The Widow of St. Pierre, 6.5
The Widow of St. Pierre (2001). French movie with English subtitles. 1 hour and 48 minutes, rated R.Stars Juliette Binoche as Pauline, ("Madame La"), Daniel Auteuil as her husband, Jean (The Captain), and Emir Kusturica as Ariel Neel Auguste (Neel).
Summary: Neel and a friend committed a grisly murder one night on the little island of St. Pierre while completely drunk. Sentenced to die by guillotine, he is put under the care of the captain of the military until a guillotine (nicknamed "The Widow") can be sent over from the mainland and an executioner can be found. The captain's radiant and good-hearted wife asks for permission to have Neel help her with gardening and to keep her company on her trips to the fishing villages in return for better food and freedom to walk around in the courtyard. With hard work and an act of heroism, Neel wins the respect and love of the villagers, who no longer wish him to be executed. This change of the popular heart strikes an uncomfortable tone in the hearts of the governor and his cronies, who are deeply unhappy with the way the captain and his wife have chosen to treat the prisoner, and they begin going to greater lengths to make sure that the various threats to their authority are appropriately dealt with.
Opinion: An atmospheric film that felt longer than it was, The Widow of St. Pierre is romantic in style, engaging from moment to moment, and well-acted on the part of each character, but ultimately doesn't find the unity of narration and purpose that causes movies to resonate. Giving more time to explaining underlying motivations and elucidating personal histories would have been helpful in filling out characters.
Verdict: 6.5
posted by alice @ 10:15 AM
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