The Sea Wall (2008)
"Un barrage contre le Pacifique" (original title)

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

Director:

Rithy Panh

Writers:

Marguerite Duras (novel), Michel Fessler,

Stars:

Isabelle Huppert, Gaspard Ulliel, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Isabelle Huppert	...	La mère
Gaspard Ulliel	...	Joseph
Astrid Bergès-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

Storyline

French Indochina, 1931. In the Gulf of Siam, a Widow and her two children, Joseph, 2o, and Suzanne, 16, barely survive by exploiting rice fields located much too close to the ocean. Every year their crops are flooded and their only hope lies in the construction of a seawall. The mother refuses to give up and desperately battles both the sea and the corrupt colonial bureaucrats ...

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Plot Keywords:

remake | based on novel

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

France Cambodia Belgium

Language:

French

Release Date:

7 January 2009 (France)

Also Known As:

Ena fragma ston Eiriniko

Company Credits

Production Co:

Catherine Dussart Productions (CDP), Studio 37, France 2 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min 115 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Juliette Binoche was considered for the role of the mother.

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Connections

Remake of This Angry Age (1958)

User Reviews

Routine Anti-Colonial Costume Drama

This is a costume drama of solid but very routine production values. The theme is anti-colonialism. The French colonial authorities are shown as corrupt and oppressive and the colonist family at the centre of the narrative is economically hopeless and morally degenerate. Isabelle Huppert is a slightly crazy and clueless head of a family whose only assets reside in the sexual allure of its teenage son and daughter. These assets are exploited in an attempt to save the family's fortunes. They are an unlikeable bunch although some nuance is generated by Huppert who injects a little humanity into her character. The film feels slow-paced and over long and do we really need another anti-colonial tract?