Beau Travail (1999)

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This film focuses on ex-Foreign Legion officer, Galoup, as he recalls his once glorious life, leading troops in the Gulf of Djibouti. His existence there was happy, strict and regimented, but the arrival of a promising young recruit, Sentain, plants the seeds of jealousy in Galoup's mind. He feels compelled to stop him from coming to the attention of the commandant who he admires, but who ignores him. Ultimately, his jealousy leads to the destruction of both Sentain and himself. (imdb)

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Directed By: Claire Denis

Written By: Claire Denis, Jean-Pol Fargeau

Starring: Denis Lavant, Grégoire Colin, Nicolas Duvauchelle, Michel Subor, Richard Courcet, Gianfranco Poddighe, Dan Herzberg, Giuseppe Molino, Marc Veh, Thong Duy Nguyen, Adiatou Massudi, Mickael Ravovski

Genres: Drama, War

AKA: Good Work

Country: France

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Beau Travail belongs to 76 collections

1. 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (collaborative: moderated by kozan26 - 232 stars)

2. Criterion Collection (collaborative: moderated by caffe - 165 stars)

3. Favorite Film of Every Criticker Member (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 95 stars)

4. Female Directors (collaborative: moderated by djross - 90 stars)

5. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2008 revision) (collaborative: moderated by Scottathon - 39 stars)

6. Jonathan Rosenbaum's Top 1000 Movies (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 38 stars)

7. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2010 revision) (collaborative: moderated by MMAlpha - 32 stars)

8. The Guardian's 1000 films to see before you die (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 30 stars)

9. Onion AV Club: The New Cult Canon (collaborative: moderated by theficionado - 28 stars)

10. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2014 revision) (collaborative: moderated by Jehan - 27 stars)

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13. Gay-Themed Films (Male) (collaborative: moderated by bobyang - 20 stars)

14. The Story of Film: An Odyssey (collaborative: moderated by rant1229 - 20 stars)

15. Best of criticker: Drama (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 18 stars)

16. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2013 revision) (collaborative: moderated by rant1229 - 16 stars)

17. Best film of top directors (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 15 stars)

18. Slant Magazine's 100 Essential Films (collaborative: moderated by nexus - 14 stars)

19. Metacritic - Universal Acclaim (collaborative: moderated by sengir - 14 stars)

20. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2011 revision) (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 14 stars)

21. Sight and Sound 2012 (collaborative: moderated by DavidB - 13 stars)

22. They Shoot Pictures 1,000 Greatest Films (2020 revision) (public: djross - 13 stars)

23. Harvard University's Suggested Film Viewing List: Narrative Films (collaborative: moderated by dardan - 12 stars)

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31. Best of criticker: War (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 6 stars)

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44. Sound Design (collaborative: moderated by paulofilmo - 1 star)

45. 30. istanbul film festival (collaborative: moderated by parcaliham - 1 star)

46. A Year of Essential Cinema (collaborative: moderated by Ibetolis1 - 1 star)

47. films mentioned in Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema ~p~ (collaborative: moderated by 5Z5qjRCfM2 - 1 star)

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56. Paste Magazine's 50 Best Movies of the 2000s (collaborative: moderated by MacSwell)

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All Ratings | With Reviews

Order by:

TCI | Percentile | Date Rated | # Stars (Reviews)

