Tournees Festival presents ’35 Rhums’

Poster courtesy of Wild Bunch Distributions

After a rocky start, The Tournées French Film Festival premiered its first film with 35 Rhums, 35 Shots of Rum, in the Photonics Center Thursday night. The film, which was released in 2008 in Europe, was critically acclaimed but unfortunately not well known in the U.S.  The film festival did a great service in providing BU and the surrounding community showing 35 Rhums, which blends together loss, letting go, and finding new beginnings effortlessly.

In a style reminiscent of Woody Allen, director Claire Denis of Chocolat creates a touching story of intertwining lives with a real, raw attitude. The movie follows widower Lionel, a train driver, and his daughter Josephine, a hard working student through their daily lives in the suburbs of Paris. From the opening scene, it’s clear that they have an extremely close relationship; daughter caring for her father, just the two of them. Adding to their close-knit circle are neighbors Gabrielle and Noé. Gabrielle, a tax driver, is lonely like many characters in the film, and she tries to have a close bond with Josephine. Noé, in love with Josephine, remains attached to his abandoned apartment while constantly traveling abroad. One of the most touching characters in the film is René, who has just retired and feels like he should have died young because he feels useless. He then commits suicide as he is unable to deal with his new life. His loneliness relates to other characters like Gabrielle who wants to feel apart of a family, and Noé who hides his self through travel. Loneliness is a recurring theme that makes the movie so heartbreaking yet real.

The film plays out almost as a documentary-it’s not glamorous or over-reaching in its storyline. Shots of train tracks are the first in the film, and it doesn’t venture into the beautiful and well-known areas of Paris. While the characters are by no means poor, they are hard working middle class people without extravagance. What the film is so great in achieving is its unpretentious quality. Claire Denis is not out to create a romantic comedy or serious drama; 35 Rhums is how people cope through loneliness and love.

Throughout the film, the movie’s title comes into play, but in the end we are left questioning its true meaning. While celebrating René’s retirement, Lionel stops at 19 shots, saying that the time was not right for 35. However in the last few scenes as Josephine prepares to marry Noé, he downs the 35 shots of rum. We are left to ponder its significance, but clearly Lionel was waiting for the right moment. Meaning is what this film is all about. We all strive for it in different ways in order to be happy. For Lionel, seeing his daughter be independent is his happiness.  In the end, new beginnings are what take the characters out from the darkness and into the light.

The Tournées festival is here at BU until November 8.

About Briana Seftel

Briana Seftel (COM '14) is an aspiring journalist with an appetite for adventure. When not writing for the Quad, she enjoys exploring the great city of Boston.

View all posts by Briana Seftel →

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