‘The Great Man’ (‘Le Grand homme’)

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An intimate metaphysical drama depicting the traumas of war and emigration, and how they ricochet within France’s own borders, Sarah Leonor’s The Great Man (Le Grand homme) marks an assured sophomore effort following the director’s well-received debut, A Real Life (which starred the late Guillaume Depardieu). Reminiscent of Claire Denis’s Beau Travail with its stylistic flourishes and hardworking French Legionnaires, as well as of Michael Haneke’s 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance with its splintered portrait of illegal aliens scraping by in the big city, this small but potent feature should see continued fest play following a premiere in Toronto’s
Discovery section. Brave distributors will take notice.
The well-calibrated performances, including impressive turns from Chechyan amateurs Sugaipov and Idiev, also go a long way in shaping this fragmented tale of men shattered by war and trying to piece their lives back
together. Dardennes Bros. regular Renier, who’s grown into a mature talent after debuting in La Promesse when he was only fifteen, convincingly portrays Hamilton as a twitchy PTSD survivor who learns to stand on solid
ground through force of circumstances.
Although the narrative somewhat wanes in its third act as the tension fizzles out, The Great Man is still an arresting work, combining substance and style in innovative ways. Backed by a transfixing score from Martin
Wheeler (Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas), it manages to feel both real and otherworldly at the same time, revealing the extraordinary obstacles faced by France’s anonymous underclass
as they navigate a society that leaves them little room for maneuver.

An intimate metaphysical dramadepicting the traumas of war andemigration, and how they ricochetwithin France’s own borders,Sarah Leonor’s The Great Man (LeGrand homme) marks an assuredsophomore effort following thedirector’s well-received debut, A RealLife (which starred the late GuillaumeDepardieu). Reminiscent of ClaireDenis’s Beau Travail with its stylisticflourishes and hardworking FrenchLegionnaires, as well as of MichaelHaneke’s 71 Fragments of aChronology of Chance with its splinteredportrait of illegal aliens scrapingby in the big city, this small but potentfeature should see continued fest playfollowing a premiere in Toronto’sDiscovery section. Brave distributorswill take notice.The well-calibrated performances,including impressive turns fromChechyan amateurs Sugaipov and Idiev,also go a long way in shaping this fragmentedtale of men shattered by warand trying to piece their lives backtogether. Dardennes Bros. regularRenier, who’s grown into a mature talentafter debuting in La Promesse whenhe was only fifteen, convincingly portraysHamilton as a twitchy PTSD survivorwho learns to stand on solidground through force of circumstances.Although the narrative somewhatwanes in its third act as thetension fizzles out, The GreatMan is still an arresting work,combining substance and style ininnovative ways. Backed by atransfixing score from MartinWheeler (Age of Uprising: TheLegend of Michael Kohlhaas), itmanages to feel both real and otherworldlyat the same time,revealing the extraordinary obstaclesfaced by France’s anonymous underclassas they navigate a society thatleaves them little room for maneuver.