Film No. 33 (2015) May 20th. 6:30 PM PARADISO Northbridge.
"In the depths of her soul she was waiting for something to happen" (The voice over of baker Fabrice Luchini (Martin Joubert)as he reflects on his new neighbour)
Gemma Bovery
This light and extremely enjoyable French / English production reimagines a story by Anne Fontaine of the same name. Martin Joubert (Fabrice Luchini) plays a likable baker in a village in Normandy. He is bored with life,a life he shares with wife Valerie (Isabelle Candelier)and son. So while his boredom might seem insignificant and perhaps a motivation for some typically off beat comedy there is a surprise twist. There are flashes of Midsomer Murders about the last 20 minutes; an off shoot of the cultural production bond perhaps.
Our baker relieves his boredom by reading the classics, then melding the narrative with the lives of people around him. This chapter of his humdrum life takes us to a time when new neighbors move in. Gemma (Gemma Arterton) and Charlie Bovery(Jason Flemyng) are English and have come to Normandy to escape London life. We never really get an insight into their relationship thus gaining an understanding of why Gemma does the things she does but like an episode of Midsomer most things happen for convenience sake.
Joubert is the clown like character who guides us through this whimsical tale. The film starts at the end like so many films do these days. We witness Joubert underhandedly take the diary of Gemma. It is then, through the diary and the musings of Joubert, that we have this light, tender and somewhat surprising cinema experience. Readers of Madam Bovery, of which I'm not one, will certainly get another dimension to Fontaine's work.
Luchini is excellent as the meddling baker. The closeups of his bewildered face as he follows Gemma's every move give us a better understanding of what's happening than what he's actually viewing. Arterton has the look for the part but I wasn't convinced of her every move. I know the film had to suspend some of my belief but for me, her ability to act didn't meet her physical presence. Never the less this original little mysterious fairytale has a charm most will enjoy. Bring on more French / English productions …. this melding worked. 9GUMS
Our baker relieves his boredom by reading the classics, then melding the narrative with the lives of people around him. This chapter of his humdrum life takes us to a time when new neighbors move in. Gemma (Gemma Arterton) and Charlie Bovery(Jason Flemyng) are English and have come to Normandy to escape London life. We never really get an insight into their relationship thus gaining an understanding of why Gemma does the things she does but like an episode of Midsomer most things happen for convenience sake.
Joubert is the clown like character who guides us through this whimsical tale. The film starts at the end like so many films do these days. We witness Joubert underhandedly take the diary of Gemma. It is then, through the diary and the musings of Joubert, that we have this light, tender and somewhat surprising cinema experience. Readers of Madam Bovery, of which I'm not one, will certainly get another dimension to Fontaine's work.
Luchini is excellent as the meddling baker. The closeups of his bewildered face as he follows Gemma's every move give us a better understanding of what's happening than what he's actually viewing. Arterton has the look for the part but I wasn't convinced of her every move. I know the film had to suspend some of my belief but for me, her ability to act didn't meet her physical presence. Never the less this original little mysterious fairytale has a charm most will enjoy. Bring on more French / English productions …. this melding worked. 9GUMS
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