« Oh, Canada » (4 ⭐/ 5)
We are in a sort of fever dream of a man whose belief in a solid, real world has dissolved. So we are immersed in memories that may not even be true. I saw this in my father when he was dying: he had completely false memories, but he was absolutely certain that the events had happened. » To hear Richard Gere tell us about his role in Oh, Canadawe immediately understand how much the words of filmmaker Paul Schrader resonated within him and in his own intimate life.
Just as he hides nothing of his now white hair, he intensely embodies the character of Leonard Fife, a documentarian who, at the twilight of his life, confesses in front of the camera of one of his film students. The “true lie” dear to Louis Aragon takes on its full scope here: in Leonard’s stories, truths and lies mix, without anyone, not even him, being able to truly recognize themselves in them.
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As a devoted wife and first spectator of this filmed testament: Emma, played by Uma Thurman. The actress talks about how impressed she herself was by the meeting of these two « maestros », as she calls them, and to qualify them in the process as men “kind and excellent”. Being one with her character, she clearly admired her partner on the film set: “Richard had a very demanding role in which he transformed himself by putting on extensive makeup before doing long takes with a lot of text. It was truly a muscular and challenging performance. And so it was wonderful to watch. »
The film and reality never stop crossing paths.
The wife Emma thus contemplates Leonard with the same eyes as those of the actress Uma for her partner in a striking mirror effect. This is obviously the characteristic of films which take place in the cinema environment and reproduce the conditions of a shoot. However, Paul Schrader does not spare his main character in any way, whose pettiness he uncompromisingly xamines. Richard Gere brilliantly takes on the role of this man on the verge of death. Forty-four years earlier, Paul Schrader had filmed Gere in American Gigolo.
This reunion sounds like a requiem in which the star, his character and the stigmata of passing time mingle. With the added bonus of this confession from Richard Gere: “I’ll tell you one important thing about movie stars, especially today: you can’t hide anything. Nothing ! So I’m innocent like a baby. I have no more secrets! »
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And Uma Thurman, as in the film, unreservedly approves of this wry statement delivered with a smile. This is how the film and reality never cease to intersect: what the actors say about the film, their characters could have said in this same film. A mirror effect as disturbing as it is striking and which makesOh, Canada both a twilight film and a magnificent portrait of star Richard Gere, flaws and qualities included.
Oh, Canada, by Paul Schrader, with Richard Gere, Uma Thurman, Jacob Elordi, Zach Shaffer. 1:35 a.m. Release Wednesday. (Credits: LTD/ARP/Jeong Park)
Divine Sandrine (3 ⭐/4)
We can legitimately be surprised that the extraordinary character of actress Sarah Bernhardt has never been the subject of a film until now. How grateful we are to the filmmaker Guillaume Nicloux for sparing us, on the contrary, a good big soulless biopic. And yet, the fragmented story that he chose to lead for Sarah Bernhardt, la divine doesn’t really succeed in convincing. As if the multiplication of sentimental notes ended up stifling the general subject of the film and the scope of an exceptional career. As if the desire to prove the modernity of the character ended up falling on the side of an artificial discourse.
But it is also true that the actress’s performance would seem unbearably grandiloquent to us today and that we must therefore look elsewhere for the reasons for her intact fame. The fact remains that at the center of the film another actress constantly shines: Sandrine Kiberlain, who plays the tragedian. She is on all levels and she literally radiates. Thanks to her, Sarah Bernhardt no longer has any secrets for us: we know what a great actress is.
Sarah Bernhardt, la divine, by Guillaume Nicloux, with Sandrine Kiberlain, Laurent Lafitte, Amira Casar, Pauline Étienne. 1:38 a.m. Released Wednesday. (Credits: LTD/Sarah Bernhardt, the divine)
