The House

One finds in this beautiful film all that makes us appreciate the work of Manuel Poirier. People who have been hurt by life, confronted with the wounds of their existence (here, a divorced man with children, the death of a father…), who try valiantly to cope, with their strengths and especially their weaknesses. A very human film, significant and right, with an infinite tenderness. The tone is melancholic, almost harsh, trying to come to terms with people and relationships, but also the links between them (both mysterious and changing). This house becomes the powerful symbol of it. But let this not stop you seeing it: La Maison isn't a comedy, but its characters are profound, perfectly interpreted (Sergi Lopez, as usual, but also Bérénice Béjo, very moving in an unusual register) and beautiful locations (one realizes how much the director loves the 'province'... he's one of the few who knows how to depict it really well). There is something of Pialat, in this film (in a positive way). This fascinating little jewel stays in our heads, like all sensitive and true works. In its own way, a small miracle.

This French movie is just a little but too easy-going and too much of a bunch of clichés to remain interesting all the way trough the end. It has some nice ideas, and indeed some good scenes, but there are many useless comments made in the film, or stereotypes (such as the over intelligent kid of 5 years old). The good scenes are mainly all the ones having Sergi Lopez, who does indeed deliver a good acting job. But then again, too many scenes to get irritated about, the always sunny and calm Paris, the divorced man getting drunk all the time, these stereotypes seem too far away from the reality of real life today. The characters lack some depth, and the relationships between stays somewhat superficial. The way the two sisters act with one another for instance would have merited a more thorough attention throughout the movie. A bit disappointing for me. The music score was also quite monotonous, fans of Lhasa in French will love it, but I preferred this Canadian singer when she still sung in Spanish. As a whole, an interesting starting point : different people want to buy the same house, for different reasons, and these people will throughout the movie get in conflict with one another. Then again, this issue is the one and only dominant plot line, and the movie lacks some interesting other issues, such as the development of friendship, or the explicitation of some unsais issues.

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