L'ombre des femmes (2015)

Slo naslov: - 

Drugi naslovi: In the Shadow of Women

Država: Francija, Švica

Leto: 2015

Dolžina: 73',  Imdb

Žanri: Drama  

Slo recenzija: -

Režija: Philippe Garrel

Scenarij: Jean-Claude Carriere, Caroline Deruas, Arlette Langmann, Philippe Garrel

Igrajo: Clotilde Courau, Stanislas Merhar, Lena Paugam, Vimala Pons, Antoinette Moya, Jean Pommier, Therese Quentin

[ENG]

French auteur Philippe Garrel has been making deeply felt, intimate melodramas for five decades, and one can trace his evolving wisdom about life—and filmmaking—through the years. 

His latest, In the Shadow of Women, is a simple story of infidelity. Pierre (Stanislas Merhar) is a documentary filmmaker whose wife, Manon (Clotilde Courau), works with him on his projects. They seem to be happy until an intern (Lena Paugam) at a film archive catches Pierre’s gaze and they begin an affair… Garrel criticizes the petty male ego as he studies how Pierre justifies his cheating to himself (his thoughts revealed to us by an omniscient narrator voiced by Philippe’s superstar son, Louis Garrel). His weaknesses manifest as mistreatment toward both wife and mistress, and when Manon’s own unfaithful behaviour comes to light, Pierre is all but ready to come undone.

With both dry wit and genuine empathy, Garrel regards the characters’ fallibility as distinctly human, foolishly ensnaring themselves with petty mistakes and delusions only to then struggle to get free. Gorgeously composed in black and white by Garrel and veteran Swiss cinematographer Renato Berta (Au revoir les enfants, Full Moon in Paris), In the Shadow of Women exemplifies a level of artistry characteristic of a master at work.

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The currents of desire, jealousy and resentment that flow through a relationship over time receive an exquisite closeup from director Philippe Garrel in “In the Shadow of Women,” a tightly focused romantic drama that exudes the narrative terseness of a good short story and the lucid craftsmanship of a filmmaker in full command of the medium. Like so much of Garrel’s work, this intensely personal rumination on life, politics, art and the battle of the sexes is a very particular brand of cinema for a very specific crowd — which should stand “Women” well in territories where the veteran French auteur has established a small but passionate following. 

(Scott Foundas, Variety)

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