La vocation d'André Carel

It's a Switzerland film realized in the tradition of Jean Epstein and his film "la belle Nivernaise" realized in 1923 ; a film in the tradition of the french documentary poetic realism cinema filmed in outsides with a tinted photography of very high quality. The story is held in Haute-Savoie in Evian, Montreux and Meillerie around the Leman's lake. André Carel son of a famous french writer stay in Savoie accompanied by his tutor (Michel Simon) and fall in love with the daughter of a owner boatman (Blanche Montel)who make the transport of stones across the lake. Beginning slowly, the film become so interesting in the second part with a very pleasant realization and so pretty images of the lake's shipping tradition and of the little town of Meillerie. Very good copy very well restored by the "cinémathèque of Lausanne".

"La Vocation D'André Carel" directed by Herr Jean Choux it is a film from Switzerland… that bored, beautiful and neutral country, and this oeuvre it is in accordance with such a description.

The film depicts the story of André Carel (Stéphane Audel, inexpressive as a sphinx), son of a famous Parisian writer, who is sent to Montreaux together with his tutor, Herr Gaston Lebau (Herr Michel Simon in his debut in the screen). In order to mitigate that most famous illness which the high classes suffer, that is to say, laziness (from centuries the wealthy people went to Switzerland in order to cure those symptoms). While during a boat ride, André will meet a girl, becoming infatuated by her instantly. In order to succeed in attracting her, André becomes a boatman.

The most interesting aspects of this Swiss film are the beautiful landscapes showed superbly thanks to the cinematography by Herr Charles –Georges Duvanel and Herr Paul Guichard. The evocative and marine scenes at the Léman Lake focused on the boatmen's hardships (an important statement about a way of living which has disappeared). Detailed are those different worlds where André is immersed - the idle and the working class.

Unfortunately the film doesn't go deeply with those dramatic and interesting subjects (only succinctly). The director is satisfied depicting an anodyne and classic love story instead developing the drama implied in the film. That is not to mention the process of becoming aware of class-consciousness that André suffers. That's the reason why "La Vocation D'André Carel" it is a bored, beautiful and neutral film.

And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this German Count wants to see the elegant Boat Race at the Schloss Lake.

Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien http://ferdinandvongalitzien.blogspot.com/

Andre Carel (with accent marks) is the son of a rich father. He never has had to work and he hasn't and as a consequence has gone literally mad with boredom, so mad that his old tutor, played by the wonderful Michael Simon near the beginning of his career, has been recalled to service as a warden.

Andre takes a fancy to a girl of the petite bourgeoisie, and decides to see if she would like him without his money. He gets a job working on the barge owned by her father, transporting stones across Lake Lucerne and not only wins the girl, but discovers health, happiness and usefulness.

We get to see sailboats and the scenery around Lake Lucerne. Very pretty. Michel Simon works hard at producing one of his amazing cinematic grotesques. Other than these two features, the film is a flat failure: the script is humorless, there is almost no tension and, indeed, very little movement. As the film finished its first seventy minutes, I became convinced it was shot by a portrait photographer. In the final section there are signs of movement, but it looks as if it was done by lifting bits from the movies of Louis Lumiere: 'Lancement d'un navire à la Ciotat', say. Look at Louis Lumiere's works.... and Michel Simon's later stuff. Avoid this one.

Despite the rather average reviews, I couldn't resist at the chance of seeing a young Michel Simon, and for that the film is worth it. He's almost a caricature, but he's certainly the most interesting character of all. Meanwhile our protagonist is a bored rich young men. He'll discover his place on earth, but the actor stays bored. No life.

Now that mean one good thing for people who hate melodramatic excess in silent films, this one sure doesn't. It feels... neutral. Now I'm not making a joke on the fact that the film is from Switzerland, it's simply that, because the film is somehow quite natural, things just goes by, tension builds up very slowly and do explode at a moment, but you're just contemplating. Maybe it's because the settings are beautifully filmed, it's a very great boat movie to look for, the picture is very pure and white, good looking boats on pretty water with pretty lands here and there. You get absorbed. But somehow, what ever happen to the characters, you don't care much.

Though no masterpiece because of it simplicity, it gain from it the fact that it is enjoyable enough to say "worth a look".