Stars	User	Rating
5	Tjekhov	85 _92nd
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.
3	Pickpocket	3 _28th
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.
3	Icarus	60 _27th
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.
3	KMcNeil	11 _99th
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.
2	Magb	70 _39th
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.
2	duandsku	91 _86th
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.
2	andagh	97 _92nd
Wonderfully hypnotic film with a truly sensational, if enigmatic, ending.
2	JohnSandwich	100 _99th
Holy shit was this good. It's a pretty strange film, really, but everything somehow works. Original, engaging, beautiful - incredibly well-shot and scored. It's a masterpiece, one of the very best films I've seen.
2	AAAutin	56 _62nd
(FULLY IRONED JACKET)
2	twisp	59 _39th
Blah, blah, blah, work and travel with Foreign Legion, blah, discover the most exotic places, blah, blah, do some sports, more blah and suddenly it becomes a post-modern version of Triumph of the Will combined with the Star Wars Kid... right. Deep.
1	Moribunny	43 _30th
A slow and laboriously extended formalist, symbolist wank (and even literal, in terms of the half-naked male bodies constantly on display), wrapped around an insubstantial story. You may enjoy this if you enjoy the cinema of Marguerite Duras, by which Denis is heavily influenced. I don't.
1	PeaceAnarchy	81 _64th
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.
1	roujin	80 _92nd
OMG SO GAY
1	JakeAesthete	98 _98th
Ooh johnny johnny johnny why don't you join the foreign legion
1	Calexico	90 _91st
Took me a while to pick up what Denis was doing but once I did it was great. Basically a feature-length music video-slash-tone poem.
1	Bown	85 _76th
An excellent tone poem with fantastic focus on the movement of the human body, repression and jealousy, and just how bizarre it is that these dudes are here in the first place. Superlative in every way on a craft level, my only issue was that I felt it repeated itself too often, and I wish some of that time had been spent on character development instead, particularly for Sentain. The ending was unbelievably perfect.
1	filmfreak88	60 _40th
I know I'm very much in the minority but I just can't seem to really get into any of Claire Denis' films, at least among those I have seen. I just don't see her purported genius. Her films are always well-made and beautifully shot, with some truly great moments, but they never really engage me on a deeper emotional level. Beau Travail is no exception. I think I understood the film's intended subtext but it just doesn't convince emotionally or psychologically.
1	overrated	94 _98th
I always hesitate to write adjectives like sublime and transcendent about films, but at least for this one they are applicable, especially that ending. Repetitive training exercises & chores have the aim of lulling the viewer into sense of hypnosis, while the homoerotic male gaze, blank African faces and striking shots of the desert & sea provide oblique commentary on masculinity, imperialism and surrender of the individual into institutional ritual. Need to see this on a big screen one day.
1	bof	85 _92nd
Dancing on other people's stages.
1	manwhonose	94 _76th
Claire Denis gives us a beautiful, poetic film here, a meditation on masculinity and competition between men, which is skilfully built up to an inevitable tragic conclusion. Her eye for detail, and for composition is utterly masterful.
1	Nepeta	85 _80th
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 film-making, especially with the scenes upon the outright alien landscape provided by the salt flats.
1	lisa-	4 _52nd
not really sure what denis is trying to do here. explore the rivalry and psyche of a jealous military man? juxtapose the overt masculinity of these soldiers against the more exotic nature of the country they're inhabiting? bore the tits off me? presumably she didn't intend the latter, but i didn't get much beyond that. add some empty narration and considerable tonal inconsistency, and it all adds up to a mess of meditative nothingness. only plus is some unusual and evocative sequences.
1	Feraud	27 _18th
Honestly, I am beginning to doubt criticker: This film was dry, boring and disappointing.
1	Paracosm	9 _90th
A man fondly recalls his time in Africa as a member of the French Foreign Legion. So good times as dudes do yoga in the desert, with plenty of shots of the bleak brown and blue African landscape, culminating in the most outrageous, greatest final scene/credits in movie history.
1	silent disco	80 _75th
Rhythm of the Night by Corona is blaring, in all its strobelit effervescence, yet Lavant strolls in with little to show. Cigarette to lips, each footstep dragging well behind the tempo. He prowls the floor as if he's plotting each move. Fitting. Bobbing and weaving but keeping a composure, almost snake-like as if his iron sight hasn't rested. But by the time the bridge hits, he finally lets go, fully. Unchoreographed, for once in his life. One pure exhale after a life of puffing one's chest.
1	NathanBates	60 _34th
Sometimes you just have to shrug and say, "I don't get it." There's some beautiful cinematography, juxtaposing a salt desert with sweaty men's torsos. It's a little too atmospheric for me, with a theme of repression that went so far as to even repress most of the plot.

Average Percentile 65.77% from 794 Ratings