Film
Beau Travail
- Director
- Claire Denis
- Certificate
- 15
- Running Time
- 90 mins
Relayed in flashback, Claire Denis’s Beau Travail revolves around former French Foreign Legion sergeant major Galoup (Denis Lavant), who develops an unrequited emotional commitment towards his commanding officer Bruno, but feels snubbed when Bruno’s attentions are directed towards a new recruit whose heroism and kindness win the admiration of his fellow legionnaires.
Unfortunately, the viewer is often left to work out Galoup’s internal psychological tensions through Lavant’s inscrutable facial expressions, which give very little away. What minimal script there is usually consists of tedious, pretentious monologues. Some will enjoy this as a poetic exploration of the redundancy of masculinity/ode to male camaraderie while others will simply see endless shots of bare-chested blokes doing lots of press-ups in a singularly unattractive landscape.
It’s back on screen as part of Cinema Rediscovered.
is needed now More than ever
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