| Five soldiers are sentenced to death, having been court-martialed for self-mutilation as a ticket to relative safety in a field hospital. Manech (Gaspard Ulliel) is one of them. Manech is engaged to childhood sweetheart , polio victim Mathilde (Audrey Tautou), but World War I came in the way. Although informed that Manech had actually died in 1917, Mathilde feels in her guts that her bertrothed, three years unheard of, is alive and needs her help. Having no reliable information to start with, Mathilde initiates her own investigation, advertising in newspapers hoping to attract survivors who could lead her to the truth about her fiance. After getting her hands on confidential documents (filched from government files when no one is looking) and with the help of a private investigator she hires, Germain Pire ( Ticky Holgado), Mathilde learns of Manech’s fate—on record. Still, she believes her nose, and doggedly pursues her search.
A Very Long Engagement may be living up to its title with a running time that is equated to the film’s time feel. The film may be long but not necessarily tiring nor boring. An adaptation of Sebastien Japrisot’s novel, the movie captures the novel’s magnitude in terms of look and emotional appeal. The story is engaging although it is such an effort to view foreign-language subtitled movies. Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet effectively captures all the elements of the story with his unique and captivating visual style. Watching this film feels like one is watching an artwork in a canvass. The war scenes may be graphic and gloomy, but not gory. The acting is superb with no exceptions. The cameo appearance of Jodie Foster, however, is quite jarring—an American star playing not even a starlet’s role in a French movie is a total waste of talent and money. Far from helping the movie, it distracts unnecessarily as the character fades beside the actor’s persona.
Although technically well-made, viewers should be cautioned of the many sensitive issues the movie tackles. First is the violence of war and the concept of self-mutilation. It is quite unusual and out of ordinary to see soldiers hurting themselves to escape more pain in battle. For the vulnerable viewers, such acts may appear acceptable. Second is vengeance. The film may have redeemed itself by putting this theme in the context of true love; still, the visual manifestation of the act was not erased by the brief in-passing scene of punishment. Although women in this film seem courageous and brave, their motives for being so resolute are questionable. And lastly is the issue of sexuality in the movie. An infertile husband convinces his wife to have sex with his best friend so as to have another child to escape the war is quite an offensive concept. The graphic sex and nudity, too, may be brief but the impact of the powerful images is quite lasting. The main characters in the story depict love that is very patient, loyal and faithful, but the purity of innocent love is not preserved when the lovers reach adulthood.
(Date
Reviewed: February 4, 2005)
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