Sindre Kaspersen French screenwriter and director André Téchiné's eighteenth feature film which he co-wrote with French author and screenwriter Odile Barski and French playwright and translator Jean-Marie Besset, is an adaptation of a play from 2007 by Jean-Marie Besset and inspired by real events which took place in France in the early 2000s. It premiered in France, was screened in the French Revolutions section at the 53rd BFI London Film Festival in 2009, was shot on locations in France and is a French production which was produced by producer Saïd Ben Saïd. It tells the story about a woman named Jeanne who lives in Paris, France with her mother named Louise and whom is thinking about travelling to Italy whilst her mother is making other plans for her.Distinctly and precisely directed by French filmmaker André Téchiné, this finely paced and somewhat fictional tale which is narrated from multiple viewpoints though mostly from the main character's point of view, draws a multifaceted portrayal of a French daughter in her twenties whom whilst out looking for a suitcase meets a man named Franck, and a son named Nathan whom is caught somewhere between his divorced parents. While notable for its naturalistic and atmospheric milieu depictions, reverent cinematography by French cinematographer Julien Hirsch, production design by production designer Michèle Abbé- Vannier, costume design by costume designer Khadya Zeggaï and use of sound, colors and light, this character-driven and narrative-driven story about lies, misunderstandings and the occasions leading up to a woman's response to learning about the Holocaust, depicts an investigative study of character and contains a great and timely score by composer Philippe Sarde. This reconstructive, quick-witted, consequential and psychological drama from the late 2000s which is set in the capital city of France in the 21st century and where a wrestler falls in love, a separated couple is in constant negotiations regarding their time with their son, the media is reporting anti-Semitic acts and a mother one day recognizes a Jewish attorney named Samuel Bleistein whom she once knew, is impelled and reinforced by its cogent narrative structure, substantial character development, rhythmic continuity, interrelated stories, densely romantic undertones, distinct style of filmmaking and the significant acting performances by Belgian actress Émilie Dequenne, French actors Nicolas Duvauchelle, Michel Blanc and Mathieu Demy, French actress Catherine Deneauve and Israeli actress Ronit Elkabetz. An engagingly conversational, profoundly cinematographic and tangible narrative feature.

ragavacharyar This movie is basically pointless. I was drawn in by the storyline only to find that the movie meanders on for some 80-85 minutes or so in the 'les circonstances' except that there really aren't a lot of circumstances that add up to what the protagonist does. Afterward, the protagonist cuts herself a little, draws a few swastikas on herself and says she's been a victim of a hate crime. Her mom knows its not true as her daughter, the protagonist, claims she was attacked because the lawyer Blestein's card was found in her bag (it turns out that Blestein didn't believe in business cards and didn't print any). Then Blestein and the girl's mom try to get the daughter to confess to what she had done. She does, gets a suspended sentence and is seen rollerblading again. What a pointless movie.

asc85 First of all, I have to say that I am positive about this film. But I'm not sure why this film is being marketed as one about a young woman who says she was attacked by minorities that creates a media frenzy. Sure, that happens in the movie, but it's towards the end, and doesn't even seem to me to be the primary thrust of the picture. To me, the film is about the adventures of a screwed-up young woman (well-played by the very pretty Emilie Dequenne) who can't find a job, moves in with a potentially dangerous young wrestler, gets involved in drugs, and, oh by the way, gives self-inflicted wounds to herself and creates a major controversy.I guess one of the reasons I liked this movie was because it told a story that I wasn't sure where it was going, but I didn't mind because the story was an extremely interesting one, that cut and cross-cut to different sub-plots and characters.

