Un barrage contre le Pacifique (2008)

Director:

Rithy Panh

Writers:

Marguerite Duras (novel)
Michel Fessler (writer)

Release Date:

7 January 2009 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A troubled mother's spirit crumbles when her adult children strike out for independence. Feeling abandoned she contemplates taking drastic action. |

Plot Keywords:

Remake | Based On Novel

Cast

Isabelle Huppert	...	La mère
Gaspard Ulliel	...	Joseph
Astrid Berges-Frisbey	...	Suzanne
Randal Douc	...	Monsieur Jo
Vanthon Duong	...	Le caporal
Stéphane Rideau	...	Agosti
Lucy Harrison	...	Carmen
Doeun Thenn Nan	...	M. Khing
Chorn Solyda	...	Le père Sok (as Solida Chorn)
Ingrid Mareski	...	La femme de Pierre
Louis Arsac	...	Pierre
Rosa Meas	...	A'chan
Mang Son	...	A'sok
Phén Vann	...	Le chef du village
Jean-Pol Brissart	...	M. Bideau

Also Known As:

The Sea Wall (International: English title)

Runtime:

Canada:115 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

France | Cambodia | Belgium

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Certification:

Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Australia:M

Company:

Catherine Dussart Productions (CDP)

Movie Connections:

Remake of This Angry Age (1958)

Nothing extraordinary, except for Isabelle Huppert, who is ALWAYS extraordinary

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

(brief report from the Toronto International Film Festival)

Those who have watched "L'amant" (1992) may still remember the somewhat unique story base on a novel set in the French colonies of Indochina in the 1930s. "The sea wall" is adapted from the work of the same author, with a similar backdrop. However, instead of focusing on the erotic encounter between a French woman and a Chinese man (although a similar elements still exists here, sans "erotic"), "The sea wall" is about the struggle of a woman who can be almost described as eccentric. Isabelle Huppert plays that woman.

The sea wall itself is a motif that reflects the struggle against nature, a barricade against salty sea water from flooding and destroying the rice fields. But the hostile side of nature is not the only enemy that the widowed, over-20-years settler has to content with. There is also the colonial bureaucrats that constantly threaten to take back her rice fields. Her temperamental 20-year-old son and innocent 17-year-old daughter try to help as much as they can, not an easy thing when the mother is even more temperamental. The family's only true ally is a loyal local employee called "Corporal".

There is nothing especially dramatic in the plot, including the romantic escapades of son and daughter, both with a rich object-of-affection – a French woman and a Chinese man respectively. The backdrop does include undercurrents of local unrests caused by severe oppression. But those stay as backdrops.

Technically, there is again nothing extraordinary. There is neither revealing long takes nor sharp, suggestive montages. The Cambodian landscape captured is watchable, but not breathtaking. Story telling and editing are run-of-the-mill.

At any film festival, I'll make sure I see at least one film with Isabelle Huppert, if there's any at all. "The sea wall" is decidedly not her "career-best" performance or any such thing. Still, her pitch-perfect portrayal of this irritatingly temperamental and lovably stubborn woman makes this film a rewarding experience.