Monsieur Lazhar

I like the trailer for this movie, because it doesn't give anything about the film away. I mean what the film is really about. All the trailer presents is a To Sir With Love type romp except set in Canada and in a primary school. Which, while it kinda is, it's a lot deeper than To Sir With Love, and raises a lot of issues, that if you just saw the trailer you wouldn't have picked up on. And of course, if you haven't seen the film, I will now spoil any surprise that was held for you!

When a primary school teacher hangs herself in her classroom, the school is thrown into chaos. The teachers are unsure how to help the children with the grief while also struggling to cope themselves. The principal (Danielle Proulx) is also having trouble finding a replacement for Martine, until Algerian Bachir Lazhar (Fellag) turns up and offers his services as a teacher after seeing the suicide in the paper. With no other option, he is hired right away. Gradually, we see how the children adapt to the new teacher, and how he bonds with them and helps them with his grief. Along the way, we learn about his violent past, while he is opposed by the other teachers and some of the parents who find objections in his rather old fashioned way of teaching.

This is a very satisfying film, and I don't mean that it is competently made with very little else to it. No, there is plenty to this film. So many issues ar available to be looked at and talked abou, but almost all of them are left unanswered. This is the main problem with the film. Yeah, I'm starting with the problem rather than the good stuff, but there is a lot of good stuff. So, for discussions this is a good movie. It will leave you thinking about it for a long time afterwards. And also brings forth a lot of themes for critics to cite and drone on about. Which is what I will do, though I can't offer any real resolutions. How perfect for an ex-Lit student.

So, the main thing I got from this film was the difference between the adults and the kids. I know it sems like a weird thing to hone in on, but for me it was the most important part. The adults are so scared that they will traumatise the kids if they talk about Martine's death, that they never confront it except with a school psychologist who makes visits once a week to every class to check on the kids for a few months after the suicide. Lazhar actually tries to talk his class about it on several occaisions, but every time he is then reprimanded by the principal. The way chilren are treated in this movie is like atomic-bombs, all the teachers are too frightened of lawsuits to make sure that they are fully okay. One of the best quotes from the movie is from one of the students, "They think we are traumatised, but they are more traumatised than us."

The film is also about violence, though it is not a violent film. The act that Martine commits, the way one of the students, Simon (Émilien Néron) gradually becomes more and more violent to his fellow classmates because of the guilt he feels. Even Lazhar's himself comes from an extremely violent background. His family is taken from him in such a tragic way, and it is through this that he is able to connect with the students and understand their pain. My favourite scene is when Alice (Sophie Nélisse), another student, presents a speech about violence to the class, and expresses her doubts about Martine, and questions why she would kill herself in a classroom. It is the most powerful part of the film. Alice doesn't break down and cry, doesn't even shed a tear. Just presents her speech formally and honestly, then sits back down again.

This brings us nicely to the acting. The two main child actors, Émilien Néron and Sophie Nélisse, are two of the best child actors I have seen in too long a time. They outshine their adult co-stars so brightly (scuse the pun), and they are so real with their reactions. Fellag is also excellent as Lazhar, who's intentions and approaches to teaching clash with what the kids are used to , and the modern curriculum. But the kids are really the stars here. It's so refreshing to see something other than the Disney-esque cutesy stuff we normally get. And considering the subject matter, they all do exceedingly well to convey the complex emotions that normal people go through when something like this happens.

 
This review doesn't really express how incredible this film is, but then again, no review ever can. It was Canada's entry for Best Foreign Language film at the Oscars, and actually made the short-list. But awards shouldn't be what makes you go see a certain movie. I hate the word heartfelt, but that is what this film is while I try and think of a better adjective. It's emotional yes, and a little sentimental, but done in a naturalistic way that isn't exactly meant to inspire, simply meant to show us a moment in a mans life. I'm sorry this is incredibly rambling, and that it took so long to come out. I am now proudly two weeks behind schedule, but I will try and get the next review, which should be Beasts of the Southern Wild, within the next ... whenever. Until next time, readers. Those school-girl days....

