Dans Paris

[click on the title for a link]

Last night I went to a film called "Dans Paris" [Inside Paris].
It was part of the "Rendez-Vous with French Cinema" festival [February 28 - March 11].

I loved the film and I recommend it.

It was refreshingly original in content and form and it dealt with a deep and sensetive subject--depression--with delicacy, non-cliche understanding and humor. "Dans Paris" is about three men of the same family, two brothers and their father, and their relationship with (their) women as well as with each other.

In the first scene Jonathan (played by the charming Louis Garrel from The Dreamers) looks straight at the camera and addresses the viewers.

Jumping out of bed in which a man and a woman were sleeping on both his sides, the actor explains he will be the omniscient narrator of the film and will get back into character straight after this confession. He also explains he is not the main character of the film, and asks the viewers a 'final question'- can love really make one jump over a bridge?
These first 5 minutes of the film managed to charm me straight away.

The film has several scenes in which the actors recite poetry or prose in a very natural way instead of a dialogue, and sometimes they sing to each other instead of talking. I'm not a musicals person, and this worked perfectly. I found it quite refreshing. The way they played with words, scripts, music and also some dance and quiet moments.

This is not giving away the content of the film, so you can go watch it and enjoy.
It was fun, deep, playful, sensetive, artistic and experimental. Surely, that is a rarity.