A Very Long Engagement
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Movie Reviews of A Very Long Engagement
Movie Review: Romantic, epic, byzantine tale of love, war and hope
Summary: 5 Stars
Jean-Pierre Jeunet teamed with elfin Audrey Tautou to steal our hearts with the hyper-romantic surrealistic comedy "Amelie." Paris had never looked better, and Tautou burst into the American film consciousness as one of the most endearing actors working today. Completely original and still surprising after several repeat viewings, "Amelie" is an intelligent tonic for the blackest of moods.
Jeunet reunited with Tautou for the flip-side of the romantic coin with "A Very Long Engagement." This movie is a romance, to be sure, but a romance dominated by melancholy, by loss, and by dashed hopes. Set in France during and just after the dark days of World War I (and magnificently recreated, by the way), "Engagement" once again follows two lovers, Mathilde (Tautou) and Manech (Gaspard Ulliel). Childhood friends grow into sweethearts, only to be torn asunder by France's never-ending need for future corpses in its insane trench warfare against the Germans.
If no movie can ever really capture the horrors of trench warfare, "Engagement" comes as close as one can imagine. The movie opens with the stories of five Frenchmen accused (some fairly, others not) if self-mutiliation to get themselves excused from combat. A heartless senior commander ignores their pardon, and they are each sentenced to die by being sent out unarmed into the blasted No Man's Land between the German and French lines. Within 24 hours, each soldier is reported as killed in action.
But Mathilde knows that Manech is still alive. They have one of those romances where hearts know truths that cannot be stained by newspaper reports or Army records. So Mathilde starts her long quest to find her lost Manech. Through her journeys into Manech's time at the front, she meets several soldiers, wives, girlfriends, and parents, and they each tell her a smidgen of the story of her beloved. Her journey is often confusing (in no small part, no doubt, caused by my complete ignorance of French and my need to rely on the subtitles), but always compelling.
Jeunet is a masterful filmmaker, blending humor, romance, and carnage into a wonderful montage of highs and lows. In "Amelie," he kept our sides splitting with comic gems such as the garden gnome travelling the world, or an abusive shopkeeper getting his comeuppance, or even the shocking suicide that takes two lives as the jumper leaps off Notre Dame only to land on someone else. In "Engagement," there is a lot less comedy and most of the shocking scenes coming from the battlefield (including a hydrogen-filled blimp incinerating a hospital and a soldier using a hand grenade to bring down an enemy airplane). But he still finds little ways to bring enchantment into the story, whether it's a jarring splash of color in a washed out battlefield or the shot of Mathilde playing her tuba on the French coastline.
The acting is top-notch across the board here. Look for many of the same actors from "Amelie" to find their way into "Engagement," and also look for a magnificent, heart-breaking cameo by Jodie Foster -- effortlessly demonstrating both her acting chops and her command of French.
"Engagement" is a dark, powerful film, and there are several violent scenes that will fall into the "Saving Private Ryan" category. But none of the violence is gratuitous - it serves a purpose, if only to remind everyone of France's self-inflicted military scars. And these scenes of carnage are used to elevate the story of love that drives the movie swiftly through its 2 1/4 hours.
A wonderful film that will appeal to history buffs, romantics, and fans of grand spectacles. Let's hope that Jeunet can keep this filmmaking team together, 'cause they make magic.
Movie Review: heartbreaking and beautiful
Summary: 5 Stars
If this film had been made in English, by an English or American director and cast, it would have won a truckload of Oscars -- it's a pity that more audiences hadn't seen this masterpiece. Some points worth raising, even after all the other reviews so far:
In a way, it's not a WWI film. The central story, in 1920, is Mathilde's search across peacetime France into the disappearance of her fiance Manech, who was condemned by court-martial and abandoned in no-man's land, with four others, in January 1917. Indeed, few war-themed films have a woman who is this much of a driving force (Manech is almost passive in his suffering, by comparison) as she launches an investigation, despite a limp, the result of childhood polio. Mathilde's search is complicated by another young woman, who also had a lover lost among the five, also hunting those responsible -- only this young woman wants revenge, not information.
The flashbacks to 1917 spare us nothing of the mud and suffering of the Western Front; the cinematography is brilliant. But so are another series of flashbacks, ca. 1910, to Mathilde's and Manech's first friendship as children, beautifully staged on the Breton coast and in a lighthouse. The scenes in 1920s Paris, rural France, and Corsica are vivid, crowded, and in landscape scenes, beautiful. And the 1920 sequences of searching and investigating become increasingly dark and deadly, scary in their own right.
