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Film: The Serpent
Release date: 29th September 2008
Certificate: 15
Running time: 119 mins
Director: Eric Barbier
Starring: Yvan Attal, Clovis Cornillac, Olga Kurylenko, Pierre Richard , Simon Abkarian
Genre: Thriller
Studio: In2Film
Format: DVD
Country: France
In the mould of Tell No One, and more recently Anything for Her, The Serpent is a tense French thriller based on the novel Plender by Get Carter scribe Ted Lewis. The film follows an ordinary individual thrust into extraordinary circumstances in a brutal tale of honour, revenge and personal courage.
The film begins with Vincent (Yvan Attal) going through a difficult divorce and a custody battle for the right to see his children. At work, he is met by a last minute replacement for a lingerie shoot by a stunningly beautiful, but emotionally fragile girl named Sofia (Olga Kurylenko). The two connect, but the following day Vincent is accused of rape. He meets Sophia again, although a terrifying accident complicates Vincent’s position further.
He then meets Joseph Plender, an old classmate from school. Plender plays the affectionate fool at first, but it soon becomes clear he is not all he seems. Haunted by events from his past, Plender is seeking vengeance on those who wronged him or his now-deceased mother. This includes Vincent, who unwittingly subjected Plender to a horrendous ordeal when a childhood prank went wrong. Plender, using Sofia to seduce his targets, is blackmailing and systematically destroying them; that is, until Vincent fights back.
On the run from the law, and desperate to protect his family, Vincent’s only hope is to confront Plender with his own twisted mind games…
Part of a wave of modern French thrillers, The Serpent is a tense, psychological tale where Barbier has brilliantly transferred Ted Lewis’ British story to a French setting. The confident direction superbly captures the cold, stark environments for maximum visual impact and atmosphere.
Although unconventional, the music by Renaud Barbier perfectly compliments the dark subject matter, heightening the tension in the story by using sparse, piano-driven melodies, and incorporating unusual sounds to create an unsettling feel. For example, one sound appeared to resemble shattering glass, which reflected Vincent’s world breaking apart around him.
The performances are excellent, supported by a strong script. Clovis Cornillac is a terrifying screen presence. Imposing and sinister, he turns Plender into a brutally efficient psychopath, but still allows for moments of sympathy and pity for the torment his character has suffered. Barbier’s direction adds to the portrayal, allowing us to see his eyes at certain emotive moments, while at others lighting him from above so his face and eyes are shadowed, to intimidating effect.
As with Francois Cluzet in Tell No One, Yvan Attal plays the honest everyman brilliantly, and is the film’s greatest feature. His character’s growing desperation and resolve to fight back are translated through a powerful performance, while the reality of his emotional journey and his conviction mean the film’s brief moment of fantastical action does not upset its tone, and remains grounded in a believable reality. Some of the best scenes in the film, however, are when Attal shares the screen with veteran actor Pierre Richard, who plays one of Plender’s other victims, while Simon Abkarian also provides strong support as Vincent’s lawyer.
Olga Kurylenko, known to most audiences for her role in the James Bond film Quantum Of Solace, is magnificent in bringing emotional depth and fragility to her character, despite the limited screen time. Her character’s past and personality could have been elaborated on to great interest, but this may have distracted from the central storyline. Nonetheless, she is a wonderful presence, and her performance, like Attal’s, allows for the action to retain a sense of reality that another performer may not have transferred.
The Special Features that accompany the DVD include a trailer and a half-hour ‘making of’ documentary. The latter is of only passing interest, as most of the running time is made up of clips from the film. Far better are three short interviews, with Kurylenko and director Barbier giving some interesting insights into the filming process and their intentions.
While the film does not reach the cinematic heights of Tell No One, The Serpent is nonetheless a compelling watch. An excellent cast, director and script unite to create a suspenseful psychological thriller that maintains it tension and emotion throughout. CD
Film: Eden Log
Release date: 28th July 2008
Certificate: 15
Running time: 97 mins
Director: Franck Vestiel
Starring: Clovis Cornillac, Vimala Pons, Zohar Wexler, Sifan Shao, Arben Bajraktaraj
Genre: Horror/Mystery/Sci-Fi/Thriller
Studio: Momentum
Format: DVD
Country: France
Opening to mixed reviews at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2008, Eden Log marks Franck Vestiel’s directorial debut. Dealing with the classic argument between nature and machine through his gritty vision of a dystopic future; Vestiel is influenced by his previous work in intense French horror alongside directors such as Moreau and Palud.
