A Face Oculta da Lua

I had heard of Robert Lepage's work and was not disappointed in the adaptation of his play. The basic premise of the work is the life of dreamy Andre, the elder of two brothers of a gorgeous mother. There is some intense symbolism at work here, the figure of the mother portrayed against the fascination of Andre for the moon itself. The brothers, identical in appearance, so different in personality both brilliantly played by Robert. One knows he is destined to be forever the dreamer, with some small triumphs ( a booking by a Russian for a lecture in Moscow, missed by Andre's absentmindedness, a winning of a video contest put on by SETI ). Meanwhile, Andre's real life is outlined in stunning detail, his deadend job in a call centre, his life surrounded by his dead mother's belongings, his ex-girlfriend, now living in a wealthy suburb. His interior life sustains him and the ending is uplifting and sad at the same time. 8 out of 10. Unusual and riveting.

What Konstantin Tsiolkovsky said of the moon also holds for this movie: it's the perfect escape for those who lead a heavy life. Small surprise 40-something Philippe (Robert Lepage) idolizes Tsiolkovsky, mathematician and pioneer of space exploration. Philippe is a dwarf in life, but a giant in his dreams. In one scene, we actually see him looming over his Montréal neighborhood like Gulliver in the Land of Lilliput. There's a frozen goldfish named Beethoven, a self-righteous younger brother (also Robert Lepage), and a loving mother who never speaks a single word (Anne-Marie Cadieux). The way Robert Lepage treats fact, fiction, dream, memory, and fantasy as aspects of the same, seamless reality are reminiscent of Michel Gondry, but in a minor key. "La Face Cachée" is a quiet movie, moving through the darkness with the solemn gravity of a heavenly body, in tune with the celestial harmonies of Benoît Jutras' original score. It's for you if you liked "The Science of Sleep", "Igby Going Down", "The Life Aquatic", or "The Man Who Wasn't There".

I finally got to see this movie, and pretty glad I did. I know Lepage a bit because of works he did in theater (and the fact that he usually does plays is pretty obvious in the way the film is made, if you pay attention, specially the way he uses the background in many scenes).

I first have to warn a few people who are thinking about seeing this movie. Although the magic of it, by the way Lepage plays with scenery, background and various imaginative, non-realistic shots, is pretty accessible to everyone (like say Big Fish is), some people might discard the plot as simplistic and unworthy. If it is hard to actually say the opposite, the point is that to make a plot that's original or particularly thrilling wasn't the goal. It's basically just the day to day life of a dreamer who isn't quite successful in any aspect of his life (would it be on a professional or social basis). But the movie wants to show that despite theses lacks, the main character (I forgot the name) is still an original person, with imagination et interesting thoughts. To make that point, I might take the various imaginary scenes where Lepage take us, or simply the video the guy shots fort the SETI program. You'll notice that most of the interesting commentary and clever interventions by the main character are made while shooting this movie, and that he is alone doing so. It just emphasis the fact that he's apparently quite boring, but actually an interesting person.

Another clever idea in the movie is that there actually isn't many differences between the shots taken during the children hood of the guy (in the 70's) and the on taken in 2000, while he's 40. Besides, many transitions take place from 2000 to the 70's or the other way around without any warning. This is to show that the character didn't really evolved much. He was a dreamer when younger, and unlike many he didn't change when he grew up.

About transitions, they all are very very smooth, and you end up at the end of the movie not so sure if it wasn't only one long shot. Any viewer able to appreciate a movie for anything else but it's plot should see this one. The soundtrack, mostly Beethoven songs, is also quite fit.

I didn't know what to expect when I went to see this movie, as the reviews that I've read were mixed. Yet I was not disappointed as the movie dealt with the elements of life in general, from an intergalactic perspective.

The movie revolves around Philippe, who is single and delusional. He is fascinated by outer space and believes that space is really the final frontier for mankind. The death of his mother brought him in contact with his brother who seems to be more successful in his career and life.

Relationships with loved ones, dreams and hopes, failures and success and good music made this movie worth watching. It's about living and not giving up your dreams.

For people in the Theatre community, Lepage is a much heralded genius. But the nature of theatre is that you have to be in the right place at the right time to see his work. With this movie he has etched a beautiful masterpiece for world wide viewing (granted it gets a decent release). I'm not sure if it's just my enthusiasm from having seen the play but the story was just one that I felt I wanted to embrace again. The stage play was so cinematic that a movie seemed inevitable, and the transitions between scenes were even enhanced through the use of a camera rather than stage. This is really too biased to be a review, but if you haven't seen it, you really should.