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La Chambre des magiciennes
2000 Comedy / Drama / Fantasy
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Summary
Claire, an anthropology student, is suffering from migraine attacks and consults the bizarre
Dr Fish. When the medicine he prescribes for her fails, she insists on being admitted
to hospital. Here, she shares a room with a paralysed younger woman, Odette, who
spends all her time watching television, and a strange older woman, Eléonore, about
whom little is known. Silent for most of the time, Eléonore has periodic
fits of madness and attacks Claire. From a nurse, Claire discovers that Eléonore
has mysterious healing powers...
Review
La Chambre des magiciennes combines themes of mental illness and occult mysticism
using some disturbing visual images. With a shaky hand-held digital camera, Miller
manages to depict the world from the point of view of someone with a neurological illness,
the dizzying loss of perspective and contrast being familiar to anyone who has experienced
such a condition. Although the images in the film are comparatively mundane, the
way in which they are filmed and assembled is disorientating and, in some instances, quite
shocking.
Whilst La Chambre des magiciennes should be commended for its original use of new technology and the way in which it transforms the mundane into some kind of surreal fantasy, it is not an easy film to watch. There is little in the way of a coherent story and it often appears superficial and self-indulgent. Indeed most spectators will be left totally perplexed by what is shown. This is certainly an interesting and worthwhile excursion for Claude Miller, but it is far from being his best work. © James Travers 2000 Write a review for this film... |
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