Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Xavier Beauvois | ... | Benoit | |
Chiara Mastroianni | ... | Claudia | |
Roschdy Zem | ... | Omar | |
Bulle Ogier | ... | Benoit's Mother | |
Jean-Louis Richard | ... | Bennoit's Father | |
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Emmanuel Salinger | ... | Military Doctor |
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Jean Douchet | ... | Jean-Paul |
Pascal Bonitzer | ... | Psychiatrist | |
Cédric Kahn | ... | Benoit's Friend | |
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Stanislas Nordey | ... | Benoit's Friend |
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Patrick Chauvel | ... | Military Commander |
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Denis Psaltopoulos | ... | Patient |
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Frédéric Quiring | ||
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Sandra Cheres | ||
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Marc Foure |
Benoit (Xavier Beauvois) has planned out his life. Unfortunately he has forgotten the military duty. After he is called to duty he tries everything to get around. He goes to a psychiatrist who gives him medicine against depression. As this doesn't work out he tries suicide. The story gets even worse as he is told by a military doctor that he is HIV positive. Benoit tumbles down into the drug scene. Then he goes to Italy and meets Claudia (Chiara Mastroianni). Things seem to improve, but only for a short time... Written by Marco Radke <ds@serve.com>
Saw this on line (on MUBI, the only place I could find it, and a good, legitimate source for some more obscure foreign and indie films) and would love to see it again on a bigger screen.
Low key but intense, this follows a young man who tries to evade his army service with a false suicide, only to find out he has HIV at a time when it was more a death sentence. His life spins out of controls as he turns to drug use and drug dealing to hide his pain, and forget his impending demise.
Then he meets a woman who offers some hope and real love, but can he actually accept it, knowing how short his horizon is?
The acting is good, but not great, and some of the character turns are sudden to the point of feeling almost arbitrary. Some memorable scenes and images, but it all stays pretty distanced and unemotional. A second viewing would be instructional.