Mobile Home (2012)
Directed by François Pirot

Film Review

Having made an impressive debut as a screenwriter, on Joachim Lafosse's Nue propriété (2006) and Élève libre (2008), François Pirot shows further promise as a director with his first feature, Mobile Home.  A modest but highly engaging Belgian take on the classic buddy movie-cum-road movie (in which the journey is internal, not geographical), the film is more subtle and profound than is first apparent, and provides a cogent commentary on the predicament that the present generation of young people find themselves in.  The broken-down camper van that features in the film is an effective metaphor for the hampered life chances that today's youngsters have to contend with as they wake up to the fact that they are unlikely to enjoy the same opportunities and level of comfort as their parents.  Cinema has been slow to catch up on this change in how the post-baby boom generation regard their future prospects; Mobile Home takes us into this brave new world and is quite revealing in what it has to say about how today's young people are beginning to face to up the reality of living in a world of ever-declining expectations.

In spite of its fairly anodyne plot, the film is immensely involving, managing to be both humorous and socially relevant, avoiding the clichés and platitudes that most first time filmmakers tend to trip up on.  The lead actors Guillaume Gouix and Arthur Dupon are the main reason for watching the film.  The two charismatic young performers complement one another perfectly and make a highly engaging double act.  Whilst both actors have star potential, Guillaume Gouix has the edge with his penchant for moody introspection and looks as if he might well be the next Romain Duris, albeit a slightly more self-effacing model.   There is a pleasing naturalistic quality to both actors' performances that fits with the realistic, near-documentary style that Pirot has chosen to emphasise the film's tough social context.

It has become a lazy tabloid cliché that young people have it easy, that life is just one long stress-free round of parties and holidays.  Mobile Home shows us things as they really are: the difficulty of finding work, the poor remuneration and hard working conditions you have to put up if you can find work, and the difficulty of planning for the future when the future is so uncertain and the present so precarious.  By confronting these matters head-on, Pirot could easily have made this a depressingly bleak film, but instead he opts for a more upbeat approach, reminding us that whatever happens the sun will still continue to shine.  Who knows, a grounded camper van may be much nearer to Utopia than we think...

Film Synopsis

Having broken up with his girlfriend, Simon returns to his home village where his parents are enjoying a peaceful retirement.  He soon renews his acquaintance with his childhood friend Julien, who has stayed behind to take care of his chronically ill father.  Realising that their lives are in a rut, the two thirty-somethings make up their mind to fulfil a teenage fantasy - to leave everything behind them and set out for adventure.  With the money that his parents have set aside for his future, Simon buys a camper van and departs for a long tour of Europe with his friend.  They do not get far before the van breaks down...