Slowly paced but despite the aimless feel there's just enough meat to the characters that it's interesting to see them go through their paces of training and relaxing. If I cared more about the lifestyle of the French Foreign Legion I'd love it, but as is I'm content with enjoying and appreciating it.

The key to Claire Denis seems to be rhythm, (seamless) transitions, and - as the "Sight & Sound" review of 'White Material' notes - "the casual, even brutal form of exposition". Flow is key. Scenes follow each other naturally, never arbitrary, yet also never signposted. It runs deeper than narrative. "Beau Travail" is a prime example - and also a beautiful ode to the human body with some of the most sensual, raw and physical - yet never overtly erotic - footage this side of Leni Riefenstahl.

Blew my mind on every level. The fascination with male body and the somewhat homoerotic training exercises is, at least not for me, a distraction - it's actually quite aesthetically satisfying. The loose narrative structure is incredibly relieving and disturbing at the same time. All this, combined with striking compositions of the Red Sea, implemented as a surreal counterpoint to the endeavouring life of the soldiers - simply put, an immense cinematic experience.

"Beau Travail is an allegorical tale of revenge and jealousy set within a French Foreign Legion outpost in Africa." - Ed Gonzalez

608

I thought this was well made and beautiful to look at but it's just one giant metaphor --and a quite boring one at that. It felt kind of impersonal to me, like she was trying to be profound for no other reason then to be different or original. There is a good movie somewhere in here, but it wasn't presented in the film. However, the ending scene is quite good.

An unusual film with a free-form narrative. Galoup's sexuality is clear as the camera lingers on the glistening shirtless bodies of young men enduring rigid, and almost balletic, training routines. His repression is clear through numerous scenes and symbols of alienation and separation. The film certainly has a striking beauty to it at times, but Claire Denis often seems to be belaboring the point. But if you don't mind the languid repetitiveness of it, it can be an interesting experience.

Even the scenes in which the groups of soldiers dance feel like they are repressing who they are so that they can become part of a single unit, with the choral music laid over the top emphasising the element of ritual in their training. Perhaps that is why the ending - which should by all rites be ridiculous - is such a profound moment of expression. A beautiful piece of filmmaking, especially with the scenes upon the outright alien landscape provided by the salt flats.

#603

Wonderfully hypnotic film with a truly sensational, if enigmatic, ending.

Holy shit was this good. It's a pretty strange film, really, but everything somehow works, and wonderfully at that. Original, engaging, beautiful - incredibly well-shot and scored. It is a masterpiece, and one of the very best films I've seen.

# 769

Claire Denis crafted something special with this one. A hypnotic film about jealousy might not work for some (or even most) but by the time it ends it has cast some sort of unspeakable spell.

This one of those films were "nothing happens". Well, that's not really true; there's a clearly defined plot that plays out over the course of the film, but it's rather simple. In place of a complex plot, the film gives us beautifully shot footage of the soldiers exercising, doing drills, digging, and performing other tedious tasks. It's intriguing and often very hypnotic to watch, but the film as a whole didn't capture my imagination.

There's nothing else like it.

In my opinion a remake of "Simon of the Desert." This was the first Denis film that I saw, and thus far the only one I have enjoyed (although it took me two viewings to really appreciate it). Also, cf., my remarks on Bonello's "De la guerre."

OMG SO GAY

I appreciated the beautiful images of the Djibouti coastline, the rocky wasteland, and the salt flats, as well as the choreographed exercises, drills, and ironing. The emphasis here on the importance of ritual, contrasted with the free-flowing dancing, presents interesting material with which to interact. However, this struck me as a formal exercise lacking in feeling. While I can appreciate the craft, the film constantly kept itself at a distance--too far, in my view.

789