La boîte noire (2005)

Director:

Richard Berry

Writers:

Eric Assous (writer)
Tonino Benacquista (short story)

Release Date:

2 November 2005 (France)

Genre:

Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

Images flash through Arthur's brain, voices buzz in his mind, uttering disjointed words and sentences...

Plot Keywords:

Coma | Nurse | Hospital | Amnesia | Gunshot Wound

Cast

José Garcia	...	Arthur Seligman
Marion Cotillard	...	Isabelle Kruger / Alice
Michel Duchaussoy	...	M. Seligman, le père d'Arthur
Bernard Le Coq	...	Walcott / le docteur Granger
Héléna Noguerra	...	Soraya
Gérald Laroche	...	Le commissaire Koskas / Marc Koskas
Marysa Borini	...	Mme Seligman, la mère d'Arthur
Nathalie Nell	...	Dr. Brenner
Lise Lamétrie	...	La gardienne
Pascal Bongard	...	Clovis
Steve Campos	...	Arthur Seligman (6 ans)
Hugo Brunswick	...	Yvan Seligman (ado)
Dominique Bettenfeld	...	Policier 1
Alexandre Donders	...	Le patron du café
Arnaud Maillard	...	Le petit ami de Koskas

Also Known As:

Le Texas n'existe pas (France) (working title)
The Black Box (Australia) (TV title)

Runtime:

France:90 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby

Certification:

Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | France:U | Germany:12 | Portugal:M/16

Filming Locations:

Centre Hospitalier, Cherbourg, Manche, France

Company:

Europa Corp.

Trivia:

The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), mentioned by Arthur's doctor, is used to assess and record the level of consciousness of a patient after head injury. Three aspects are noted - the responses of a patient's eyes, his/ her verbal responses and motor responses. A score is generated which ranges from a low of 3 (deep unconsciousness) to 14 (or 15, depending upon which version of the scale is used). The GCS score can be used to give an indication of the level of brain injury (severe <9, moderate 9-12, minor >12).

Visually stunning

Tearing down a coastal lane, Arthur flies out of the bend only to open his eyes again in hospital. While he was out cold, his unconscious spoke, revealing his hidden self as an emotional Pandora's box. In a dreamy, confused state he battles absurdity to unravel a lingering, youthful trauma.

Visually stunning and cut at video-clip speed, you are in for quite a rush of a film. Oscillating between captivating and horrific, "The Black Box" is really well made. There are countless little examples of beautiful attention to detail scattered around. No doubt because of this attention to detail, the imperfections reveal themselves as well, but they are forgivable. But not all missteps are.

Most importantly, the story-line is not good enough. The film can get away with a somewhat flimsy story for a good hour because of the captivating presentation, but towards the end, it is almost impossible not to be disappointed by the simplistic wrap-up. A real shame, considering the effort which went into this production. Do not hesitate to watch it none the less, as you will be rewarded with plenty an attentive detail and good use of imagery with the unfortunately paranoid José Garcia stuck in the middle.