David O'ConnellRivals @ the Melbourne French Film Festival
March 10th 2009 04:36
There’s a lot of gritty, immersive detail to wallow in all through Jacques Maillot’s Rivals, a film fleshed out with the carefully engineered vibe of the era it slavishly recreates. It’s Lyon, 1979, and two brothers are about to be reunited after 10 years. But it’s with reluctance that Francois (Guillaume Canet), coerced by his sister, agrees to meet brother Gabriel (Francois Cluzet) whose been granted day release from prison. Though others seem to harbor no lingering ill-will against Gabriel for past indiscretions, Francois, a dedicated police officer, has serious issues to put aside if he’s to trust his brother again, having felt let down by his defection to the dark side of the law.
This story of a released prisoner wanting to walk the straight and narrow before being fatefully distracted by people and circumstance is one of the oldest crime stories in the book; perhaps only marginally less regurgitated than the crim who swears to the woman he loves that he’ll retire after one final heist, only to watch it unravel like a surreal nightmare before his eyes.
But despite earning very few marks for originality, Maillot’s film has plenty of attractive ingredients stirred into its reconstruction of a past era - from the authenticity of a drab colour palette with its earthy tones to the appropriate haircuts, cars, fashions and constant smoking.
Holding it all together are two exceptional actors at the top of their form: Canet whose earnestness and good looks have seen him skyrocket to the head of the most sought after young actors list in French cinema. There’s no great depth or sense of straddling profoundly grey lines with his portrayal of Francois: he’s a straight arrow, a defender of justice, with a fatal weakness for a vulnerable woman – the wife of a criminal he put away, Corinne (Clotilde Hesme) - and their unlikely union is a precursor of nasty retribution down the track if ever there was one.
Then there’s the wily veteran Cluzet, once a master character actor, who’s seen his own fortunes evolve into leading role status in recent years; he’s in full command of the enigmatic Gabriel who gives every impression of being decent but is tainted by a sketchy past and the foibles of a man prone to letting it catch up with him, floundering for escape routes when his detractors close in. He’s a perplexing contradiction, made all the more fascinating as his past and future converge in a frenzied collision of desire and need.
For a while, after Gabriel’s release, the film lingers in a no man’s land, treading water while we wait for interesting threads to develop. But the second half picks up real momentum as allegiances are formed: Francois with Corinne and Gabriel with a young check-out chick, Nathalie (Marie Denarnaud), and an old buddy with an employment opportunity that’s sure to come unstuck.
Might these connections be the undoing of this brotherly quest for redemption? Or was it only a pipedream to begin with?
A wonderful score by Stephan Oliva adds to the film’s effectiveness, melding the bleak melodious refrains of America’s own urban dramas of that era with sinewy modern elements highlighted by the melancholy piano themes that reflect the internal conflicts tearing the brothers asunder from all their good intentions.
Treading a fine line between drama and melodrama, Maillot inserts a brutal, graphic scene into the countdown as the stakes are raised and the danger descends, leaving ample opportunity for either brother to escape his fate. But in keeping with the true tone of its era, Maillot shuts all the doors with a stark, confronting reality. It’s as bleak as they come and for lovers of 70’s cinema, almost blissfully nostalgic.
Rivals is currently screening in Melbourne as part of the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival.
This story of a released prisoner wanting to walk the straight and narrow before being fatefully distracted by people and circumstance is one of the oldest crime stories in the book; perhaps only marginally less regurgitated than the crim who swears to the woman he loves that he’ll retire after one final heist, only to watch it unravel like a surreal nightmare before his eyes.
But despite earning very few marks for originality, Maillot’s film has plenty of attractive ingredients stirred into its reconstruction of a past era - from the authenticity of a drab colour palette with its earthy tones to the appropriate haircuts, cars, fashions and constant smoking.
Gabriel (Francois Cluzet) and Francois (Guillaume Canet)
Holding it all together are two exceptional actors at the top of their form: Canet whose earnestness and good looks have seen him skyrocket to the head of the most sought after young actors list in French cinema. There’s no great depth or sense of straddling profoundly grey lines with his portrayal of Francois: he’s a straight arrow, a defender of justice, with a fatal weakness for a vulnerable woman – the wife of a criminal he put away, Corinne (Clotilde Hesme) - and their unlikely union is a precursor of nasty retribution down the track if ever there was one.
Then there’s the wily veteran Cluzet, once a master character actor, who’s seen his own fortunes evolve into leading role status in recent years; he’s in full command of the enigmatic Gabriel who gives every impression of being decent but is tainted by a sketchy past and the foibles of a man prone to letting it catch up with him, floundering for escape routes when his detractors close in. He’s a perplexing contradiction, made all the more fascinating as his past and future converge in a frenzied collision of desire and need.
Francois with Corinne (Clotilde Hesme)
For a while, after Gabriel’s release, the film lingers in a no man’s land, treading water while we wait for interesting threads to develop. But the second half picks up real momentum as allegiances are formed: Francois with Corinne and Gabriel with a young check-out chick, Nathalie (Marie Denarnaud), and an old buddy with an employment opportunity that’s sure to come unstuck.
Might these connections be the undoing of this brotherly quest for redemption? Or was it only a pipedream to begin with?
A wonderful score by Stephan Oliva adds to the film’s effectiveness, melding the bleak melodious refrains of America’s own urban dramas of that era with sinewy modern elements highlighted by the melancholy piano themes that reflect the internal conflicts tearing the brothers asunder from all their good intentions.
Treading a fine line between drama and melodrama, Maillot inserts a brutal, graphic scene into the countdown as the stakes are raised and the danger descends, leaving ample opportunity for either brother to escape his fate. But in keeping with the true tone of its era, Maillot shuts all the doors with a stark, confronting reality. It’s as bleak as they come and for lovers of 70’s cinema, almost blissfully nostalgic.
Rivals is currently screening in Melbourne as part of the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival.
Gabriel with Nathalie (Marie Denarnaud)
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Comment by Cibbuano
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
But then, in a nice contrast, there's.............DISCO!!!!
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
The Festival hits Brisbane next week mate, on the 19th I think, maybe you can catch up with a few of these for yourself then?