a successful adaptation of Sorj Chalandon’s book with a fantastic Laurent Lafitte

Critique
Drama by David Oelhoffen, with Laurent Lafitte, Simon Abkarian, Manal Issa (France, 1h56). In theaters January 15 ★★★★☆

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A Mercedes pulverized by the shell of a Syrian tank on the border with Lebanon in 1982. Georges (Laurent Lafitte) escaped just in time. Out of friendship for an old dying mentor, he agreed, a few months earlier, to take on a crazy challenge, to stage “Antigone” by Anouilh in the center of war-ravaged Beirut, with a troupe of actors from each of the communities. of the country devoting mutual hatred to each other. David Oelhoffen’s film is the adaptation of the eponymous book by Sorj Chalandon, who chose the distorting filter of fiction to evoke his memories as an onboard reporter.

This fascinating theatrical prism allows a playful approach to the reality of the Middle East, and thereby repels the threat of a first-degree, pompous and grandiloquent historical reconstruction. Georges, who confesses at the opening that he understands nothing of the subtleties of these distant rifts, evolves both as a candid observer and as a cunning and pragmatic troupe leader, a small artisan of living together whose common game project is a bit of a burlesque challenge ( the film is sometimes very touching, if not funny), but initiates the first impulse, slender and modest, of a possible reconciliation. The success of the ensemble owes a lot to the formidable Laurent Lafitte. Despite the limitless commitment of his character, he infuses the film with his relaxed and mischievous presence, his manners as an eternal tourist crackling with modesty and intelligence.