Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts

Review: Inch'Allah Dimanche (2001 Film)

Saturday, July 9, 2011 | Posted by The Entertainment Geek
This film is strange. 7 wins and one nomination from international film festivals and award organizations. 5 out of the 7 wins go to director, Yamina Benguigu, and one win to lead acress Fejria Deliba. Well deserved, but the film is strange… but well done, for that mater…


                                                “Human rights issues in your backyard”

The Rundown
Behind the name: Direct Translation: Sunday, God Willing
Country: France/Algeria, 2001
 Genre: Drama
Distributed by: Film Movement
Director: Yamina Benguigu
                       Cast: Fejria Deliba (as Zouina), Rabia Mokeddem (as Aïcha, mother), Amina Annabi (as Malika), Anass Behri (as Ali), Hamza Dubuih (as Rachid), Zinedine Soualem (as Ahmed), France Darry (as Mrs. Donze, neighbor), Roger Dumas (Mr. Donze, neighbor), Marie-France Pisier (as Manant), Mathilde Seigner (as Briat)
                       Compare to: Other films put out by Film Movement
Hate it or Love it?  Appreciate it.

Synopsis in a Sentence: Zouina is forced to live her homeland in Algeria to start a new life in France with her husband…and the mother-in-law from hell…

On Writing: The Plot
It’s on a topic hardly touched. When movies focus on the “mother-in-law from-hell” theme, it’s usually in a humorous way. This one is no joke. It’s simply suppression. The plot does a great job of putting the issue into context, and director, Yamina Benguigu, does a good job of relaying the reality of the situation.
The plot also takes into account 1970s history, socio-political conditions between the French and North Africa, immigration, and human rights issues. A good package. A good plot, but seemed to lack  a clear direction.
(3/5)

On Acting: The Cast


Fejria Deliba, who plays lead character, Zouina, is quite the focus of the film. And she does a good job of drawing you in and keeping you locked in on her character.


Rabia Mokeddem, also known as mother-in-law from hell, also relays an excellent performance of the hellish mother you are sure to disdain. By the end of the film, you’ll even disdain her for playing her character—that’s how good she was. All other characters were good enough, but these two  simply stole the show.
 (4/5)

On Production: The Creativity
Production is stark, almost borderline documentary, but not so. Some great shots, everything seemed real. Good overall.
(3.5/5)                                             

On Resolution: The Conclusion
What to say about the ending? My gosh. I really don’t know what to say… It’s abrupt, slightly surprising, and resolving? Is that enough? Well these are the first words that come to my mind when I think about the ending. It’s a nice twist, but abrupt. It didn’t leave enough room for the plot, but it resolved most issues. You see it and decide…
(3.5/5)

The Verdict: A well-done film. One to remember and mull over.

Overall Score = 14/20






Watch Inch’Allah Dimanche

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Persepolis (2007 Film)

Monday, January 31, 2011 | Posted by The Entertainment Geek

I intended to see Persepolis a long time ago, but things kept getting in the way, but I’m glad I waited though, it was a breath of fresh air after all my experiences in Foreign films.  



“A graphic novelist’s  first-attempt at film puts experienced directors to shame.”


The Rundown

Behind the name: Reference to the old city of Persepolis, Persia, capital of The Achaemenid Empire (ca. 550–330 BC)
Country: France, 2007
 Genre: Animated Drama
Distributed by: 2.4.7 Films, France
Directors: Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud
                       Cast: Chiara Mastroianni (as teenage and adult Marjane), Catherine Deneuve (as Mother), Danielle Darrieux (as Grandmother), Simon Abkarian (as Father)
Compare to: Itself
Hate it or Love it?  Love it.   

Synopsis in a Sentence: Follow the life of a girl who grew up during the Iranian Revolution, experienced what life in Iran was before the that time, after that time, and all the difference a little history makes.  
           

Persepolis started with a budget slightly over $7 million dollars that grossed US$22,752,488 for its makers. It’s been a subject of censorship for middle-eastern, Asian, and even western authorities alike, and spawned the 2007 Cannes film Festival Jury Prize, amongst 15 other awards and nominations, including best feature at the 80th Grammy Awards.
            You know a film has made it big when it’s up for awards and censorship simultaneously. 


On Writing: The Plot

Animated war dramas. There aren’t many of them around. The method of storytelling is unique because relative to the use of human characters, it may present the ideas in a lightly detached mode. However, Persepolis did not make that mistake. The story is delivered in a way that brings human characters to life in an enveloped, comical manner that might have flopped if delivered by the use of human actors.
The plot is not one we hear of everyday. We often hear of the plight of the poor, or the affluence of the wealthy, seldom are we shown the struggles of the “comfortable” if we can put it that way. It’s not only about the depression of war, or the loss of freedom, or the tragedy of love, or the search for oneself in the face of catastrophe. It’s all of these, wrapped up in one impressive plot.
 (4.5/5)