Eden Log follows the amnesiac Tolbiac (Clovis Cornillac) as he tries to piece together the fragments of his past. After waking, naked, disoriented and drenched in grime in a dark underground structure next to a dead man; we follow him as he delves into the complex network of tunnels and laboratories surrounding him.
As he confronts other survivors, including the last botanist (Vimalla Pons), in this underground organization, he also confronts the bestial transformation which haunts him and contaminates his mind.
Pursued my mutated creatures and haunting, fractured memories, Tolbiac battles to discover the reason for his amnesia, whilst unearthing the dark mystery behind the plant that threatens to destroy everyone trapped beneath its roots…
The opening scene of Eden Log perfectly forewarns us of the journey we are about to undertake. It is dark, disoriented and fragmented. We see the world through Tolbiac’s eyes as he awakes in darkness, cold and naked, surrounded by death. This stark reality is maintained throughout the film to a wonderfully uncomfortable effect. Vestiel’s use of hand-held cameras, as well as his choice to film primarily in underground locations, creates a tense, primordial experience which is relentless in its claustrophobic approach. The colour scheme is monochromatic, using a blue tint, creating a cold atmosphere that plays off against the minimal lighting and mud-soaked costume and set.
Unlike a lot of science fiction cinema, Vestiel manages to avoid the sterile, medical view of the future as clean and white, instead presenting us with a grungy mess of manual labour and physical battle between nature and mechanics. Although the ecological message in this film is clear, it is not overly didactic in its approach until the final moments. The main tension of the film is actually created by the character of Tolbiac, whose confrontation with the bestial nature within him leads us through the film with a deep sense of unnerving.
After cutting his teeth as an assistant director to David Moreau and Xavier Palud on Ils (Them) in 2006, it is no wonder that Eden Log is a formidable example of French horror. Yet, much like Ils, it is the human aspect of this film that creates the most disturbing visions of horror. Cornillac’s performance is commendable, shifting menacingly between hero and villain with an uncanny physicality. But it is Vimala Pons who truly stands out as the last botanist. Her urge for survival overshadows her logic as she takes Tolbiac on as an ally to tragic consequence. Her final scene is both moving and filled with raw emotion as she realises her fate and the reason behind it. The theme of mistrust and infection, both from a human and botanical perspective, allows for a brilliant psychological tension reminiscent of films such as The Thing and 28 Days Later.
The script is minimal and often falls upon the plot device of ‘blacking out’, as Tolbiac loses consciousness and wakes up in another location. This is later explained by the bestial possessions that Tolbiac experiences due to his exposure to the plant, but still seems forced directorially. The influence of video games as a genre may be to blame for such a plot device, as is also evident through the linear structure, resourceful anti-hero and ‘point-and-click’ ingenuity of Tolbiac’s discoveries. Indeed, many of the sound effects, both in the film and DVD menu, are easily identifiable from science fiction video games, implying that this is perhaps an intentional comparison.
Despite its gritty journey through the undergrowth, in its final moments, Eden Log emerges disappointing, as we are confronted with the clichéd final scene. This is the first time, as an audience, that we see true colour, as an idyllic conclusion is made. This hardly seems in keeping with the reality that Vestiel has created for us, and instead seems an obligatory ecological message given the obvious themes of man destroying nature and contamination.
Eden Log, however, remains a hard hitting piece of French horror. Its science fiction aspects are delicately dealt with so that we do not feel out of place in this grimy future that we have been forced into. Futuristic equipment is kept to a minimum and technology understandable. Vestial manages to present us with a dark and disgusting view of an infected future which is second to his exploration of humanity and brutal animal urges.
An engaging and disturbing film with a simple premise, dealt with in a complex way. Overall it is 97 minutes of tense exploration and discovery, both of the plot and of the character behind it. ANC
