THOMAS IN LOVE (Thomas est amoureux)
Reviewed by Harvey Karten IFC Films Director: Pierre-Paul Renders Writer: Philippe Blasband Cast: Benoit Verhaert, Aylin Yay, Magali Pinglaut, Micheline Hardy, Alexandre von Sivers, Frederic Topart, Serge Larivere, Eric Kasongo
If you get The New Yorker, you probably saw this cartoon not long ago: guy stands in front of an audience at one of those 12- steps addiction centers and reports: "Hi, my name is John and I check my e-mail 350 times a day." This may sound like an exaggeration, but in the imagination of writer-director Pierre-Paul Renders, it's probably true--for some people. "Thomas in Love" focuses on its title character but we never see him. What he checks every day is not exactly e-mail: instead, he is psychologically tied to his computer which he operates at least eight hours daily and he never goes outside. He is agoraphobic, which is to say, he fears not only the outdoors but human contact. He has not left his apartment for eight years, gets three months' supply of food delivered to him at a stretch, has maintenance people come to his apartment door and then leaves whatever he need repaired outside for pickup, consults regularly with a psychoanalyst, and talks weekly with his mom. All is covered by insurance. In short, he is materially prosperous, he seems happy enough, but something is missing--something of which he is only vaguely aware since he actually revels in his phobia. He is missing love; real love, that is, not sex because that is taken care of by his computer which allows him and a visualized partner of his choice to don special cybersex suits and to have fun.
In the case of "Thomas in Love," the principal responsibility for our entertainment and insight rests not with director Pierre-Paul Renders or on the principal actor. The former is almost unnecessary because of the essentially static nature of the film, the latter is utilized only for his droning voice. Philippe Blasband's script is what gives the story its satiric edge, since the movie is obviously about the increasing reliance that the human species in the industrialized world places on machines. Blasband sees us as increasingly reliant on mechanized relationships. Kids play video games--together with other young people, but still--the accent is on the game and not on the interrelationship of human beings. People walk on the street and (did you ever notice this?) couples and foursomes walk together but instead of relating to one another they talk on their separate cell phones! TV has long dominated after-dinner living-room activity and business meetings are conducted via teleconferencing. We can't talk to human beings even when we use the telephone! Phone a business and what do you hear? "Your call is very important to us" says a computerized message...after which we are encouraged to go to the company web site rather than bother a human being.
How effectively "Thomas in Love" parodies this situation is another story. Because of the endless chatter between Thomas (Benoit Verhaert) and each of the people with which he communicates via computer, e.g. Melody (Migali Pinglaut), his mother Nathalie (Micheline Hardy), an insurance agent (Alexandre von Sivers), his shrink (Frederic Topart), a prostitute Eva (Aylin Yay) and others--the story becomes redundant and overly wordy despite the frequent changes of personalities that cross the screen. The character of Melody is the most interesting as she, who is a member of the dating club for which Thomas's psychologist signed him up, desperately wants to meet him, actually thinks she has fallen in love with the man, and consents to a session of cybersex with him. (Cybersex in Thomas's world is more advanced than it is in our own world of 2001 since the partners fit themselves into suits and actually grope each other somehow via the screen.)
"Thomas est amoureux"--as this Belgian-French production is named--takes off where the scripter's previous screenplay, "A Pornographic Affair," left off. In Blasband's previous work, a couple arranges a transaction through a sex club and try to make the limited relationship expand into something broader, more humane. But because we see just one character at a time in "Thomas," with Virginie Saint Martin's video camera remaining almost stationary, we in the audience cannot be blamed for feeling as claustrophobic as would anyone in the title character's shoes. Perhaps that proves that Renders and Blasband's movie succeeded. Still, even at 97 minutes, the closed-in feeling outlasts its welcome. Intriguing idea, though.
Not Rated. Running time: 97 minutes. (C) 2001 by Harvey Karten, film_critic@compuserve.com
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