Chris Knipp Writing: Movies, Politics, Art


Forum locked This topic is locked, you cannot edit posts or make further replies.  [ 1 post ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Sun Mar 07, 2021 10:35 am 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Sat Mar 08, 2003 1:50 pm
Posts: 4859
Location: California/NYC
LUDIVIC BERGERY: MARGAUX HARTMANN/LÉTREINTE (2020 - RENDEZ-VOUS WITH FRENCH CINEMA 2021)

Image
VINCENT DEDIENNE, EMANUELLE BÉART IN L'ÉTREINTE

Emanuelle Béart as a recent widow rebooting her life

Its French title meaning "the embrace," this film is largely a one-hander, but we're in good hands with the beautfullly aging Émanuelle Béart as the lead Margaux, a recent widow set up outside Versailles chez her currently off traveling half sister while she attends grad school in German lit, for which her character is well prepared because she had a German parent. She is adopted by a very lively group of younger fellow masters candidates, including a gay pal, Aurélien (an appealing Vincent Dedienne) who becomes a kind of instant confidante. It gets complicated with her dashing 50-year-old teacher (Tibo Vandenborre, Belgian Flemish posing as German here), and then she enters the heartbreak and frustration of computer-dating and has one or two adventures.

Here is a Rendez-Vous film not about a minority or an important social issue. We watch it because we like watching a beautiful and famous actress pretending to be someone not quite so fortunate and taking things in stride. It's a circular plot line, starting and ending on a train. At film's end, Margaux has abandoned her academic plans and is going back in the opposite direction. Her brief period of nutty passion when online dating leads her to a would-be sexual affair with a classical trombone player has reawakened her sexuality and joie de vivre, but where her life is going to go, we don't learn; and what does it matter? This is, nonetheless in its way an assured debut for director Ludivic Bergery, who never gets in the way of Béart's seasoned beauty and watchability.

Margaux Hartmann/L'étreinte ("The Embrace"),100 mins., debuted at Angoulême Aug. 28, 2020. No French theatrical release. Screened at home online for this review as part of the all-virtual 2021 Rendez-Vous with French Cinema, Mar. 6, 2021.

_________________
©Chris Knipp. Blog: http://chrisknipp.blogspot.com/.


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Forum locked This topic is locked, you cannot edit posts or make further replies.  [ 1 post ] 

All times are UTC - 8 hours


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot] and 143 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group