When I first watched “Café de Flore”, the first thing that stood out for me about Jean-Marc Vallée’s film is how the film employs many cuts.
To quickly show the life of each person, we are given various short cuts of different duration. For example, for Antoine, may he be listening to music, dancing in his hotel room, looking at Rose, looking at his children, doing a DJ gig in some part of the country. The approach to how these characters are presented was creative, stylish in many ways but for the most part, establishing the livelihoods of each of these individuals.
From their past to their present, how a happily married man got divorced, how a wife lost her soul mate and how a loving mother of a 7-year-old with Down’s Syndrome, lost her son, despite his age, fell in love with a girl who also has Down’s Syndrome.
The presentation of the film is well-done and I like the various shifts in storyline. Some may find it a bit too jarring and non-formulaic but for me, I enjoyed this fresh presentation by Jean-Marc Vallée.
But the film’s strength which those who are familiar with surreal films versus those who despise surreal films or films that are not straightforward, will enjoy the fact that there is quite a bit of symbolism employed, but also a lot of interesting situations which people have debated about online. Is the film about reincarnation? Is it about one dealing with their own personal coping mechanism?
If anything, the film will have each viewer coming up with their own interpretation depending on your perspective of the film or its characters. And just when you think you know what is going on, then comes a photograph right at the end of the film that may surprise you. And just when you think that was the end, another visual image shows up at the end before the ending credits.
And once again, everyone will have their own opinion of what these images mean.
I won’t get into my feelings about what I think the connection is between each of these individuals but I will say that “Café de Flore” was rather bold.
Typically, when one storyline is about soulmates, may it be finding your soulmate or having found your soulmate, how perhaps that concept that was held when was younger, changes as one becomes older and then it becomes the conundrum within realist vs. idealist.
For Antoine, his relationship with Carole when they were teenagers were pretty much sex, drugs and rock n’ roll (music). As they became older, she held onto the believe they were soul mates but as a popular, successful DJ, there’s no doubt that Antoine lived a rock star life and had his opportunities to mess around. And of course, which led to his relationship with Rose.
The performance by Kevin Parent and Evelyne Brochu felt natural, while Helene Florent’s performance as Carole, was magnificent yet painful. Carole’s life is nothing but painful since her divorce and the look of anguish on her face while sleepwalking, looks as if she is being tormented and the fact that she has nightmares of mentally disabled child and Antoine was rather fascinating.
Which brings us to Vanessa Paradis, the singer and actress who gives one hell of a performance as Jacqueline, overly-protective mother of her son Laurent, who has Down Syndrome. Because her scenes are from the 1960′s, the way people view her and her child, as if they are abnormal. So much to the point that she has to let it out and scream!
But it’s seeing this mother turning to something different, when her son falls for Veronique, another girl who has Down’s Syndrome and they become inseparable. Jacqueline begins to feel insecure and possibly jealous that her 7-year-old son, no longer sees mom as her #1 person in the world.
How these two timelines intertwine is rather fascinating, so much that I watched the film three times in a day, because I enjoyed it and each time, I discovered something new.
While filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallée is earned a lot of praise for his Academy Award nominated film “Dallas Buyers Club”, one should still watch his film “Café de Flore”. Is it a masterpiece? Of course, it’s a film that will be subjective, because not everyone will understand it. But for those who take the time to watch this film thoroughly and think about the characters and their relationship and how the timelines correspond with each other, you realize that “Café de Flore” is no doubt a wonderful film.
Wish I could have came up with an even more creative photo…but I’m too tired at the moment.
