One of the mavericks of the FRench cinema,Gerard Blain was first an actor for Duvivier,Chabrol and even Hawks ("Hatari"!),then a director influenced by Robert Bresson.His plea against racism (one of the most moving I have ever seen)is less Bressonesque ,for the two young actors who play Pierre and Djemilah display warmth ,tenderness ans a true lust for life :we know their relationship will be short-lived ,which make them particularly endearing .Some kind of "Romeo and Juliet" who desperately think there's a place somewhere for them:there's no sex scene,but their amateurish playing works wonders and makes them act naturally:we really share their small quiet joys of love :a walk by the river, an ice cream ,photographs they take when they are together ,and this desire to go to see the sea (where DJemilah,seeing a "normal" couple" knows that there is no hope for a French boy and an Arab girl ,lost in a world which does not want them.
Blain avoids all the clichés:Pierre's parents are good folks,they are not racist ,dad only wisely warns his son,telling him that he does not think their love is possible,but never he prevents his son from seeing the young girl.Unfortunately,Djemilah's brother is a fundamentalist :he does not like France and he is about to get back to his native Algeria to do his military service and to become a citizen there . For a macho like him,his sister's future is all mapped out:at sixteen ,she will marry an Algerian boy and raise children.
"Pierre et Djemilah" is one of the most pessimistic French works of the eighties.THe two tragedies are depicted in a Bressonesque way (one thinks of "Mouchette" ).Very short,with a stunning spare of gestures and words,Blain's movie goes straight to the heart
