'Suite Francaise', based on Irene Nemirovsky's best selling novel explores a legacy that still haunts France - denunciations, collaboration and forbidden love during the German occupation. 'X+Y' is a compelling and emotional feel-good tale of a teenage maths prodigy with mild autism.
Director: Saul Dibb
Cast: Margot Robbie, Ruth Wilson, Michelle Williams, Kirsten Scott Thomas, Matthias Schoenquerts
Genre: War Drama Romance
Language: English and German with English subtitles
Country of Origin: UK, France, Germany 2014 107 mins.
'Suite Francaise' based on Irène Némirovsky's novel of the same name is set in the small fictional town of Bussy and explores the ways in which the characters lives are changed by the occupation leading to denunciations of fellow citizens, collaboration and love affairs with the enemy.
With the French army humiliated Parisian refugees pour into the small town of Bussy. Lucile Angellier (Michelle Williams), a woman dominated by her haughty self-centred mother-in-law Madame Angellier (Kirstin Scott Thomas) awaits news of her husband, a prisoner of war. When a battalion of German soldiers are billeted in the town the reality of occupation kicks in and a young German officer, Bruno von Falk (Matthias Schoenaerts) will change Lucile's life as a forbidden love affair emerges.
Bussy's hierarchical divide means little as the town ruptures with the arrival of the German occupying forces. This is an occupation seen from the villager's and particularly the women's view point and characters cope in different ways. It's as though a war is needed to reveal the true character. Care-free Celine (Margot Robbie) sees the German men living in the house as 'just people like us'. The Viscount de Montmort (Lambert Wilson), eagerly seeks the victor's embrace and all but salivates as he sucks up to the German Commandant (Heino Ferch) for favourable treatment and the bitter and tormented tenant farmer Benoit Labarie (Sam Riley), unable to fight because of his damaged leg or protect his wife Madeleine (Ruth Wilson) from the unwanted attention of the aggressive Kurt Bonnet (Tom Schilling) is treated with contempt by the class conscious, self-seeking Viscountess (Harriet Walker).
Michelle Williams and Matthias Schoenaerts performances have an understated elegance and strength and Tom Schilling brings to the fore the inbuilt arrogance of the victor. Kirstin Scott Thomas portrayal of the tormented Madame Angellier didn't quite work for me and it may be because the film's in English to appeal to as wide an audience as possible. I'd preferred it in French - the German cast speak German. Whatever, 'Suite Francaise' is very watchable and poignant.
Irene Nemirovsky, a novelist of Ukranian Jewish descent lived in Paris with her husband Michel Epstein and their two daughters 12-year-old Denise and 4-year-old Elisabeth before the German invasion after which they moved to the village of Issy-l'Eveque in Burgundy, a safe haven which became the inspiration for the fictional Bussy. Irene Nemirovsky was denounced as a Jew and deported to Auschwitz where she died of typhus in 1942. Michael Epstein was transported straight to the gas chamber. Irene entrusted her notebooks to her daughters who assumed that they were her diaries and remained unread until the 1990s, when Denise began to transcribe what turned out to be the first two parts of a planned five part novel.
'it is an extraordinary feeling to have brought my mother back to life. It shows the Nazis did not truly succeed in killing her. It is not vengeance, but it is a victory.' Denise Epstein
Released by e ONE 13th March
Director: Morgan Matthews
Cast: Asa Butterfield, Rafe Spall, Sally Hawkins, Eddie Marsan, Jo Yang
Genre: Comedy Drama
Language: English
Country of Origin: UK 2014 111 mins
'X+Y' has a feel-good touch. Compelling and emotional, superb cinematography and an outstanding cast. Blow the trumpet. It's deserved.
Nathan (Asa Butterfield) has mild autism and lives in his own private world and has a passion and talent for mathematics. His is a world of logic and reason. There's no understanding of love or affection something that his mother, Julie (Sally Hawkins) can't get to grips with and she remains sidelined in his thoughts. Life's more logical and structured with his brilliant, unconventional and anarchic teacher, Mr Humphreys (Rafe Spall), who recognises Nathan's unique talent and puts him forward for the British Team at the International Mathematics Olympiad to be led by Richard (Eddie Marsan). It's goodbye safe suburbia and hello Taiwan where Nathan's faced with a multitude of challenges and emotions not least the new and unfamiliar feelings he begins to experience for one of the Chinese competitors, Zhang Mei (Jo Yang).
'X+Y' holds you with ease for the full 111 minutes. The cast are outstanding with bravuro naturalistic performances. Asa Butterfield brilliantly conveys Nathan's bewilderment and terror of his locked world. Rafe Spall, the off-the-wall mathematics tutor can easily steal the screen, Eddie Marsan shines as ever and Sally Hawkins, Nathan's caring and loving mother Julie is outstanding. Add on James Graham's script and Martin Phipps score which are spot on and Danny Cohen's cinematography capturing mood and place and you've got a winner.
Will it be selected screenings? Probably, but I hope not. If anyone thinks that a film about a mathematics prodigy with mild autism isn't interesting, they're wrong. 'X+Y' is superb cinema.
Released by KOCH MEDIA 13th March
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