People may ask, quite rightly, why I continue to explore the filmography of Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani when I often strongly dislike what they offer up to viewers. First of all, I'm a completist. I'll sit through anything. Second, I'm an optimist. I'll sit through anything. Third, I keep thinking that there will be a time when Cattet and Forzani figure out how to marry their impressive aesthetic choices to a narrative that proves more rewarding to those after more than just some sensory overload.
This is a very familiar plot. A robbery has been committed, and the robbers now want to hide out with their stash. Unfortunately, their plan goes slightly awry when other people end up in the vicinity. It's not long until unfortunate coincidences start to pile up, as well as one or two spoonfuls of greed-induced treachery, of course.
There's something to be said for artists sticking to what holds their interest, whether they are striving for perfection or looking to deliver some pointed commentary through their own unique voice, but there's also something to be said for artists who figure out how to play to their strengths while transposing their vision on to different canvases (metaphorically speaking). Cattet and Forzani don't seem able to do anything that proves they have more in their bag of tricks than an ability to crank up the audio when there's some leather onscreen. I applaud their ability to give us something so evocative - your ears prick up when that leather creaks, there's a palpable heat emanating off the screen during times when some of the characters are sweating under the shimmering sun - but I need something else to accompany that stimulation. Others may strongly disagree, fair enough, but I would argue that Cattet and Forzani have shown not one bit of progress since they made their feature debut over 15 years ago.
I don't want to seem rude to the cast members here, but they must know that they're playing second fiddle to the editors, those doing the makeup and practical effects, and foley artists. Elina Löwensohn and Dorylia Calmel fare better than their male counterparts, but even their performances are at the mercy of the other choices that move away from the actual plot to focus on different sensations or different viewpoints (which is why we are given a number of timestamps that sometimes simply show the same time, indicating that we're being shown another angle on something that has already been played out onscreen).
I didn't completely hate this, and I do think that Cattet and Forzani were at least trying to work some other genre movie tropes through their own filter. It just didn't work, and I was never once interested in either the characters or where the whole thing would end. Win or lose, live or die, it didn't matter to me, and I would argue that's because it never really mattered to those helming the film. If I want something this experiential without anything else to keep me interested then I can always explore the many ASMR videos available online. That's all this really is, ASMR for those who like the creak of leather. It's even somehow a step down from their last feature.
3/10
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