L'Ami: François d'Assise et ses frères (2016)
Directed by Renaud Fely, Arnaud Louvet

Film Review

Biopics about saintly historical personages have been thin on the ground for some time, and this makes Renaud Fely and Arnaud Louvet's L'Ami: François d'Assise et ses frères all the more welcome.  Coming at a time when the world has never been in greater need of St Francis's message of universal love, a world where intolerance and violence seem to be on an ever-upwards trajectory, along with greed and selfishness, Fely and Louvet's sincerely meant hagiography will probably struggle to find the audience it deserves but for those who are able to catch it before it disappears from sight it offers a faint beacon of hope and a vision that we badly need to hold onto if humanity is to survive into the next century.  It's a very different piece from the directors' previous film, the engaging romantic drama Pauline et François (2010), but it shares that film's raw intimacy and uses its stunning rural location (this time Languedoc) just as effectively to support the lowkey drama that the film's authors craft with such delicacy.

The Italian actor Elio Germano is an inspired casting choice for the part of Francis, bringing to his performance just the right balance of humanity and fanaticism.  Oddly, it is not Francis who is the film's focal point, but his devoted disciple Elie de Cortone, portrayed with extraordinary conviction by Jérémie Renier, an actor who needs no introduction and is always at his best in modest, self-effacing films of this kind.  Renier and Germano make an effective contrast, and this is the film's strongest suit - the opposing natures of the two principal protagonists being what the film is primarily concerned with.  Compared with the die-hard idealist Francis, a man for whom the word 'compromise' does not exist, Elie is a pragmatist who sees that without making some concessions to the all-powerful Chuch his friend's mission is doomed to failure.

The film prompts us to reflect on the degree to which today's leaders must betray their principles to have any positive impact on the world stage, and you are left wondering whether it is ever possible to live up to one's ideals.  Far from being just a period piece, L'Ami: François d'Assise et ses frères has much to say about how things are today and how pertinent St Francis's concerns still are - depressingly little has altered in the last eight centuries.  The film's modest production values, its slow pace and lack of spectacle will doubtless prevent it from having as much impact as it should.  It doesn't have the devastating power of Roberto Rossellini's Saint Francis, God's Jester (1950), nor the popular appeal of Michael Curtiz's Francis of Assisi (1961), but Fely and Louvet's film touches the heart and manages to be a worthy tribute to a great humanitarian whose philosophy the world desperately needs to take heed of.

Film Synopsis

In Italy at the start of the 13th century, the son of a wealthy merchant has turned his back on riches and now leads a simple life in the service of the poor and infirm.  He is Francis of Assisi, a young man committed to doing good works and encouraging others to follow his example.  His one ambition is to bring about a world where peace and kindness prevail.  In his friend Elie de Cortone he has a faithful acolyte, but Elie is more realistic than Francis, and more willing to abide by the rule of the Church that looks on the modern day saint with suspicion.  Pope Innocent III is particularly concerned with Francis's apparent unwillingness to accept the Church's authority.  When Francis is unable to make the necessary changes to the document that establishes a new order Elie steps in undertake the task, knowing that for his friend to succeed some concessions must be made...