Jodie Foster (yes, that Jodie Foster) appears in a brief but pivotal role as a war widow. Fluent French, splendid and sensuous performance, and the "was that who I thought it was?" moment didn't occur till she was gone.
And the musical scoring! I thought a film this suffused with the film score would have suffered from it at some point. Angelo Badalamenti's scoring never was less than perfect, always carrying the film and making it that much more emotionally powerful. The period costumes seem perfect and some of the country settings, esp. the seaside Breton cottage where Mathilde lives, are gorgeous.
The extras make for a fully worthwhile DVD set. The "Making of" film was unexpectedly terrifying. The camera that swoops over the lighthouse, the many train sequences, the trenches was borne on a helicopter, quite visible in "Making of" -- it was scary how close the chopper flew to its subjects. That pilot was good. "Making of" also shows the care that went into the special effects -- notably the crowd scenes, and one man's mechanical hand.
And there's the "Making of" incident where director Jean-Pierre Jeunet films a trench sequence: in the film, French soldiers hiding from an artillery barrage are buried alive in their trench. "Making of" shows the filming, the special effect, and then the real-life tension as they dig the four actors out after the explosion. The crew doesn't seem sure that they'll be quick enough.
This film is not to be missed; the DVD is very worth having. Others have compared it to Saving Private Ryan. I would compare it to Dr. Zhivago -- only on a much higher level.
Movie Review: The Horror Of War, And The Love Of A Young Woman
Summary: 5 Stars
Many reviewers complained that the film was too long, for me it was too short. That's how much I liked this film. I am still waiting for that ONE World War One film to be done someday, but this is good enough for now. I have always wondered why no one in Hollywood, or anywhere for that matter have never done a GOOD, film on this horrific slaughterhouse of a war. The 'War to End All Wars' did not of course end all war's; but it ushered in the most tragic consequences mankind has ever known: A consequnce of events that we are still suffering from. Maybe someday [are you listening studios?} someone will make a film about Verdun, the Somme, or any other tragic battle that occured in this horrible war. However, this film does a very great job in two ways. [More actually]. But two in particular.
On one side, we the viewers witness the slaughter of young men [and eventually older men, as the young were senselessly killed] filled into the meat grinder of the western front. What would any man who has seen this type of carnage do? A war in which these men filled their void by scurrying and huddling amongst each other in the water-filled, waist deep mud and rat infested trenches they called home? Only to leave it when they were to go over the top and face almost certain death, or maiming.
Were their actions irrational or cowardice? I don't believe it was cowardice. This was not to be the glory of what they believed and learned about from their schoolmasters and politicains when they were growing up. The dangers of nationalism: which was constantly drilled into their heads since their youth betrayed them. Finally, they claimed their senses. Was it irrational for them to shoot themselves in order to live and go home? Or was it better to meet their fate by going over the top and knowing that they would be killed? I will not judge those who did this [And many did]
But the film is about more than just this tragic war. But the aftermath of the war itself. And what impact it had on those the dead and missing left behind. Enter Mathilde (Audrey Tautou) who refuses to believe that her fiance has met his death on the front. And this is Mathilde's story as she searches and investigates the circumstances of her loved ones death. Or was their a cover-up, and he is really alive? In Mathilde's impassioned love for her sweetheart, she will allow no one to deter her from her search. Is he still alive? Did he really die, or did some lucky happenstance intervene to save him?
This is a very poignant story, and there are no happy endings for many. However, no one is ever the same after such a tragedy of events. But maybe, just maybe there is hope for Mathilde. The film does a wonderful job in not only exploring Mathilde's love for her fiance, but also takes a detour into another woman's life, whose lover's death has caused her to deal a harsh blow to those involved. The cinematography in the film is outstanding. And the scenes of battle are excellently choreographed. I highly recommend this film. I belongs in your collection. [Stars: 5+]
Movie Review: Mesmerizing
Summary: 5 Stars
My understanding is that France has declined to submit A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT for Oscar consideration as 2004's Best Foreign Film. I can't imagine why.
War is not glorious. Especially if you're Manech (Gaspard Ulliel), a young French soldier convicted by a military court, along with four others, of committing self-mutilation with the intent of escaping service in the front lines of World War I. The punishment is grotesque. Rather than death by firing squad, the five are forced over the top of the most forward trench and into the No Man's Land between the French and German positions - there to die by whatever bullet, mortar shell, or bomb strikes them down. The subsequent deaths of all five are attested to. Letters are sent to surviving family members by the French authorities saying their boys died in battle. This was in 1917.
