Tristesse Club (2014)
Directed by Vincent Mariette

Film Review

Instead, they make the acquaintance of a young woman, Chloé, who reveals that she is the sister they never knew they had.  It turns out that the brothers' father has mysteriously disappeared and Chloé has arranged the fake funeral in the hope of persuading them to assist her in finding him.  Reluctantly, Bruno and Léon agree to join their unwished-for half-sister in her quest, and they begin by returning to the country house where they grew up.  Here they discover that their father was an inveterate Don Juan who has spent the last decade or so accumulating brief amorous liaisons.  An impromptu visit to one of their father's erstwhile lovers ends in near-disaster, and then it dawns on Léon that Chloé is not what she pretends....

With half a dozen short films under his belt - including Double Mixte (2012) and Les Lézards (2013) - director Vincent Mariette makes the transition to feature-length entertainment with the confidence and panache of a man who knows he has found his métier.  Tristesse Club is an absurdist romp that somehow manages to encompass just about every popular film genre you can name (rom-com, buddy movie, road movie, thriller, horror film...) and blend these into a satisfying concoction that is inexplicably compelling.  A raving cinephile of the first order, Mariette has no qualms over filching ideas and styles from other filmmakers, but he gets away with this because the end result is so pleasingly original and unpredictable - as mildly unhinged as a head-on collision between a Coen brothers movie and one of the weirder films by Bertrand Blier.

Tristesse Club's main appeal is that it has a pretty indescribable ambiance all of its own, sinister on the surface, with a darkly humorous underbelly and a tasty stratum of cold realism sandwiched in between. Mariette's assured mise-en-scène totally belies the director's comparative lack of experience, although he falls down a little in the script department.  The episodic nature of the narrative gives the impression of a series of short films (each well-conceived and enjoyable in its own right) clumsily bolted together, with the result that the film lacks coherence overall.  It is clear that the three central characters are each on a personal journey, but in each case it is a journey that seems destined never to reach a satisfactory resolution.  The film ends abruptly and you are left wondering what happens next - maybe Mariette is leaving the door open for a possible sequel? Let's hope so.

Whatever scripting deficiencies the film has are minimised by Mariette's unbeatable choice of actors for the three lead roles.  Laurent Lafitte and Vincent Macaigne are such a perfect match that the film could hardly fail. With their contrasting personalities (one is naturally the gobby Alpha Male, the other the cutely timid inadequate) and very different acting styles they make an ideal chalk-and-cheese double act.  It's the best screen partnership French cinema has given us in years.  And then there is Ludivine Sagnier, who has the thankless task of playing off these two hyper-charismatic actors.  Against expectations, she acquits herself superbly by underplaying her part so much that she seems to exist on another plane, an ethereal presence that can't quite decide whether to be the femme fatale, a fairytale princess, or just a playful neurotic out for a good time.

Vincent Mariette's skill as a director is evident on many fronts but he owes much to his talented triumvirate of lead actors, who not only make his first feature worth watching again and again, but also give it sufficient depth, charm and emotional realism to prevent it from being just another silly run-around comedy.  Vincent Macaigne is unquestionably the film's main asset - his presence as the Woody Allen-like habitual loser gives him ample opportunity to prove himself, as both a comedic and dramatic performer of the first rank, and having watched him in this film you're left in no doubt that he is destined for bigger and better things.  Tristesse Club is a film that - thankfully - does not live up to its name.

Film Synopsis

Bruno and Léon are two brothers, both in their thirties, who could not be more different.  Bruno owns a successful dating website, but so far has had little success in his own love life.  Léon was once an up-and-coming tennis player, before a medical diagnosis brought an abrupt end to his sporting career.  Now he has barely enough money to support himself, let alone his wife and son.  The brothers have never got on and they would no doubt have kept well apart were it not for the news that their father has just died.  Even though Bruno and Léon have good reason to loathe their progenitor, whom they haven't seen for years, they dutifully attend his funeral, only to find that there is no funeral!