Two contrasting films from last week's viewing. Firstly, Potiche which was released on the 17th and which Matching Curtains and I went to see at the Phoenix Picturehouse last Wednesday.
Potiche is a French confection from Francois Ozon. Starring French powerhouses Catherine Deneuve and Gerard Depardieu as old flames who, now in their 60s, revive their relationship. She is Suzanne Pujol, a 'Potiche' or 'trophy wife' to the CEO of the umbrella factory which her father originally owned. When her husband falls ill she has to take over the running of the factory while he recuperates, along with her two spoiled children - flamboyant Laurent and scheming Suzanne. She appeals to Maurice (Depardieu), formerly a liberal political activist, now a respected member of parliament and the local Mayor, for help. The four of them make the factory even more successful and Maurice and Suzanne become closer until a revelation about Suzanne's past drives them apart and then her husband recovers and trys to reclaim his job. Will Suzanne be happy to return to life as a Potiche?
I have an on-off relationship with Francois Ozon. I loved 8 Women, the murder mystery/musical he directed in 2002, but found 'Swimming Pool', released the following year, too dark and unsettling. Since then I've given his films a miss but the trailer for Potiche made it look closer to 8 Women than his other releases so I thought it would be worth a try. And, as it turns out, it was. It's as light and fluffy as a French souffle but there's no denying the charisma of its two stars and the writing is 'tres drol'. The story is set in the 70s and the period detailing, as in 8 Women, is a big draw. Also the candy colours, and the Willy Wonka-esque stylings of the umbrella factory makes the whole film look good enough to eat. It may be a little silly, but if you enjoy the French sense of humour or you're a fan of Deneuve and Depardieu then this is a film for you.
'Monsters', the debut feature-film from English auteur Gareth Edwards, was released last December, and I remember thinking at the time that it looked promising but as an apparent 'creature-feature', it was well outside my comfort zone and I never got around to seeing it. However, I was curious enough to add it to my Lovefilm list and having watched it over the weekend I'm tremendously glad I did. The premise is straight-forward enough - aliens have 'infected' a swathe of Central America, effectively dividing North America from Mexico. It is possible to travel between the two countries except during the breeding season when it becomes too dangerous to go near the 'infected zone'. Andrew Kaulder (Scoot McNairy), a budding photojournalist, and Samantha Wyndern (Whitney Able), his boss's daughter, find themselves stuck in Mexico at the start of the breeding season and decide to risk the monsters and travel through the zone to get home.
Having watched the extensive behind-the-scenes features on the DVD I think I may be slightly in love with Gareth Edwards. A former Visual Effects Artist, he directed an acclaimed short film in 2008 and off the back of that got the funding to make Monsters, his first feature film. It's 'guerilla film-making' at its best, he took off to Central America with a tiny crew, a few hand-held cameras, and two actors, and then just travelled around, finding locations by chance, roping in locals as extras, and developing the story and script based on what he found. Some of it may be luck but his dedication and his 'vision' are admirable and he certainly came up with the goods. Monsters is more of a road movie than a horror, thankfully for me as I don't like horror films. Here the focus is upon the developing relationship between Sam and Andrew and also on a pleasantly low-key exploration of themes of segregation, nature vs. machines, and what it would really be like if aliens invaded. Similar aims to 'District 9' but I much prefer Edwards' film to Blomkamp's. It's much prettier and gently prods you to think about what you're seeing, rather than ramming unpleasant imagery and violence down your throat.
The scenes with the aliens are more David Attenborough than Ridley Scott and Edwards' awesome CG skills mean they look incredibly believable and scary, though not purposefully malevolent. It's also amazing how Edwards has built an entire world simply using some cunning visual effects post-production, seamlessly doctoring existing signs, so that an innocent 'welcome to Guatamala' banner becomes a warning against entry to the infected zone. He also takes advantage of the language barrier so that the border guards innocuos Spanish comments become, for his English-speaking audience, warnings against maruading aliens. I strongly recommend renting this film on DVD as the behind-the-scenes documentary showing how Edwards put the film together is equally as impressive as the film itself.
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