Don't Forget You're Going to Die (1995)

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 ... See full summary »

Director:

Xavier Beauvois

Writers:

Xavier Beauvois, Emmanuel Salinger

Stars:

Xavier Beauvois, Chiara Mastroianni, Roschdy Zem

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

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
Emmanuel Salinger	...	Military Doctor
Jean Douchet	...	Jean-Paul
Pascal Bonitzer	...	Psychiatrist
Cédric Kahn	...	Benoit's Friend
Stanislas Nordey	...	Benoit's Friend
Patrick Chauvel	...	Military Commander
Denis Psaltopoulos	...	Patient
Frédéric Quiring
Sandra Cheres
Marc Foure

Storyline

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...

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Plot Keywords:

person with aids | lecture | taking drugs | explicit fellatio | female full rear nudity | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

3 January 1996 (France)

Also Known As:

Don't Forget You're Going to Die

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

AFCL Productions, La Sept Cinéma, Périphéria

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

Disjointed and unbalanced with little characterisation

I found this movie disjointed. It makes sense that Benoit might want to sink himself in an oblivion of drink and drugs to forget his pain, but a huge amount of the film was spent on this part of the story, with some drugs scenes in long, unnecessary detail. Then just as you think that this is what the film is about, suddenly, and without warning or any helpful thought process from Benoit, things change. And then again, though later passages are increasingly brief since there's just not time left after the earlier drug marathon. I found myself having to rewind to work out where Benoi was and the explanation (there was usually none) since the changes are so quick and unexpected. The ending feels contrived, rather silly, and very much as if it was just a tag-on of the "how do I end this now?" variety. It makes no sense based on what we have seen of Benoit previously. Throughout, Benoit is a very superficial character, we really get no insight into his feelings or thought processes, and without that, he comes over as cold, selfish, and arbitrary in his actions. You don't feel the sympathy for him that you should. Maybe you are meant to read behind his actions but in my view, too much is left to the imagination .