Chris Knipp This Téchiné "issue" film is based on an actual news story of a young woman who pretended to have suffered an anti-Semitic attack on an RER (Réseau Express Régional) train that connects Paris with the surrounding regions. The story was originally adapted for the theater by Jean-Marie Besset and watching Besset's play gave Téchiné the idea for this quickly-shot film.There's much to like, not least of which is a cast that includes Francophone mega-stars Michel Blanc and (Téchiné regular) Catherine Deneuve (as old friends) and lively young actors Nicolas Duvauchelle (of 'Les corps impatients') and Emilie Dequenne (star of the Dardenne brothers' Rosetta. This director is always good at juggling social levels and relationships (see Les Voleurs). But the subject matter seems forced and not super-relevant, a problem also of The Witnesses, but this time the issues arise in a way that makes them seem much less urgent than the AIDS crisis. Why does Jeanne (Dequenne) make up this story? What are its ramifications for actual Jews victimized by anti-Semites--and for the level of anti-Semitism in Europe and the world today? To what extent are individuals more victimized than ever by media invasions of privacy? These aren't questions that get sufficiently explored, either on a personal or a collective level. As a result viewers will experience a complicated set of characters they care about only intermittently, and a central event whose motivation is too vague to make it emotionally involving.Jeanne lives with her mother Louise (Deneuve) in a house with a garden in the suburbs of Paris very near the RER line. They get along really well. Louise earns a living minding children. Jeanne is looking for work, but not very energetically. Louise reads a web notice one day that gives her the fantasy that she can get Alice a job working for a famous lawyer, Samuel Bleinstein (Blanc), whom she knew when they were very young. Jeanne gets an interview. It's not very promising. But she and Louise are going to get plenty of quality time with Bleinstein after Jeanne's lie comes out.Before that, an online meeting: Jeanne connects in a chat-room with Frank (Duvachelle), a tattooed martial arts champion whose background may be dodgier than she realizes, but who is clearly more motivated than her because of his credible pro-sport ambitions. Jeanne and Frank have a roller-blade date and hit it off pretty fast. Before long Jeanne's not only sleeping over with Frank but sharing the responsibility of minding a mysterious electronics warehouse whose owner is away. It turns out the warehouse holds something other than electronics, and Frank's uncooperativeness with some gangster types causes him to wind up in the hospital with a potentially fatal stab wound. Frank, who has already been troubled by Jeanne's habit of lying, decides his involvement with her isn't good for either of them. It's in the wake of Frank's rejection that Jeanne cuts herself and paints on swastikas with a felt pen, then goes to the police with an invented story of being assaulted on the RER. by racist anti-Semites.Somewhat to Jeanne's shock, her story arouses an immediate and rapidly metastasizing media frenzy. She is soon forced to admit her lie. This gets her in trouble with the law. This in turn leads Louise to call on her old friend Samuel, whom she's newly aware of from finding the job at his office on the Internet. We get scenes of Samuel's extended family, a Jewish family, whose members are debating over the coming bar mitzvah of young Nathan. (The young actor has a strong presence; I can't find his name in the casting list. But his father Alex is played by Mathieu Demy and his mother Judith by the vivid Ronit Elkabetz.) 'La fille du RER' (film's French title) is meant to creep up on you. Perhaps to avoid being stamped "thriller" or "crime story," but also to show how violence can pop up unexpectedly in what seem everyday lives, it meanders for an hour before Frank's stabbing. Throughout, the film explores semi-chance interconnections of different people with complex family ties--and some, like Frank, who're estranged from any family--in a world where violence can strike all of a sudden, and is so ever-present it becomes a tool to be used by a young woman to get attention. In her search for identity--missing perhaps due to the absence of her father and the lack of any commitment to work--Jeanne seeks an artificial identity in pretending to be Jewish and a victim of violence. As Stephen Holden notes in his 'NYTimes' Rendez-Vous roundup, "Mr. Téchiné shows his special empathy for the ways youthful impatience can trigger impulsively self-destructive behavior." For young Nathan, identity is being presented on a silver platter in the traditional coming-of-age ritual of a bar mitzvah.Julien Hirsch is responsible for the film's bright, beautiful look. Costume designer Radija Zeggai gets the credit one assumes, for Deneuve's wonderfully frumpy-chic outfits.The film is scheduled for French release March 18, 2009. Its showing in the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema at Lincoln Center is its world premiere.