.

Leila (Audrey Estrougo, 2010) – Reconfiguring West Side Story into modern Paris as a not-so-subtle political allegory, Rendez-vous alum Audrey Estrougo generates some much needed excitement into the overall program with her Bollywood-inspired musical. The tale involves the unlikely love affair between a pair from two different worlds. Leila (Leila Bekhti) is a young Arab law student, struggling to meet her family’s and community’s expectations of her while working at an immigrant-run hair salon and caring for her younger brother. Her life collides, almost literally, into the privileged, bourgeois existence of Gab (Benjamin Siksou). The son of a Parisian police commissioner, Gab’s life has been one of consistent disinterest, focusing more on his gambling than life or fiancé. When Gab is involved in a traffic accident with Leila’s brother, he is instantly taken aback by her charm and fire. While the two initially face resentment towards one another, their distrust slowly melts away into affection as Gab is taken in by Leila’s immigrant community.

Comprised of Africans and Arabs looking to make better lives for themselves, Leila’s neighbors recognize the promise she holds and care for her as a surrogate daughter. When constant police crackdowns threaten the safety of her best friend’s family, Leila and Gab must figure out a way to save them while facing the wrath of mutual enemies who want their love to wither away. Thrown into the mix of this tale of young love and political commentary (in regards to France’s sans papiers protests), a fantastic mix of vibrant dance and musical numbers punctuate the action as well as advance the emotional storyline. The performances are energetic but nuanced and the overall mélange is joyous, playful, yet anchored in dramatic gravity. Bekhti and Siksou are perfectly complimentary towards one another in terms of chemistry, and each one carries their fair share of dramatic weight.

The Sleeping Beauty (Catherine Breillat, 2010) – One of France’s foremost modern filmmakers, Catherine Breillat returns with another fairy tale deconstruction after her last project, Bluebeard. In this case, she tackles the classic Sleeping Beauty. In Breillat’s world, young princess Anastasia is cursed by an evil witch upon her birth while her fairy godmothers are away. Unable to break the spell completely, they instead recast it as a sleeping curse to last for one hundred years upon her sixth birthday. However, unlike the classic tale, Anastasia is far more tomboy-like and less interested in observing proper female etiquette. To aid her sleep, Anastasia begins a phantasmagorical journey across foreign lands meeting dwarves, ogres, and other such creatures.

Taken in by a kind mother and her son, Peter, Anastasia develops such strong intimate feelings for her foster brother that upon his enchantment by an ice queen, she sets off to cure him. Her journey culminates in finally awakening as a nubile, sixteen year old girl, who is quickly desired by Peter’s great grandson and her grown-up, gypsy female friend. From that point forward, fantasy ends and adulthood begins. Breillat uses this whimsical tale to chronicle the evolution of childhood into puberty as innocent infatuations transforms into sexual desire. Unafraid to explore sex as always, Breillat is able to counterbalance the tone though with some quirky, Terry Gilliam-esque whims and wonderful cinematography and production design courtesy of Denis Lenoir and Francois-Renaud Labarthe respectively.

Happy Few (Antony Cordier, 2010) – Sexual and sharp, Happy Few explores the consequences of couples exploring sexual boundaries without accounting for emotional confusion. When jeweler Rachel (Marina Fois) meets Vincent (Nicolas Duvauchelle), she is intrigued by his bluntness and chiseled looks; she quickly invites him and his wife Teri (Élodie Bouchez) to dinner with herself and her own husband Franck (Roschdy Zem). An immediate connection between the foursome is struck and rather than deny it, they mutually agree to swapping spouses with one another as long as it is hid from their children. What begins as a fun-filled series of dalliances soon grows unnerving as emotional bonds are forged that were otherwise unanticipated.

With a lack of rules to abide by, lines are crossed as the swapped partners soon feel greater pulls towards each other than their actual mates. Replete with frequent instances of graphic but realistic sex, Happy Few is a delicious psychological stew to devour as both couples play with sexual transgression but are woefully unprepared when actual feelings come into play. As Rachel indulges her own masochistic tastes and Franck grows increasingly attentive towards Teri, jealousies begin bubbling towards the surface that can only lead to trouble. The performances themselves are realistic and enjoyable to watch, with Bouchez and Fois particularly strong. Cordier has managed to craft an allegorical look at swapping and provide a lesson without becoming moralistic in the process.

To learn more about this and other Film Society of Lincoln Center events, go to www.filmlinc.com