Take This Waltz

I only know Sarah Polley as an actor. So, when I heard that she directed, and wrote, this (her second feature) I was instantly curious. Hell, I didn't even know she could direct. Well, I do now and I can safely say that she's pretty good actually. Some people are biased against actors directing, but in really they are the best people for the job. They understand what actors go through and how they work on set, and all that (unless you're Laurence Olivier directing Marilyn Monroe, the old fashioned bastard). So, does that mean that this is a good film even though it's pretty brilliantly directed? Well, I think it is... sometimes...


Michelle Williams stars as Margot, an aspiring writer who has been married to Lou (Seth Rogen) for 5 years. While on a business trip, she meets Daniel (Luke Kirby) who just so happens to be her neighbour. As the two become closer, they realise that they have romantic feelings towards each other, with Margot being drawn between her husband and Daniel. Comparing this to the other two rom-coms I've seen this year (The Five Year Engagement and Friends With Kids) the main difference between them and Take This Waltz is in the way the plot is formed. In the other two, the story comes from the scenario, the main premise of the movie that the characters find themselves in. In this film, it's the characters actions that move the plot forward, which makes the film seem more natural rather than the other two. The Five Year Engagement and Friends With Kids seem almost forced into being this single premise that drives the movie. A lot of rom-coms (a lot of plain old romance movies in general) are unfortunately like this, and it is exceedingly rare that you find a movie like Take This Waltz.

So, this is a refreshing rom-com that goes for realism rather than glamour. Right now, I can recommend it on that level alone. At another level of recommendation, the acting is superb, especially from Williams, playing a woman who is becoming more and more depressed at the predicament that she has landed herself in, and Sarah Silverman, who plays Lou's sister and a reforming alcoholic going through an existential crisis. There are also some truly moving moments, including one that definitely seemed to take inspiration from the infamous diner scene from When Harry Met Sally, and another that takes place on a fairground ride where there is no talking, just two people sharing looks of resignation and sadness. But that's the thing. For me at least, this film seems to made up of brilliant, realistic moments and scenes that don't really come together as a whole. And I blame both the characters and the overly twee nature of the film. God, this film is cutesy! Everything looks like it came out of a pixie-dream-girl catalogue. The house Lou and Margot live in, the clothes they wear, and, worst of all, the excrutiating love games that they play together!

But tweeness aside, this it is Margot that drives this film. She is the central focus and her actions are what moves the plot forward. She turns the film from a generic rom-com with a pixie-girl lead into a look into the mind of a woman who is suffering from the every day normal depression and confusion that we all suffer from from time to time. So, for me this is not a film about a woman trying to choose between loyalty to her husband and the new attraction she feels for a stranger, well it is, but only on the surface. For me, this is about people trying to keep going, living life for the good times that only come up once in a blue moon. It's about living from moment to moment, trying to find happiness in everything, but more often than not, failing. It's just about life. I know that all these cliches make it sound sappy, but believe me it's really not. It's just real, and most difinitely not as perfect as I make it out to be.

The major grievance I have with this film is the ending, or endings. For you see there are many places where it could've stopped. I suppose it went for more realistic and less Hollywoodanised ending. But I would've been happier if it ended around 20 minutes prior to when it did. It was a little more romantic, yeah, but sometimes the fairytale ending is what we want, what we need, when we go to see a film. Though I wouldn't really call either stopping points a fairytale. But with the extra padding, the movie starts to drag, and it loses some of the magic that the rest of the film had.

And I haven't even started on how good Seth Rogen was! (Or how good the soundtrack is as well, for that matter) This is really the best live action movie I've seen him in (I maintain that he would make an excellent voice actor) and it really proves he can act. Luke Kirby is also excellent, and Sarah Silverman steals the movie with her underrated performance. I know this isn't for everyone, but if you are interested do see it. The cuteness doesn't overpower (in parts, generally it's pretty balanced though) but it can annoy at times. The cast is excellent and there are some truly exceptional scenes. I can see this little mis-matched gem becoming a cult favourite in years to come. And you know what, it's probably the most romantic film I've seen all year! Until next time folks.