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Le Candidat
2007 Drama
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Credits
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Director: Niels Arestrup
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Script: Niels Arestrup
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Photo: Romain Winding
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Music: Olivier Innocenti, Christophe Oger, Sébastien Souchois
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Cast: Yvan Attal (Michel Dedieu),
Niels Arestrup (Georges),
Clotilde de Bayser (Christine),
Maurice Bénichou (Maxime),
Sophie Broustal (Nicole),
Cyril Couton (Edouard),
Alain Doutey (Dr. Mascard),
Catherine Epars (Mme Arani)
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Country: France
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Language: French
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Runtime: 95 min
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Aka: The Candidate
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Summary
On the eve of a presidential election, Michel Dedieu is called upon to
replace his party leader. As an army of political advisors close
in on him, Dedieu struggles to create a positive image for himself,
ahead of a crucial televised debate with his opponent...
Review
For his directorial debut, Niels Arestrup could hardly have chosen a
more challenging subject - a documentary-style
drama which lifts the lid on modern day political
manoeuvring. Whilst it’s hard not to be impressed by the 58-year
old actor’s pluck, the result of this daring venture into the unknown
does leave something to be desired. It's a film that somehow
manages to feel both cerebral and vacuous, yet also strangely compelling.
On the plus side, the film does evoke the murky shadow-world of
Machiavellian intrigue which now permeates the Western political
system, like a toxic all-corrupting miasma. Long gone are the days of conviction politics, just
causes and any notion of having a robust political agenda based upon a
sound moral or intellectual basis. Today’s politics is all about
image, sound bites, filling your pockets with backhanders, slinging mud
at the opposition and massaging the facts to maximise your own personal
popularity, whilst covering your own rear end as effectively as
possible when the flack comes your way. It's a game of smoke and mirrors,
with one single objective - to allow a coterie of vain, self-obsessed mediocrities
to grasp the reins of power,
to the detriment of us all.
Arestrup's scathing portrayal of today's shallow realpolitik and its dangerous
high priests is spot on. The problem, however, is that the film
doesn’t seem to have any real substance. The characters are
ill-defined sketches, the narrative thread virtually non-existent,
there's no real momentum. Arestrup is far more preoccupied with
style than content, and the film feels cold and static. Maybe this was
intentional - to reflect the utter sham that modern politics has
become. Unfortunately, the abstract nature of the drama and the
lack of substance make it difficult for a spectator to be greatly
enthused by the film, which is a great shame because its central
premise is one that has great potential as a piece of socially relevant
drama.
© James Travers 2008
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