MONTREAL -- A winning follow-up to her first feature "2 Seconds", which won two awards at the 1998 Montreal World Film Festival, writer-director Manon Briand's "La Turbulence des fluides" (Chaos and Desire) is the moody, beautifully executed story of an independent-minded seismologist who returns to her hometown in eastern Quebec to investigate a disturbing tidal phenomenon. Outside Canada, its commercial prospects are probably modest, but, with more festival playdates, Briand's reputation will benefit, and hopefully she'll keep turning out such high-quality work.
In addition to opening the 26th MWFF and setting a high standard for the other 25 features in the offical competition, the French-language "Turbulence" was generally embraced by festivalgoers and critics -- and managed to make one almost forget Olivier Ayache-Vidal's wild, six-minute short preceding it, which features a gun-waving member of the audience interrupting what looks like a trailer for a brainless Hollywood thriller and interacting with a scared couple onscreen.
In "Turbulence", Alice (Pascale Bussieres) was born in the small town of Baie-Comeau but has not been there in a long time. When the film opens, she's gently ending a one-night stand in Tokyo, where she works as a seismologist with a team looking for "precursor" events. At work, a report comes in that the ocean tides have stopped in the vicinity of Alice's hometown and she -- convinced that the "big one" is about to strike in Japan -- reluctantly goes to investigate.
Once in Quebec, it's impossible for her to ignore the many signs that nature and the locals are not right. It's unbearably warm for a place that has never relied on air conditioning, the tides have halted, a small child wanders the town at night in a trance, and everyone is haunted by the death of the wife of a strapping firefighting pilot, Marc (Jean-Nicolas Verreault), a year earlier.
But the unexpected reunion with old college friend Catherine (Julie Gayet), a journalist who makes no secret of her love for Alice, and late-night chats in a coffee shop run by an ex-nun (Genevieve Bujold), who remembers the lead's troublesome birth, start to chip away at Alice's professional detachment. Initially attracted to Marc, she waits a bit and then tries to have an affair, but the page of the phone book with his number is ripped out all across town.
While flirting with magic realism and loosely tying events of a personal or inconsequential nature with environmental phenomenon, "Turbulence" only stretches things a bit too far with the unexpected retrieval of a body from the ocean that should have long ago been consumed by denizens of the deep. Still, the way this is handled, as well as the climactic temblor that almost kills Alice, shows that Briand's skills as a cinematic storyteller are highly evolved.
In the lead role, Bussieres has the squinty look of a worldly woman who knows no master. The miracle of finding real love in the least expected time and place becomes the actress' task to convey, and it's a marvelous performance. French thespian Gayet is likewise delightful as the peppy girlfriend who helps Alice investigate the tides, while Bujold is perfectly cast. Also a presence that elevates the film, Verreault plays a sensitive Big Man with understated charisma. David Franco's cinematography is excellent and Richard Comeau's editing shines.
LA TURBULENCE DES FLUIDES
Studio Max Films, Europa Corp
Credits: Screenwriter-director: Manon Briand; Producers: Roger Frappier, Luc Vandal, Luc Besson, Pierre-Ange Le Pogam; Director of photography: David Franco; Production designer: Mario Hervieux; Editor: Richard Comeau; Music: Simon Clouquet, Valmont; Costume designers: Louise Gagne, Liz Vandal; Casting: Lucie Robitaille. Cast: Alice: Pascale Bussieres; Marc: Jean-Nicolas Verreault; Catherine: Julie Gayet; Colette: Genevieve Bujold.
No MPAA rating, running time 113 minutes.
In addition to opening the 26th MWFF and setting a high standard for the other 25 features in the offical competition, the French-language "Turbulence" was generally embraced by festivalgoers and critics -- and managed to make one almost forget Olivier Ayache-Vidal's wild, six-minute short preceding it, which features a gun-waving member of the audience interrupting what looks like a trailer for a brainless Hollywood thriller and interacting with a scared couple onscreen.
In "Turbulence", Alice (Pascale Bussieres) was born in the small town of Baie-Comeau but has not been there in a long time. When the film opens, she's gently ending a one-night stand in Tokyo, where she works as a seismologist with a team looking for "precursor" events. At work, a report comes in that the ocean tides have stopped in the vicinity of Alice's hometown and she -- convinced that the "big one" is about to strike in Japan -- reluctantly goes to investigate.
Once in Quebec, it's impossible for her to ignore the many signs that nature and the locals are not right. It's unbearably warm for a place that has never relied on air conditioning, the tides have halted, a small child wanders the town at night in a trance, and everyone is haunted by the death of the wife of a strapping firefighting pilot, Marc (Jean-Nicolas Verreault), a year earlier.
But the unexpected reunion with old college friend Catherine (Julie Gayet), a journalist who makes no secret of her love for Alice, and late-night chats in a coffee shop run by an ex-nun (Genevieve Bujold), who remembers the lead's troublesome birth, start to chip away at Alice's professional detachment. Initially attracted to Marc, she waits a bit and then tries to have an affair, but the page of the phone book with his number is ripped out all across town.
While flirting with magic realism and loosely tying events of a personal or inconsequential nature with environmental phenomenon, "Turbulence" only stretches things a bit too far with the unexpected retrieval of a body from the ocean that should have long ago been consumed by denizens of the deep. Still, the way this is handled, as well as the climactic temblor that almost kills Alice, shows that Briand's skills as a cinematic storyteller are highly evolved.
In the lead role, Bussieres has the squinty look of a worldly woman who knows no master. The miracle of finding real love in the least expected time and place becomes the actress' task to convey, and it's a marvelous performance. French thespian Gayet is likewise delightful as the peppy girlfriend who helps Alice investigate the tides, while Bujold is perfectly cast. Also a presence that elevates the film, Verreault plays a sensitive Big Man with understated charisma. David Franco's cinematography is excellent and Richard Comeau's editing shines.
LA TURBULENCE DES FLUIDES
Studio Max Films, Europa Corp
Credits: Screenwriter-director: Manon Briand; Producers: Roger Frappier, Luc Vandal, Luc Besson, Pierre-Ange Le Pogam; Director of photography: David Franco; Production designer: Mario Hervieux; Editor: Richard Comeau; Music: Simon Clouquet, Valmont; Costume designers: Louise Gagne, Liz Vandal; Casting: Lucie Robitaille. Cast: Alice: Pascale Bussieres; Marc: Jean-Nicolas Verreault; Catherine: Julie Gayet; Colette: Genevieve Bujold.
No MPAA rating, running time 113 minutes.
- 8/26/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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