So what happened? They’re the only words spoken during the trailer, a tumultuous romance between Vincent Cassel and Emmanuelle Bercot, set to the sounds of Son Lux. Cassel you will no doubt recognise from his role in the Black Swan. The film is recounted in flashback as Tony (Bercot) recovers from a skiing accident and has time to reflect on her relationship with the charismatic but unpredictable Georgio (Cassel). He’s the epitome of cool with his fast car and beautiful friends but unsurprisingly underneath all is not quite so perfect. The film has had mixed reviews, Peter Bradshaw at the Guardian gave it one star, calling it an, “an unendurable confection of complacent and self-admiring nonsense”. Ouch. The Telegraph on the other hand are much more generous and awarded it 4/5, describing it as, “an energised romantic drama overflowing with humour and passion, and a worthy addition to this year’s competition programme at Cannes”.
So what did our film reviewer this week, Alexandra Borden, think of it?
“Mon Roi depicts the relationship of Tony and Georgio over a 10 year span. It’s like peeking through a cracked door of their apartment. The majority of their relationship unfolds in intimate settings with the exception of a few public spectacles. Their love, and the dissolve, unfolds over breakfast in the kitchen, the bedroom after sex, or in whispers over a café table. Unlike American films from back home, there isn’t one grand climax. It’s a slow progression of them losing themselves and turning the other into their worst versions.
Insecurity infects them both. She decays into a soulless mould of herself living only for the next high he offers her, while he becomes a selfish, but charismatic caricature of himself. It’s because of this that he has the power. It’s the story of a man provoking an easily provoked woman, inching her closer and closer to the edge.
But there’s love and there’s passion. It’s the way that it manifests itself between these two personalities that is gripping. More than a series of events, the movie is a series of up and down emotions which carries the audience for the ride. The theatre erupted in laughter at his coy courtships only to cringe and sink in their chairs moments later with a whispered “mon dieu…”
There’s a scene where Tony tells Georgio through teary eyes that she can’t survive any more ups and downs: she needs a straight line. Like the heart rate monitor in a hospital room, he reminds her, a flat line means death.
The film provokes conversations on different personality types and how they function in relationships. Does he love her or does he love the power he has over her? Why is she drowning in this swamp of a man? It forces the viewer to explore ideas on our vulnerabilities and the power balance in relationships. Is it possible to be in love forever? Even if so, sometimes, if only for your own well being, it’s necessary to let the line go flat.”
