Francois Ozon's German/French drama, Frantz - set in post World War I Europe - is a delicately constructed portrayal of grief by two similar souls from opposite sides of The Great War. As Anna, a German woman whose fiancé was killed by the French, Paula Beer displays a quiet dignity not often seen with such characters. She wears her mourning not only as a mirror to the deep grief she's been in since Frantz's death, but also as a repellant cloak from obnoxious new suitors. When a mysterious Frenchman, Adrien (Pierre Niney), shows up at his grave with flowers in tow, the local Germans are suspicious as all hell, not to mention still angry at their western border neighbors for losing the war.
Niney captures the conflicted anguish of his character very well, and Adrien's eventual fate will certainly surprise many viewers, but alas, if you're looking for a Hollywood ending, you won't find it here. Frantz is a wise, artistic movie - its cinematic shifts from B&W to color based on the tone is a wisely used ploy - but by no means is it pretentious. In a market overflowing with predictable celluloid romances, Frantz dares us to predict its final act, then sneaks up and does something completely unexpected . Therein lies its bliss.
B+
No comments:
Post a Comment