Film Review
Téchiné's second film is a curious mix of black comedy, romantic drama and
nostalgia, told in an unsettling inconsistent style. The film begins as what appears
to be a straightforward provincial romance in 1940s France and from there rapidly evolves
into something quite different. By tracing the lives of its characters through the
period of Nazi occupation to the present day, it becomes a somewhat tongue-in-cheek view
of societal changes in France, charting the demise of the self-made Bourgeoisie to the
rise of the Trades Union shop steward.
The lives of the characters in the film quickly become the film's least important aspect
- or they are seen simply as mere stepping stones between times past and present.
The focus of the film is the family-owned factory. We see its birth, its maturing,
and its decline, as if it were a living thing. Around it, times change, the people
change, social attitudes and hair-styles change, but the factory remains there, immutable
and indifferent.
This is also quite a good film for legendary French actress Jeanne Moreau.
Despite the fact that her character in the film scarcely seems to age over a 30 year period,
she appears perfectly at ease with this style of drama and shows a surprising comic flair
in some scenes.
© James Travers 2000
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next André Téchiné film:
Barocco (1976)
Film Synopsis
In a small French provincial town of the 1930s, Pierre arrives at a factory
owned by the wealthy businessman Pedret desperately in search of work.
The factory is closed owing to the fact that Pedret's son Prosper is getting
married to the beautiful Régina. Meanwhile, Pedret's other son
Hector is having an affair with a lowly washerwoman, Berthe, to the distress
of his mother Augustine. Despite the latter's machinations, Berthe
gets her way and succeeds in claiming Hector as her husband. Whilst
Régina begins to regret marrying into the Pedret family (and later
goes off to the United States with an American soldier), Berthe soon grows
accustomed to her new status and finds she has a friend in Pedret, a Spanish
immigrant who made a success of his life through sheer hard work. After
war is declared, Pierre is called up to fight in the war against Germany,
but once the armistice is signed he returns to his hometown and makes a
conquest of Pierrette, one of Berthe's former washerwoman associates.
They marry and Pierre then goes off to serve in the French Resistance.
Berthe follows his example and is honoured as a war hero. After Pedret's
death, Berthe takes over the running of the factory, just as the economy
takes a turn for the worse...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.