Review: Paris 36 (2009)

[Steve Rhodes]

PARIS 36
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2009 Steve Rhodes

RATING (0 TO ****):  **

Always beautiful but rarely compelling, PARIS 36 (FAUBOURG 36) is the second 
feature film by director Christophe Barratier.  His first picture, THE 
CHORUS (LES CHORISTES), which was basically a subtitled MR. HOLLAND'S OPUS, 
was a huge hit in its native France and was nominated for two Academy Awards 
(Best Foreign Language Film and Best Original Song.)  Although his latest 
movie has a different story line, his approach is very similar, but I found 
THE CHORUS to be much more appealing.

Set in 1936, PARIS 36 follows the fall and rise and fall and rise of a music 
hall.  The film can't really be considered a musical, since, until the end, 
we only hear songs in small snippets.  The narrative is much more concerned 
with the backstage machinations of the music hall than the music itself.

Gerard Jugnot plays Pigoil, the manager of the music hall.  One of the 
story's main subplots concerns the fight between the French communists and 
fascists, with the communists being shown as the heroes of the average 
workers and the fascists as mindless idiots.  Pigoil, on the other hand, 
eschews politics, only wanting a chance for a "steady job."

Maxence Perrin plays Jojo, Pigoil's accordion playing son.  Forced to leave 
the father he loves, Jojo has to live with his mother, Viviane (Elisabeth 
Vitali), who left Pigoil for another man.  The film is overstuffed with way 
too many characters and subplots.

Tom Stern's cinematography is consistently stunning.  It's hard to pick a 
favorite visual, but the Parisian streets at night in the snow would be a 
definite contender for the movie's most magical moment.

The story's key character turns out to be Douce (Nora Arnezeder), a lovely 
young lass who auditions to be the music hall's announcer.  Since she 
possesses a voice of bird-like beauty, she is soon promoted from announcer 
to star and becomes a singing sensation.

Way too frantic, the movie plays like a bunch of vaudevillian actors trying 
to play to the cheap seats by exaggerating every gesture.  I love looking at 
it, but found everything else about the movie, from the overstuffed story to 
the truncated songs, to be disappointing.  I could also have done without 
the pro-communist nostalgia.

PARIS 36 runs too long at 2:00.  The film is in French with English 
subtitles.  It is rated PG-13 for "some sexuality and nudity, violence and 
brief language" and would be acceptable for kids around 10 and up.

The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, April 10, 2009. 
In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the Camera Cinemas.

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