La fille de Brest

Unlike many other lesser foreign films of the last few decades, there's no awards fanfare for this earnest French production, that tells the important true story of the battle fought by a small 'provincial' medical team - against a Pharmaceutical giant peddling a deadly medication. It almost seems if your intentions are honorable in modern Film Festivals they don't particularly want to know you. While the movie's style may not always be agreeable to all tastes (with its detailed analysis), it far outshines many I've seen given rave reviews by festival critics. It certainly is an honest one - with the entire cast and crew working hard to bring this powerful true story to life. Particularly noteworthy are Sidse Babette Knudsen, as Irene Frachon who waged a near single-handed war against powerful odds. Benoit Magimel is her equal, playing her nervous collaborator. All up, this brave movie is deserving of better praise than some have given and, is well worth viewing by audiences concerned with bringing life-saving truth to the wider world. Unlike other endless MA+ and R rated entries that premiered this month (and will run several times during the month) this entry will be hard to find (if not wasted) as World Movies will only run it once! What else could we expect from SBS and their cheap world movies channel!

It may be surprising but I'll begin with the movie weaknesses in my opinion:

• First, its title (at least the French one). I don't understand that choice. Even if this Mediator affair exists thanks to Brest doctors whitleblowing - and the fight the movie will relate, I doubt it was an important point in the public mind, and was not at least in mine.
• Second thing, it risks having people thing that this is a French "Erin Brockovich". Which is not.
• And last, its start, which is a bit weak, especially the study part which could have been shown differently (Spotlight is a great example in that regard).

Despite these, it is a great movie. It tells without fault this scandal. A double scandal, as the company clearly cheated to make money on the health of the patients but French State has also failed in its mission of pharmacological surveillance. It tells this without relating to special effect, distorting the truth or simplifying facts. Worth the fight of Irene Flachon actually. Speaking the truth, unvarnished, is not an easy fit (and we see in many movies that directors fears it won't be enough) but Emmanuelle Bercot trusts this story. She sticks to a simple way to film it, but that works and the movie get you involved in this fight. On top of that, Sidse Babett Knudsen is doing a great job and I guess Irene Frachon can be happy with this casting.

It also shows how difficult is to escalate something abnormal, even in a country like France, as soon as there is big money implied. "The Clearstream Affair" illustrates the same thing when it comes to finance, still sticking to EU countries, as well as a lot of other whistleblower stories, less known. Learning how to recognize and hear them is also an important aspect in "La fille de Brest" and I do hope this society issue will be tackled serioulsy (Law changed in France in 2016, with difficult debates about what can be done, giving birth to a better but still unsatisfying solution).

It is tempting to compare 'La fille de Brest' with 'Erin Brockovich'. Both are about female whistle-blowers, fighting the establishment with all they have. Both are based on actual events. Both are outsiders, initially not taken seriously by their opponents. Both have a star actress in the title role.

But there is an important difference. In 'Erin Brockovich', the title character is much more one-dimensional than in 'La fille de Brest'. Danish actress Sidse Babett Knudsen plays small-town pulmonologist Irène Frachon as an intelligent and passionate woman, who has qualities as well as weaknesses. Her performance really carries the movie.

Doctor Frachon accidentally discovers that some patients suffering from a cardiac disorder also take the drug Mediator against obesity. She suspects that the disorder is a fatal side-effect of Mediator, and embarks on a crusade to prove her point. That's easier said than done, because even with the help of a professor she has a hard time writing a scientifically solid paper. In the sample of patients treated in her hospital, in the small seaside town of Brest, she finds a remarkable correlation between Mediator use and the cardiac disorder. But the drug company and the authorities think the sample is too small to be scientifically acceptable.

The film has not chosen the easy way: the story doesn't simplify things too much. In fact, the start of the movie is not the best part because the viewer feels bombarded by technical information. Later on, the story moves forward more smoothly when Frachon and her team hire a lawyer to represent the patients, find an editor to publish a book about the affair and approach a journalist to write a scoop about it. Also, the involvement of an insider from the health insurance agency gives the story a nice extra dimension.

The film clearly attacks the heavy involvement of the medical industry in the supervision process. According to the end credits, things have changed in France after the Mediator scandal. It would have been a happy end, if several of doctor Frachon's patients wouldn't have lost their lives because of Mediator. Her reading their names aloud during a live television interview, is one of the finest moments in the film. The message is clear: it's all about them, not about reputations, profit or statistics.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this French film subtitled in English. The start was a bit slow going and I wasn't sure what the subject was about until I read up on it. About a third of the way through it starts to get really interesting and engaging. Based on a true story, this is about a fierce crusade led by a woman to hold a mega Pharma firm accountable for covering up the tragic effects of their drugs. Very engaging, though the scenes with the teenage kids did get pretty annoying. A solid 6.5/10.

A well told story with an outstanding performance. Entertaining. 7.5/10