(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)
Far from Men Director: David Oelhoffen, photo: Guillaume Deffontaines The French feature film Far from Men is based on Albert Camus' short story guest (Host) from 1957, which is typical of the author is a stripped down and plotless simple story exploring the experimentally honest and honest man. The action takes place in Algeria in the same decade, when the country was rebelled against the French colonial powers. Here we are introduced to the European-chained Daru, who teaches children at a remote school in the Atlas Mountains. One day, a local police officer shows up with an Arab man who is jailed for killing his cousin. The officer orders Daru to carry the prisoner – whose name is Muhammad – to a town some distance away, where he will get his trial. First, our righteous main character refuses to accept this, as it will be to lead the prisoner to the safe death. Nevertheless, the officer leaves the imprisoned young man in the teacher's custody and, oddly enough, Muhammad himself also wants to be taken to the site of his trial. When the deceased's family members show up shortly afterwards to get their revenge, Daru seems to have to carry out the mission. Thus, the prisoner and his reluctant guard embark on a joint journey on foot, which is likely to end in Muhammad's execution – if they reach. Along the way, they encounter a number of potential enemies, in the form of both the local vengeance, the Arab rebels and the French soldiers. This journey makes the film a kind of "road movie", while the short story only took place inside the school building. And with this, director and screenwriter David Oelhoffen (who co-wrote the adaptation with Antoine Lacombles) has significantly increased the narrative's cinematic potential compared to the presumably more theater-friendly starting point. Western Commentary. With this grip he has further made the film a form of western, although it does not take place in the genre's usual "wild west". The narrative, for example, carries a clear echo of 3: 10 to Yuma, originally directed by Delmer Daves in 1957, and re-recorded in 2007 with James Mangold in the Register. But stories of the lonely, righteous man carrying a prisoner through a dangerous landscape have also been told in a number of other western films.
The story follows some fairly classic tracks, which are probably more typical of "road movies" in general than the western genre in particular.
In this context, of course, the mighty mountain and desert landscape also plays a significant role, as this in itself is a central motif in the western genre. Film photographer Guillaume Deffontaines ›images are thus seen as opening up the central chamber play to a more visual experience, while the overwhelming and inhospitable nature represents an extra layer of antagonism in the drama. The music is signed Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, who previously silenced the western films The Proposition (based on Cave's own script) and The murder of Jesse James by the cowardly Robert Ford. This atmospheric soundtrack is also in line with the western genre's traditions, albeit with a more subdued expression (typical of their film musical collaboration) than, for example, Ennio Morricone's iconic, magnificent music from classics such as The Good, the Evil and the Cruel and Evil Blood in the West. Disseminated information. The story further follows some fairly classic tracks, which are probably more typical of "road movies" in general than the western genre in particular. During the journey, the two men will be forced to cooperate in a variety of challenging situations, and through this gradually develop respect for each other. And maybe even something that can be called a friendship – although it would probably be just over the edge to describe the movie as a "buddy movie". This fraternization takes place through a clever and effective dissemination of information, where we as spectators get to know more and more about the two central characters as they open to each other. The dissemination of background information not only works to build our sympathy for these two characters, but is also essential for guiding the film's ethical discourse. Most important in this regard is Muhammad's motivation for the murder, and why he considers it necessary to face the punishment the authority imposes on him – but also Darus basically a rather mysterious background will affect how we in the saddle and his companion on the canvas assess him. And last, but not least, all of these elements should lead to them both having to make some important moral decisions. Language Mighty. The protagonist Daru is played by Viggo Mortensen, who had his really big breakthrough with the role of Aragorn in Lord of the Ringstrilogy. After that, he still has the career of choosing challenging roles in not necessarily commercially created films, such as John Hillcoats The Road'Walter Salles' On the Road, as well as David Cronenberg's A History of Violence, Eastern Promises og A Dangerous Method. The half-Danish American obviously has a well-developed language run when he just before Far from Men made his first Spanish-speaking role in the Jauja – while his French-language character in this film is also fluent in Arabic. Mortensen makes a very reasonable role interpretation here, and gives much-needed depth to a character who is sometimes at risk of becoming annoying justice. Here, however, the screenplay is also supportive, as it gradually shares more of the initially somewhat enigmatic character of the character, and with it makes him more complex. Mortensen's central opponent in the role of Muhammad is Reda Kateb, who has previously played in The Prophet by Jaques Audiard (whose latest film i Dheepan also featured in this issue of New Time) and Kathryn Bigelows Zero Dark Thirty. A chamber game of this kind rests largely on the performance of their actors, and not least on their chemistry with each other – which in Mortensen and Kateb's case is impeccable. Far from Men takes place during the Algerian uprising against the French colonial power in the XNUMXs, but the conflict itself serves as a backdrop for being able to ask some more general questions of morality. Admittedly, the characters' different ethnic ties play a significant role in the narrative, and not least does it specifically address issues of so-called blood revenge, but these elements are also used to convey a more universal message. In other words, the film tells a story that can be relatively easily transferred to other conflicts and situations, which in combination with its chamber-like character gives Far from Men some fabulous qualities. The story has to be said to be more classic than it is original, but Far from Men is also not a film that deserves to be formally unconventional. Instead, its strength lies in being a simple and clean-cut tale of not as simple ethical issues.
Huser is a regular film critic in Ny Tid. alexhuser@ gmail.com.
