This bleak film, cranky in mood yet ultimately loving, was developed from a short of Lerman�s that was itself based on a short story by C�sar Aira. It tells the story of two cropped-headed lovers, Lenin and Mao (Hassan and Crespo respectively), who haven�t enough to do in life. A combination of mildly cool malevolence and universal dissatisfaction makes them the embodiment of truculent ennui. One afternoon a frumpy shop girl (Saphir) catches Mao�s proprietary eye. Before she knows it, Marcia the shop girl is stuck like a fox in the headlights under Mao�s direct and disturbingly coercive tactics of seduction.
Marcia, straight and recently heartbroken, is nevertheless torn - until Lenin�s switchblade makes the decision for her: she�s coming on a road trip. I was seriously dubious, initially, about the kidnapping scene; had this been a Hollywood flick with two men in Lenin and Mao�s place, I would have been spitting venom. This, after all, is sexual assault. However, the girls are not glamorised in any way, the scene is played for more than mere entertainment value, and the humour that does appear from this scene is awkward and subtle rather than slick and sexy. Most importantly of all, no excuses are offered for the girls� behaviour and so this can be justified as a scene about bad behaviour rather than an aggressive glamorisation of sex crime.
What ensues is possibly the least feelgood road trip film I�ve seen but certainly the most sensitively explored and quietly funny. They go and descend upon Lenin�s estranged aunt (Thibaudin) out in the sticks. Marcia constantly questions why the hell she�s there; Lenin gets to know her aunt; Mao gets to know Marcia, but more in the Biblical sense.
A script that deceptively appears to do nothing more than document conversation, coupled with flawless acting, produces real depth of character. It is Mao�s manipulative personality that works away hardest and coldest, and Lenin�s aunt shines through as one of the best and warmest roles for an old woman I can remember. All in all we are left with relentlessly deadpan humour, reflected toughly in the sharp black-and-white photography, combined with the delicate and fascinating character development. Not the most zippy of films, with a few emotional flaws, but it easily escapes the description of �ponderous� thanks to Lerman�s lightness of touch. |
