anthony galvin

Pacing a film seems to be a fading art, a skill whose time has passed, left only to the dedicated craftsmen. Fortunately one such cinematic artisan is Eric Guirado, the director of Le fils de l'épicier (The Grocers Son). The film, beautifully shot by Laurent Brunet, is a gentle tale that combines stunning Hautes-Alpes scenery with the tensions of familial obligation and the decline la belle France.

French cinema seems to be going through particularly nostalgic phase at the moment, and although Guirado’s first ‘fictional’ film showcases the beauty of rural France, with sun drenched valleys and sleepy villages, it doesn’t pull too many punches. There’s an all too direct undercurrent of anger and alienation, not amongst the young urban poor, of the kind explored by Mathieu Kassovitz’s La Haine, but an older, bitter and subtle disaffection of the those at the end of their youth whose lives are drifting.

There’s a wonderfully naturalistic feel to the film, especially in the performances of the elderly villagers, perhaps aided by the directors long career as a documentary filmmaker. The camera is allowed to linger and pause and the film breathes at a slow pace. Unfortunatley the ending is strangely rushed, and after such a largo rendition the finale seems to tumble slightly out of control towards it’s conclusion. Despite this the film is a beautifully observed piece with some lovely performances.  One to watch on a Sunday afternoon, perhaps with a small pastis or two.

By 1929 Gloria Swanson was thirty and had appeared in nearly 70 films, a real star of the silent era. She would make just 7 ‘talking pictures’. The first of which was The Trespasser, a melodramatic morality tale about a strong women who 'gets above her station’ by eloping with the son of a Chicago tycoon, becoming a working mother and then having an affair with her boss.

This film doesn’t provide any clues as to why Swanson’s career stalled with the introduction of sound. It’s a meaty role, she commands the screen and was nominated for an oscar for an excellent performance. The film, which she bankrolled, is no masterpiece but an entertaining piece that’s typical of it’s time with a feel good happy ending a hearty helping of moral certainty. Despite this there’s some good ground covered here. Whilst some of the acting is a little 'mannered’, there’s a real insight into how openly class ridden America was in the early twentieth century.

An excellent restored print, the convivial BFI atmosphere and an engaging introduction by archivist Clyde Jeavons. A good way to end an interesting LFF for 2008.

French co-directors Gustave Kervern and Benoit Delepine claim to be Belgian saying that although the French love French cinema the rest of the world is pretty ambivalent. If more French films contained the level of intelligence and humour found in Louise-Michel then French cinema would be displacing Hollywood in peoples affections.

This dark comedy contains some smart observations about the changing nature of employment and the world economy. But the movie is more than mere agit-prop. Some great performances particularly from Yolande Moreau in the lead role and a nicely observed cameo from Mathieu Kassovitz provide some real comic moments and perhaps create a new film genre: Franco-Belgian Anarcho Farce.

Ninety minutes of intelligent, hilarious and thought provoking entertainment. Maybe French cinema will be prepared to welcome Kervern and Delepine home.

Before the screening of ’Better Things’ at the London Film Festival, Duane Hopkins spoke about the what had motivated him when making the film. He started by saying he wanted to get away from using plot and narrative to build a story. This would have been a good point to make our excuses and leave.

Hopkins employs a pointillistic style, with short scenes (often of only 10 or 15 seconds) to build up a picture of the alienation and isolation of (mainly young) people in a rural community. The film presents an unrelenting negative view of the characters, both young and old, with no relief for either the viewer or protagonists. The film is beautifully shot and coloured but there’s little else to admire beyond the bucolic photography. The dialogue is awful, like a Pinter send-up and the stunted scenes restrict any opportunity for the actors to engage with the audience.

Fundamentally though the problem lies with Hopkins’ view of humanity, which is so negative and joyless. Many people live difficult and complicated lives, but few would struggle on if they had as little humanity and spirit as Hopkins portrays in the film. There are many ‘Better Things’ than this.

The Bicycle Film Festival rolled into London last week, and with it Road to Roubaix, a documentary about the Paris-Roubaix cycle race. From a film making perspective this is fertile ground, most notably the subject of arguably the greatest cycling film “A Sunday in Hell” directed by Jorgen Leth.

Where Leth focused on the battle between Eddie Merckx and Roger De Vlaeminck, directors David Deal and Dave Cooper take the battle between terrain and rider as their inspiration. The film is beautifully photographed, lingering shots of the treacherous cobbles are interspersed with rider interviews, some excellent photography and television footage of the 2007 race.

The access to some of the big names on the current cycling circuit is impressive, even Lance Armstrong pops up - however, some of the editting decisions seem awkward, and the battle to entwine the progress of the 2007 race into the story is sometimes a little heavy handed. It feels a little stretched at 86 minutes and might have been better nearer the hour mark.

Overall though it’s a cracking insight into the ‘Queen of the Classics’ and pro-cycling. If it wheels itself your way as part of the BFF world tour, then it’s definitely worth watching.