The Life of Jesus (1997)

Good concept, poorly executed.

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

In Bruno Dumont's 'La vie de Jésus', we are given a portrait of Freddy, a twenty year old epileptic, and his lifeless existence.This film successfully manages to lull the viewer into the same anaemic and insipid 'ennui' that Freddy, the central protagonist, finds himself. In the reliance upon a monotonal landscape to produce the only reflection of the character's being, this film is as one-dimensional as the characters themselves. We see countless, seeemingly never-ending, shots of Freddy weaving his way through, and into the countryside on his scooter. We see him march through the countryside with an army band. We see Freddy repeat recordings of bird song to is budgie, then cross off the number of calls in a competition. We see the TV in the deserted local café as the only form of diversion. We are given a graphic depiction of Freddy having sex in an open field with his girlfriend. Freddy is depicted as a mere animal, who will later prey upon an arab who tries to pursue his prised girlfriend's affection.Ultimately this film fails to make an impact, as it only succeeds in doing one thing; demonstrate how man can be nothing but beast.

I was wary of this one. It seemed a lot like this trend in recent world cinema that I don't like, where the camera observes unemployed losers who do little besides screw, smoke, and ride around on mopeds not looking for jobs. These films rarely provide any interesting insights, or even interesting characters. So the subject matter had me prejudiced against this movie from the start. Fortunately, Dumont does have some insight into these people. I wouldn't say it's a lot of insight, nor would I say that the film has much new to say. However, the characters come off as real people. A couple of minor complaints: I thought that the lead actress, Marjorie Cottreel, was far too beautiful to fit in with the rest of this picture. And the hardcore sex scenes were entirely unnecessary. And I didn't need to see Mom's vagina, either.

There is enormous promise in the opening scenes of Bruno Dumont's first feature "La Vie de Jesus". He is clearly a director with a great feeling for landscape, that ability to draw the viewer into a self-contained world, in this case an agricultural area of Northern France. Within minutes we know what it is like to live in this small redbrick town bounded by seemingly endless lanes and fields where very little happens and even the local cafe is all but deserted on a weekday mid-afternoon. We share the stifling boredom of the group of unemployed youths with little do except joyride their mopeds. We are in a world akin to that of Bresson's "Au Hazard Balthazar" and "Mouchettte" with Dumont revealing his with the assured unflinching vision of the master himself. Already we are beginning to sense the thrill that comes with the intuition that we may be discovering a major new talent. A brilliantly observed scene where the group of friends visit the brother of one of them who is in a coma dying of AIDS seems to confirm this. Words cannot convey their feeling but expressions say everything. However after this doubts gradually creep in. It requires real genius to sustain viewer interest in a film about provincial ennui. Not that nothing happens. There is an attack on an Arab youth that results in manslaughter, an arrest and an escape. The problem is not a lack of psychological development. There is an inevitability about the main protagonist, Freddy's obsession with the only girl around and his gunning for the Arab as a result of sexual rivalry fuelled by group racism. Rather is the problem one of a lack of narrative development. One sequence of moped riding becomes just like any other as do all those scenes of young people just moping around. Unfortunately the film eventually evokes viewer tedium in a way that is self defeating. Nevertheless there is excitement in the discovery of a new directorial talent and the prediction that he could in time make a really outstanding film.

Around 1960 Truffaut Chabrol and theur friends stunned the world by simply filming the World around them without any message or morality . But they mostly filmed High and Middle French Bourgeoisis . This one is set far from the Cote d'Azur..But it is not a Ken Loach Movie..In British Working Class Films People Cry,Fight,Shout and Laugh...Here They Speak a Little but they dont say anything just because they have nothing to say..And when They Talk You hardly understand one word out of three..(atleast foreign audiences will enjoy the subtitles !)..This Movie is Rude and Harsh and send back to Noddyland all other so-called "no Future" Movies . Still there's a strange beauty if the filming of those northern areas close to Ruysdael and Dutch paintings.."La vie de Jesus" belongs to this kind of film you hate at first and that you keep looking and looking to understand why . An absolute Must for all Indies lovers .