Mathilde (Audrey Tatou) was Manech's fiancée when he marched off to war. She's also crippled in one leg after having been afflicted with polio at a very young age. In 1920, she's contacted by a dying survivor of the war, ex-Sergeant Esperanza (Jean-Pierre Becker), who'd been in charge of the provost detail assigned to escort the five condemned men to the front trench, as well as act as carrier of the last missive each was permitted to write home. He tells Mathilde of their bizarre fate, and gives her their last letters, which he's kept since the war's end. Using these and the veteran's story to provide clues, Mathilde embarks on a lengthy search for the truth behind Manech's death with the help of a private investigator (Ticky Holgado). Interviewing friends, family members, and lovers of Marech's four condemned companions, as well as other soldiers present in the trench, Mathilde needs to answer the question, "Is Manech truly dead?" She has no doubts; he's alive. But, the evidence is elusive and inconsistent.
As crafted by director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT is a hypnotic tale of mystery, official cover-ups, lies, misperceptions, secrets, coincidence, tenuous clues, guilt, innocence, honor, and, ultimately, love. Jeunet has created a masterpiece of special FX, lighting, unusual camera angles, split screen images, breathtaking panoramas, and visual asides. And then there are the entrancing depths of Audrey Tatou's brown eyes, in which I could happily lose myself forever. There's not been the likes of this young actress since Audrey Hepburn.
Though not advertised as such, this film is a gut wrenching depiction of World War I trench warfare. It's perhaps the best I've ever seen, especially when shown in contrast to gentle Mathilde's quest through post-war Paris and the luminous French countryside.
Astute and sardonic Mathilde, perhaps because of her affliction, is a take-no-prisoners dynamo of perseverance. No obstacle is too great that it can't be overcome. In the end, she finds ... Truth. And, if you see A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT, you'll experience amazement, delight, and tears. For me, it's 2004's Best Foreign Film no matter what the Academy votes.
Movie Review: John-Pierre Jeunet has done it again!
Summary: 5 Stars
Although I am a fan of Audrey Tautou, John-Pierre Jeunet, and indeed French films in general, I was at first reluctant to see this film. I do not usually enjoy war films, and from what I had heard, this film featured brutally realistic depictions of WWI trench life. However, I am certainly glad that I finally gave in.
The movie tells the story of Mathilde, an intelligent young girl crippled by a childhood bout of polio, and Manech, her fiance who was supposedly executed during WWI for self-mutiliation. When Mathilde receives notice of Manech's death, she refuses to believe that her fiance is truly dead, and she embarks on a long and arduous quest to discover the truth about Manech's fate.
In addition to a wonderfully complex and emotional performance from Audrey Tautou (who is one of the best actresses working in French cinema today), as well as a cameo from Hollywood's own Oscar darling Jodie Foster, this film is a veritable banquet for the eyes. Like his previous film 'Amelie', director John-Pierre Jeunet has filled this film with swooping camera shots, eye-popping cityscapes of Paris, and (unique to this film) beautiful views of the French countryside. Particularly effective is his use of colour - the dull greys and browns of the battlefield trenches contrast greatly with the warm golden/sepia haze that seems to hang over Mathilde's Britanny cottage. Particularly beautiful shots include one of Mathilde gazing over the ocean from the top of a lighthouse at sunset; a sudden wind sweeping over a golden wheatfield, pressing the wheat to the ground in eerie waves; and a slow trailing shot following Mathilde as she wanders through a bustling outdoor Parisian market. John-Pierre Jeunet certainly knows how to please the eye!
This film also features many heart-wrenching scenes of WWI battlefields, but they are tastefully done and (to the best of my knowledge) give a very good sense of what life in the trenches must have been like. Although, as I said, I am not typically a fan of war films, I thought the scenes were very well done and they were definitely integal to the forwarding of the plot.
As far as the plot goes, the movie is thoroughly engaging from first to last. Although the film is long (over two hours), the plot is a complex one that warrants a lengthy running time, and I was certainly not watching the clock during this movie. This is certainly a film that deserves multiple viewings, however, since it is occassionally difficult to keep track of the entire gallery of supporting characters.
In conclusion, this film has something for almost anyone, and I strongly recommend it. In my opinion, it was one of the best films of 2004, and was woefully under-represented at the Academy Awards.
P.S.: I also recommend the novel 'A Very Long Engagement', by Sebastien Japrisot. Although markedly different in some respects, the novel is utterly compelling and beautifully written.