On Acting: The Cast

Ha!
Should we assess animated actors? Of course!
The characters themselves were interesting. Most of the characters, being round characters exhumed more character than humans I know. They were unapologetic, straightforward, authentic and empathic. A great achievement for sketched people, don’t you think?
 (4/5)


On Production:

Don’t turn your brain off just because the film is animated. Its definitely not a Disney production, nor is it anime. It is, in every way, a film, only just animated.
Its animated method of production allowed it to pull off more than it clould have in “real life.” And for good reason too. Its artistically infused comedic pieces flowed seamlessly with the true-to life drama. Production-wize, Presepolis is indeed a breath of fresh air to worldwide cinema. 
 (4/5)                                              


On Resolution: The Conclusion

Originally an autobiography, Persepolis jumped into the world of film with little experience and managed… no, succeeded in succeeding. The fact that the self-authour is still alive allows the story go on, even after the film ends. That’s quite interesting to know. Now before I sign out, I must say, self author, Marjane Satrapi, must be proud of herself for turning her autobiographic novels into an oscar-nominated hit. I plan to do that one day.
That said, you already know how the story ends, further than the film takes us. The resolution is unique.
(4/5)

The Verdict: A great piece of work: Authentic, fresh and entertaining, despite its dramatic and tragic base. An excellent blend of genres.

Overall Score = 16.5/20


 



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La Fleur Du Mal (2003 Film)

Monday, July 19, 2010 | Posted by The Entertainment Geek

Think of this as a dark comedic-drama.
It’s a complex build-up of familial issues. Ponder on good and evil, morality, incest, murder, circumstantial ties, ambition, hatred, and love—both erotic and phileo.



“The stark realism and dry humour employed in La Fleur du Mal reminds us why dysfunctional families are not much fun.”


The Rundown
Behind the name: Translation—The Flower of Evil
Country: France, 2003
 Genre: Psychological Drama
Distributed by: Lionsgate & Palm Pictures
Directors: Claude Charbol
                   Cast: Benoît Magimel (as François Vasseur), Nathalie Baye (as Anne Charpin-Vasseur), Mélanie Doutey (as Michèle Charpin-Vasseur), Suzanne Flon (as Tante Line), Bernard Le Coq (as Gérard Vasseur), Thomas Chabrol (as Matthieu Lartigue), Henri Attal (as le beau-père de Fanny), Françoise Bertin (as Thérèse), Caroline Baehr (as Fanny), Didier Bénureau (as Brissot)
                   Compare to: American Dream
Hate it or Love it?  Ponder on the subject a bit

Synopsis in a Sentence: A young French man comes back from America to re-encounter the familial disarray he ran away from, and just as things take shape, deep, dark secrets are uncovered.

In these days that television glorifies dysfunctional families and broken relationships, La Fleur du Mal brings the sorrow and emptiness of the situation into light, and we realise, there’s nothing really entertaining about dysfunctional relationships.


On Writing: The Plot

It’s a story on bleak relationships, mistrust, honesty and love. It’s quite a mix of emotions carried by a motley selection of characters. Some you can trust, some you cannot. The writing makes no excuses for the actions of the characters. Neither does it hide their true nature. The plot tells the story of a complex family brought together by circumstance, wealth, and fate—If you will call it that. The younger characters are caught in the lives of the older ones while re-living the mistakes of their parents (and their parent’s parents), while the parents, trapped in these mistakes, pre-occupy themselves with anything but the truth of the matter. Put together, the family becomes a network of detestation, despondency and discontentment forced to associate in the name of blood. What makes the story complex is the fair bit of “love” spread across a few of the characters, and in the end we learn that although love bears all things, it should not bear all.

 (3.5/5)


On Acting: The Cast

The actors were good. Suzanne Flon’s portrayal of the sinful saint brings you to reason with her character’s flaw. We may call her the heroine of the cast. Nathalie Baye portrays the ambitious woman/the trying wife, and does so true to form. Bernard de Coq typifies the detestable male worth detesting, and Mélanie Doutey is all sugar and spice.
Their acting is stark, simple, and straightforward, which gives the film a realistic feel. A vital skill employed in psychological dramas such as these.

(3.5/5)


On Production:
Like the acting, stark, straightforward, clean, and to-the-point, with a few tweaks to highlight the mood of the scenes. But it’s no wrong done for this genre of film.

(3.5/5)                                             


On Resolution: The Conclusion

If you’ve ever seen a Claude Chabrol film, you may be accustomed to the same topics. True to form, the theme, which highlights the “bad bourgeoisie” is employed here again. Chabrol employs minimal political satire to assail the middle-class again. But he’s mastered his subject, and the resolution to La Fleur du Mal does not disappoint. He even manages to inject a dose of humour to the dark, dark climax. Not many films end in this manner and once again, it’s worth experiencing the stab of the final rolls of film, or DVD laser readings, in this case.

 (4/5)


The Verdict: If you’re in the mood for realism, morbid humour and pleasant villains, see this one.

Overall Score = 14.5/20

Get La Fleur du Mal here: 















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