AUGUSTIN
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1995 James Berardinelli
RATING (0 TO 10): 6.8
France, 1995 U.S. Availability: varies Running Length: 1:01 MPAA Classification: No MPAA Rating (Mature themes) Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Cast: Jean-Chretien Sibertin-Blanc, Stephanie Zhang, Nora Habib, Thierry Lhermitte, Guy Casabonne Director: Anne Fontaine Producers: Brigitte Faure and Philippe Jacquier Screenplay: Anne Fontaine Cinematography: Jean Marie Dreujou U.S. Distributor: Kino International In French with subtitles
AUGUSTIN reminds me of a scene in Richard Linklater's BEFORE SUNRISE. Julie Delpy's Celine and Ethan Hawke's Jesse are discussing cable TV access shows. Jesse proposes doing "a day in the life of..." program where one ordinary person's activities--no matter how mundane--would be shown live and unedited for twenty-four hours. In many ways, that's what AUGUSTIN is, although its running time is a whole lot shorter than what Jesse suggests. But Anne Fontaine's film is devoted to the minutiae of everyday living, as it gives us an hour-long portrait of a dull, unimportant Frenchman. The camera even follows the main character into the bathroom, and stays there while he sits on the toilet and explains why he chose this lavatory over others in the building. Strange material, indeed...
AUGUSTIN doesn't have much of a plot. It's an unusual, cinema verite-style character study that takes place over a several-day period. Augustin (Jean-Chretien Sibertin-Blanc) is an insurance claims collector who moonlights as an actor. The picture follows him from an interview to a screen test as he attempts to nab a minor part in an upcoming film. Since Augustin is thorough to the point of absurdity, he decides to research the role--that of a room service attendant in a four star hotel--by spending a day at one of Paris' finest, delivering meals to distinguished guests and helping a maid make beds, clean mirrors, and scrub wash basins.
The film is oddly engrossing, even though much of its content is centered around ordinary activities (the hotel-cleaning scene takes up over a quarter of the length). When AUGUSTIN works, it's largely because of the performance of lead actor Jean-Chretien Sibertin-Blanc, who invests his character--a weasely neurotic--with a certain likability. Augustin is basically a creep, but Sibertin-Blanc manages the difficult task of capturing the audience's sympathy. It's not easy to like a character like this, but, in this movie, it happens.
The script is full of wry little insights into life, and there are times when it's vaguely reminiscent of something by Woody Allen. The comic tone is uneven, and there are few laugh aloud moments, but AUGUSTIN possesses a sardonic wit. Ultimately, however, Fontaine's story hangs on the acting job by her leading man (who also happens to be her brother), and his sad-sack, deadpan delivery is perfect for the part. Those interested in this kind of quirky character dissection will find AUGUSTIN refreshing, and the film's brevity is a definite plus. More time with this person would have been tiresome.
- James Berardinelli (jberardinell@delphi.com)
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