DE Sueur Et De Sang" aka "wonderboy" is a movie with so many subjects it is not really going anywhere "Un Inventaire A LA Prevert" (=something of a ragbag) best describes it ;so ,what do we have here?
-A young boxer ,under his over possessive disabled father's thumb;it's the umpteenth story of the dad who could not become a champion and wants his son to do what he couldn't.
-the dubious world of boxing ,with their matches fixed in advance ,in the grand tradition of "the set up" or "the harder they fall" -
-the strong man (and I mean strong:106 kg!)with a baby face in love with a Femme Fatale ,a bad gal in the grand tradition of the French vamps before WW2 (Viviane Romance and Ginette Leclerc),played by an actress called Fabienne Babe (you read well!).
-a vague detective story,a la Boileau-Narcejac ,with the-dead-might-not-be -dead threadbare trick .
-two cops (one of them is a "brother" ,a black man ,now friendly ,now threatening:the white one is played by Nicolas Silberg ,DE LA Comédie Française)
- the athlete's dream to play the violin ;it becomes a real obsession.
-Female and (mainly) male nudity :strange that this movie has not even a PG 12 when there's a brief fellatio scene ,all the same!Hot love scene indeed!
- A boxing match ,to the sound of symphonic music ,in the grand tradition of "raging bull".
-A religious mind,as far as the principals are concerned ,a worship of the dead,and a fancy for "nearer to thee my God" aka the "Titanic " canticle ,so to speak.
The young boxer who plays Maurice is a non professional actor (but an obscure boxer ,at least for people not interested in boxing) and ,considering the limitations he's working under ,he manages rather well
.His "liberation" from an over possessive dad ,after going through very hard times ,will take an unexpected form:but yes ,he will play the violin!
The movie had a real potential,but trying to do many things at once,you are bound to fail.But it was an honest attempt.
