Film: Louise-Michel
Year of production: 2008
UK Release date: 25th April 2011
Distributor: Axiom
Certificate: 15
Running time: 94 mins
Director: Gustave de Kervern & Benoit Delepine
Starring: Yolande Moreau, Bouli Lanners, Benoît Poelvoorde, Albert Dupontel, Joseph Dahan
Genre: Comedy
Format: DVD
Country of Production: France
Language: French
Review by: Matthew Evans
Directed by French/Belgian duo Benoit Delepine and Gustave de Kervern, Louise-Michel is an anarchic dark comedy. Its themes could not be better timed as, with an unsteady hand, it takes aim at both capitalism and the heads of profitable, multinational corporations. Unsurprisingly, Louise-Michel cares little for 'political correctness'.
Louise is a factory worker and somewhat of an oddball. What's more, she has just been made redundant, despite recent assurances that she was in no danger of losing her job. When news breaks of the pitiful amount each factory worker shall receive in redundancy pay, they agree to pool together their money and use it for a worthwhile cause. Several ideas are proposed, such as opening a pizza parlour and producing a nude calendar, but the workers eventually agree to opt for Louise's madcap plan. They shall hire a hit man to kill their boss.
This is where Michel enters the picture. Just like Louise, he too is somewhat of an oddball and is swiftly hired to kill their boss for a reward of €20,000. However, his claims to be a professional hit man are soon brought into question when he proves that he is incapable of killing a dog, let alone a human. Most would not trust this man with a pair of scissors, let alone an assassination attempt.
Nevertheless, the workers stand by as their deluded hit man wreaks havoc. Thanks to several cases of mistaken identity and accompanied by Louise, Michel leaves a trail of bodies in his wake as he desperately seeks out the man he has been charged with assassinating. Louise-Michel is the tale of two degenerates who, with little regard for human life and searing hatred for the rich, embark on a journey to seek retribution for the actions of a money-grabbing, cold-hearted boss...
The release of Louise-Michel is certainly well-timed and its dark humour will undoubtedly go down well with those who feel robbed during the global financial crisis. Whilst this makes it easier to achieve a few laughs at the expense of the rich, it does feature some genuinely amusing dark comedy.
The film's dark humour is perfectly summed up in its apparently lack of respect for human life. This comes across perfectly in one scene where Michel convinces his terminally ill cousin to murder a man. Smuggling her from her hospital bed, he hands her a gun and sends her on her way. After stumbling toward her target, she raises the gun and shoots him dead, before shooting herself through the head. Unfortunately, for Michel, who celebrates upon hearing the gunshots, his cousin has shot the wrong man.
Whilst its twisted humour and willingness to laugh at the death of rich businessmen may prove appealing, it doesn't have much else going for it. Louise-Michel may feature a host of wacky characters but, unfortunately, many offer nothing but irritation; Michel's idiocy is only charming for so long.
Upon first meeting Louise and Michel, they both appear to be rather amusing characters - and they are. But their ridiculous antics cannot excuse the fact that their characters are thoroughly two dimensional. As one murderous cock-up gives way to the next, it is almost impossible to remain engaged with the film, or its characters, on any meaningful level. That said, it would be wise to note that neither actor can be blamed for the failure of their characters, as both do an adequate job in the roles they are given.
Whilst the film offers a fair amount of laughs, much of its amoral humour does become tiresome toward the end. The film's script, whilst amusing at first, proves to be somewhat of an arduous experience by the time we reach its climax. For even the fiercest opponent of capitalism, the film's script must surely feel rather lazy. Such films, which boast anarchic scripts, often achieve cult success in later years. Unfortunately, Louise-Michel does not fall into this category due to its undeveloped characters and sometimes disengaging humour.
Louise-Michel starts on a positive note, with a group of workers banding together to fund the assassination of their cold and callous boss (something we've all fantasised about, from time to time). Initially, its frivolous script and lack of morals are rather endearing. But, as the film progresses and its characters fail to develop in any meaningful way, the entire experience becomes irritating. Louise-Michel's amoral depiction of two murderous opponents of capitalism does offer the occasional laugh but cannot be said to amount to anything more than a moderately entertaining, somewhat flawed, piece of French cinema. ME
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