35 Shots of Rum. (12A.)
Directed by Clair Denis.
Starring Alex Descas, Mati Diop, Gregoire Colin, Nicole Dogue, Julieth Mars. 100 mins
The opening minutes of any film are always vital and Denis' latest drama uses them to gently settle the audience down, relax them into her own pace with repetitive shots of trains and a middle-aged man and a younger woman going about their daily lives in Paris. When they meet up in a flat at the end of the day there is some surprise when she refers to him as father.
I saw this on one of the days of the Tube strike and, to be honest, it was not what I thought I wanted at that time. After a four mile walk into town, I craved some vibrant restless movement to jerk me out of my stupor and wasn't much in the mood for a gentle study of the life and domestic arrangements of a train driver. But 100 minutes later I couldn't have been more pleased by this movie if it had offered me a lift home.
This is a drama that doesn't show you much but gives you everything. It is a drama that conspicuously avoids anything much in the way of overt dramatics or clear explanation and its reticence is compelling; it draws you in. It's more real than real, yet magical and mysterious at the same time.
Of course alternately, it a film where nothing happens that is as dull as ditchwater. Some will take that view but I suspect the film will be surprisingly effective at winning over audiences.
Denis has assembled a tremendous cast and you do grow very accustomed to their faces and protective of their integrity. When towards the end something definitively dramatic happens (it’s not that dramatic, but there is a small but definite element of contrivance to it) it is a bit of let down, almost a betrayal.
Directed by Clair Denis.
Starring Alex Descas, Mati Diop, Gregoire Colin, Nicole Dogue, Julieth Mars. 100 mins
The opening minutes of any film are always vital and Denis' latest drama uses them to gently settle the audience down, relax them into her own pace with repetitive shots of trains and a middle-aged man and a younger woman going about their daily lives in Paris. When they meet up in a flat at the end of the day there is some surprise when she refers to him as father.
I saw this on one of the days of the Tube strike and, to be honest, it was not what I thought I wanted at that time. After a four mile walk into town, I craved some vibrant restless movement to jerk me out of my stupor and wasn't much in the mood for a gentle study of the life and domestic arrangements of a train driver. But 100 minutes later I couldn't have been more pleased by this movie if it had offered me a lift home.
This is a drama that doesn't show you much but gives you everything. It is a drama that conspicuously avoids anything much in the way of overt dramatics or clear explanation and its reticence is compelling; it draws you in. It's more real than real, yet magical and mysterious at the same time.
Of course alternately, it a film where nothing happens that is as dull as ditchwater. Some will take that view but I suspect the film will be surprisingly effective at winning over audiences.
Denis has assembled a tremendous cast and you do grow very accustomed to their faces and protective of their integrity. When towards the end something definitively dramatic happens (it’s not that dramatic, but there is a small but definite element of contrivance to it) it is a bit of let down, almost a betrayal.
