Red Island

A 2023 French/Belgian/Madagascan period set drama, shot in Madagascar, and set in and around a French military base on the island in the years 1970-1972. Here a young boy called Thomas (Charlie Vauselle) observes the dramas being played out on the island whilst reading (and imagining) the comic strip adventures of a young masked girl called Fantomette (Calissa Oskal-ool), and befriending a young girl called Suzanne (Cathy Pham). Director Robert Campillo's film (which he co-wrote with Gilles Marchand) is set a decade after Madagascan 'independence' from France, but where the French military is still hanging about like a bad smell, and unfortunately Campillo focuses too much on the boring adults (who your just not interested in) and their boring domestic dramas. A great opportunity to explore the island of Madagascar through the eyes of two children is largely wasted, and the film ends with banal (albeit justified) political speechifying, as political prisoners are released, the French finally leave the island, and we leave the cinema.

RED ISLAND (2024)- Robin Campillo's followup to his energetic and provocative B. P. M. Seems, at first, to be less confrontational and more evocative. It's another semi-autobiographical (as was B. P. M.) story, here showing Campillo's childhood in Madagascar. His character, a young boy, Thomas (Charlie Vauselle) is quite and observant. His brusque father, Robert (Quim Gutierrez) is stationed at the French Military base which has been imposed on the island's government. His mother, Colette (Nadia Tereszkiewicz) is caring if sometimes distracted.

Thomas and a young girl, Suzanne (Cathy Pham), share a love of the comic book, Fantomette - a masked and caped teen girl crusader. It's through their eyes that Campillo drifts the film into fantasy segments. They are beautifully realized by the film's team. Further, Campillo lets other scenes in the film float into almost dreamlike montages. Fine Cinematographer Jeanne Lapoirie (BPM, BENEDETTA) produces some stunning visuals, including a gorgeous outdoor nighttime movie screening at the seashore.

Campillo's screenplay (with two collaborators) is a bit hazy, allowing the visuals and the general mood to carry the movie. For much of the runtime, the method works due to the visuals and performances. It's only in the last act where the script brings the politics of the country's turbulent situation where it becomes a bit bumpy. RED ISLAND's end meaning is clear, but the steps along the way are blurred and don't blend well. It's still an effecting film, flaws and all.

Just seen this over 4 sittings and it is a strange mix of child tale and cartoon; very adult matters and a denunciation of colonization and its wake ....

And it flits from one to the other. And back. As if it could not make up its mind where it is going ....

Odd. But ultimately good to very good. The last 20 minutes were excellent and you then realized that maybe all of the film was leading up to this realization ; but then you cannot be sure

Maybe it was maybe it was not. It meanders stylishly. The mother/son combo is very effective both of these actors we will no doubt see time and again. Both have great screen presence .... as does the boy's Vietnamese friend ... also very good presence and acting ; all 3 hold the piece together

It takes a little bit of work in parts to stay with it. The cartoon "Fantômette" scenes did not really grab me; I doubt they would any adult ...

But overall it is an original work; and let us not forget Madagascar here is also a big player in this tale.

Watch it. See what you think ...

Movies about little-known, faraway locations can be a great way to learn about exotic destinations and cultures. And those set in a historical context can offer excellent opportunities for insights into the legacies of these locales. Such was my hope for this offering from writer-director Robin Campillo about the waning days of the French presence on the island of Madagascar. Set in the early 1970s, approximately a decade after the nation gained independence from its former colonial occupier, the film follows the lives of several French military officers and their families, particularly their relationships with each other and with locals, at the time when France was withdrawing from the country. On the surface, this might sound like an intriguing premise for a film, but, instead, it's a mess of diverse, largely unconnected story threads that are never fully fleshed out. Over the course of this release, the disjointed narrative changes focus multiple times, telling pieces of stories from the ever-shifting perspectives of an array of characters involved in a wide range of underdeveloped scenarios, many of which are introduced and subsequently allowed to fizzle without meaningful or satisfying resolution. Much of the picture explores childhood and coming of age matters from the standpoint of Thomas (Charlie Vauselle), a shy eight-year-old seeking to find his way and understand life in this enigmatic setting. But Thomas's experience is intertwined with themes related to domestic discord, marital infidelity, interracial relationships, concealed secrets, questionable ambitions, political reform movements and the fading remnants of European imperialism. There are also a number of segments exploring Thomas's vivid fantasy life, particularly his fascination with Fantômette, the subject of a French book series for young readers featuring a crime-fighting female superhero. In presenting all of this material, the film incorporates familiar elements reminiscent of a plethora of pictures, including everything from "The Year of Living Dangerously" (1982) to "The Ice Storm" (1997), among others. In the end, though, none of this hangs together especially well, frequently leaving viewers perplexed about what's coming next or why some of this material was even included in the first place. It essentially feels like a movie put together by a committee, ultimately providing considerably more frustration than satisfaction. For what it's worth, "Red Island," sadly, is a real disappointment and a woefully missed opportunity to offer audiences something truly fresh, new and different, something the movie industry could really use more of these days.

Set against a backdrop, in the early 1970s, of increasing local dissatisfaction with both their government and it's dependent relationship with former colonial power France, this drama follows the lives of the last few occupants of a French airbase in Madagascar as their deployment comes to an end. Most of the observations emanate from the young "Thomas" (Charlie Vauselle) as he watches his parents "Colette" (Nadia Tereszkiewicz) and "Robert(o)" (Quim Gutiérrez) come to terms with not just their impending relocation, but with changes to their own not always perfect relationship. His young eyes also serve as conduits to other characterisations amongst their ex-pat community. "Bernard" (Hugues Delemarlière) has his young pregnant wife "Odile" (Luna Carpiaux) with him but she hates the place and returns to France leaving him free to fall in love with a local hooker "Miangaly" (Amely Rakotsarimakala), one of many who are increasingly coming to resent the last vestiges of their former masters. The film has a certain tension to it, but I felt none of the characters really very well developed. The relationship between the young boy and his friend "Suzanne" (Cathy Pham) - cemented over their love of the crime busting and quite amusingly basic "Fantômette", being the only one that really offered us anything with much depth. As to the "Red Island" - well we know where we are, but the photography doesn't really make much of the location so we could just as easily be in any sunny seaside location. The last five minutes give us more of an indication of evolving political developments but I found, for the most part, this to be a pretty unimaginative trawl through the peccadilloes of some people about whom I didn't really care. The young Vauselle turns in quite an engaging effort but otherwise I wasn't especially impressed.