L'homme qui voulait vivre sa vie

The Big Picture (2010)

Terrific vibes here, and a euphoric basic idea of a man getting out of a troubled situation and going for broke, for happiness. Literally, and spiritually.

First there is the set-up: a happy, charming, positive Paul Exben (played by the cheerful French actor Romain Duris). He's got an unhappy, negative wife and a kid who loves him and an infant who doesn't know what he wants (except to cry a lot). He's a photographer in the new manner, using high tech computers and high end printers. He loves being who he is, and is very successful financially.

But the wife is bitter and unyielding. Things are going to go wrong and they do. Exactly how (involving another photographer, a man who is very old school with a darkroom and enlarger) is partly what the movie is about, and the surprise is one of its peaks. Then the movie takes some amazing turns.

I say amazing but really there is a lot of incredulity built in. Would Paul Exben really go so far? Wasn't there a simpler solution (many of them)? If the end goal really was to "start over" in a manner of speaking, wouldn't there be ways of doing that and not sabotaging everything else? Maybe not, but then we should have been set up better for all the implications.

The movie's original title is "L'homme Qui Voulait Vivre Sa Vie," or "The Man Who Wanted to Live His Life." That's sooooo much better and more compelling. And that's what the movie is about. But the English title reminds us that photography, and this photographer, are central to it all, and I'm a photographer. I've been that old school type (by necessity) for decades and still have an enlarger (and a university darkroom) at my fingertips. But I have also moved almost completely into new school photography with inkjet printing and such.

I have to say, this movie made me want to get back in the darkroom. Not that there are scenes that romanticize that. More that there are lots of flaws and mistakes in pointing out the differences. Our man Exben ends up ditching his fancy Canon gear and getting an old Nikon film camera and a couple of lenses. Then he starts to print, rediscovering his roots. And then on his darkroom wall are some color prints--absolutely impossible with some trays as shown. And pretty much not possible period these days. Yet his new direction in color is what takes his career new places. I found the photography stuff annoying and enchanting, both. If you're not into the field, you'll probably just like the enchantment part. Never mind the far too easy gallery luck near the end.

But the movie is about what the French title suggests--and here it falters, too. Is this a man who is really living his life? In some obvious ways yes. But the existential drama could have (and should have?) taken this far deeper. By the final scenes where our man is photographing a horrifying event from a distance (and then sells some illogically close-up photos of the event to a publisher) we get a sense that he is truly dedicated. But also a bit lost. An opportunist. A man who accepts being trapped by circumstance.

In a way, this is a movie waiting to be remade. It wouldn't take much to make it a classic look at the human condition, with some attractive hooks along the way. What we have isn't so bad, but it offers more than it delivers.

I really have to write a review about this great French thriller. Firstly, although not a French Language expert, the original title which means roughly - THE MAN WHO WANTED TO CHANGE HIS LIFE - is much more appropriate than THE BIG PICTURE. Although the circumstances that lead the main character to change his life for something that he should have done years ago were quite shocking, it resonated with me and I am sure so many others. How many of us have not pursued what we were really good at and traded ourselves in to the banal life of the office, security of the pension and benefits etc. etc. The list goes on. If you can watch this film twice then do as you will appreciate it even more. The acting is very good. The ending may confuse some and I have not ticked the spoiler box so will not give anything away. After leaving the auditorium you will piece it together though. Overall an excellent film. The main actor was great in Heartbreaker and the same here with THE BIG PICTURE.

Eric Lartigau's film, 'The Big Picture', begins as a thriller, but ends more as an existential meditation on life (the literal translation of its French title, 'The Man Who Wanted to Live his Life', is much more apt than its dull replacement). A man ends up living, first in the shoes of another man, and ultimately as an anonymous nobody: he initial decision to give up his identity is a choice, albeit in straightened circumstances, but its consequences have to be experienced to be understood. The initial portion of the film has the feel of a thriller and does not seem especially well-acted; the latter half is more interesting, but overall, an abbreviated feel permeates the movie. Whereas Antonioni's 'The Passenger', which I also saw recently and which follows a similar course, is all about mood (only hinting at plot), here the balance is different, and the more interesting, introspective aspects are occasionally rushed. There's a lot of interest here, and some ambition on the part of the director; but some of its ideas could, I think, have been allowed a bit more space to breathe.

Well to be honest i wasn't expecting much from this French thriller but i was convinced enough by the trailer that i should give it a try. When i started watching i realized how right i was about the film and how correctly i wasn't expecting much from the film. For about 50 minutes of the film i started counting the films i had seen based on wife cheating her husband, getting charged with infidelity and then good husband getting upset and finally taking care of the problem.

I shouldn't have watched this film i thought...

It was after the first 50 minutes of the film when i was taken aback by the jolting surprise and a bizarre movie experience which remained with me after few days even. THIS FILM MUST BE SEEN.

It explores that side of a character that is commonly not paid attention by the filmmakers. The movie takes a sharp turn and gets lost into infinity, where everything gets stagnant, slow and becomes endless. It can go on and on like this for hours. To me it felt very unusual experience, something both poetic and strange, beautiful and scary at the same time.

Eric Lartigau, the writer and the director did a fabulous job in both of his departments. Although a little more character development of the supporting roles in the second half would have been beneficial making the narrative more deep.

Romain Duris comes up with a startling performance, his character transitions from one mode to another and the actor just goes freely along with it. His deep influential performance is another fact why the movie haunts you after it ends. I was moved to tears by the intensity of his approach towards the character. This one role should transcend his career as an actor to higher level.

The movie was adorned with lilting musical score and gorgeous cinematography enhancing the impact of the film on the viewer. By the end i was thankful to myself that i saw the movie truly relying on my instincts, i was so glad i came across such a warm movie and I'm sure others who watch will feel the same.

The failure of a professional photographer to use the latest equipment is a good metaphor for this movie, whose English title makes no sense. It seems like it was shot from the original script submission before any grownups had a chance to edit the story. Terrific performances by all the actors, but a story line so sloppy that I re-animated my disbelief about half-way through. For me the most enjoyable aspect was the glimpse to life in various venues around (and near) Europe. I would love to have seen this in the hands of Alfred Hitchcock. He would have lent credibility to the desperation, which I felt was contrived and forced on me. I'll bet they ran out of money while filming and couldn't afford the ending they'd originally planned.