Film HITLIST THE BEST FILMS
OUTSIDE THE FESTIVALS
list.co.uk/film
ROMANCE/DRAMA THE TREE (12A) 100min ●●●●●
It seems trees are the new black: Terrence Malick wins the Palme d’Or with The Tree of Life, Win Win shows the central character’s life on track as he finally takes down the tree outside his garden, and La Quattro Volte gives a tree a leading role. Now in The Tree it is not only vital to the narrative, but also serves a symbolic function and happens to be the eponymous character. Charlotte Gainsbourg is Dawn O’Neill, the mother of four kids and married to a
good looking, charming and loveable man, but tragedy visits and the film deals with the fallout. Subsequently, the huge Moreton Bay fig tree in their garden appears to be the conscience of the family, as well as a source of solace to Dawn’s daughter, Simone (Morgana Davies).
There have been plenty of horror films over the years malevolently anthropomorphising trees: none more so than The Evil Dead, but director Julie Bertuccelli (Since Otar Left) keeps the film within the realm of psychological drama, using the tree for its suggestive possibilities rather than overly literalising its presence. Co-written by Judy Pascoe from her novel, The Tree is a fine study of loss. (Tony McKibbin) ■ Selected release from Fri 5 Aug.
Super 8 Writer/director JJ Abrams teams up with producer Steven Spielberg for pleasingly anachronistic sci-fi thriller about a young filmmaker who starts noticing some strange happenings. See review, page 108. General release from Fri 5 Aug.
The Tree Consummate psychological drama starring Charlotte Gainsbourg as a mother dealing with familial tragedy. See review, right. Selected release from Fri 5 Aug. Sarah’s Key A shameful French wartime incident is revisited in this compelling drama featuring Kristin Scott Thomas. See review, right. GFT, Glasgow and Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Fri 5 Aug.
Beginners Likeable sexuality awakening comic drama starring Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer and Melanie Laurent. Out now on selected release. Arriety Another beautiful and lyrical animation from Japan’s mighty Studio Ghibli, this one adapted from Mary Barton’s The Borrowers. Out now on selected release.
Potiche Very last chance to see Catherine Deneuve star as a 1970s trophy wife in François Ozon’s frothy comedy drama, which also features a dashing turn from Gerard Depardieu. Matinees only. Cameo, Edinburgh, Fri 5–Thu 11 Aug.
The Big Picture Talented French heartthrob Romain Duris comes of age in this existential thriller based on a novel by Douglas Kennedy, and directed by Eric Lartigau. Filmhouse, Edinburgh, Fri 5–Thu 11 Aug.
Just Do It – A Tale of Modern Outlaws Insider portrait of the environmental direct action movement. Filmhouse, Edinburgh on Thu 11, Sat 13 & Mon 15 Aug. GFT, Glasgow on Sun 14 Aug.
DRAMA/WAR SARAH’S KEY (ELLE S’APPELAIT SARAH) (15) 111min ●●●●●
Like the recently released The Round-Up, this respectful adaptation of Tatiana de Rosnay’s best-selling novel revisits one of the most shameful episodes of 20th century French history, namely the Vel d’Hiv raid on July 16 1942. Some 13,000 Parisian Jews were rounded up and detained by the domestic authorities in an indoor cycling stadium, before being deported to German death camps. Fluently shifting between past and present, director Gilles Paquet-Brenner intertwines two stories relating to these events. During the raid itself a 10-year-old Jewish girl, Sarah (Mélusine Mayance), desperately tries to save her brother by locking him in a cupboard. And in today’s Paris an American magazine reporter, Julia (Kristin Scott Thomas), is shocked to discover that her French husband’s family have owned for six decades the very flat where Sarah lived.
An unsurprisingly earnest and visually restrained drama, Sarah’s Key doesn’t entirely escape the straitjacket of what one critic has labelled ‘Holocaust heritage film’. Yet whilst recreating Sarah’s harrowing experiences, it also explores the psychological impact of Julia’s quest on both the journalist herself and on those through the decades who have had to conceal painful secrets. Aided by some fine ensemble performances, the filmmaker is able to imbue this story with a measure of moral ambiguity: this certainly isn’t a France of noble universal resistance to occupation. Guilt may weigh down heavily on these characters yet there is the possibility here of fresh beginnings. (Tom Dawson) ■ GFT, Glasgow, and Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Fri 5 Aug.
4–11 Aug 2011 THE LIST 107