After becoming a film noir as the state spies on certain individuals for unknown benefits in the remarkable ‘Witness’, Thomas Kruithof continues to delve into French politics with a more ambitious feature filmwhich tries to show the seams of an extremely complex system in which it is evident how politicians and citizens can speak two completely different languages. ‘Promises in Paris’ is a reflection of this, which opened the Horizons section of the 78th edition of the Venice Film Festival.
Although the film has the soul of a thriller, ‘Promises in Paris’ is a political drama that deepens that close look, with the ordinary voter, along the lines of recent French cinematography titles like ‘Alice’s council’ or ‘Maravillas en Montfermeil’, which tell the story of a mayor from a suburb near Paris on the Ile de France. Unlike feature films that aim for a higher position, such as ‘Crónicas diplomaticas’, these titles allow us to see the general discontent of the population and how local politics is between two waters.because the proximity to the citizen allows him to better understand the reality and needs of his locality, but, in addition, he has to deal with the bureaucracy and the processes of the system.
As happened recently with the splendid ‘Gagarine’, “Promises in Paris” focuses on a banlieue on the outskirts of Paris, reflecting discontent with political discourse, where everything is seen as a mere pose, as they are economically very depressed populations. Kruithof shows how a complex system is created within that cosmos in which there are both good intentions and speculative ambitions or usurers who exploit people living at risk of social exclusion.
A splendid political drama with the soul of a thriller
And in that sea of sharks you can swim gorgeous Isabelle Huppert, mayor of the city, tempted with a ministry from the central government, even if in return he would have to give up his promises. The fact of breaking that commitment with the voter, which is all too common in politics, shows how the abuse of that deposited trust, little by little, has caused this wave of indignation and skepticism towards the system, too absorbed in a web of favors and grateful stomachswhich Kruithof reveals when “the ones from above” break into a landfill like an elephant.
With a splendid second in command, embodied by the always efficient Reda Kateb, an ambitious conspiracy theorist and at the same time a faithful squire, ‘Promises in Paris’ is a political game with which Kruithof shows his cinematic ambition, as it is a more rounded work than his first feature film and its predecessor. A feature film that reflects the complicated balance between political will, individual ambitions and the risks of the ego in power. A sort of local version of the “world of yesterday”, which revealed the political quality of the Gallic head of state and who now becomes the head of a municipal council, which It shows once again how French cinema continues to be an example of an analysis of its own political system, always with a critical eye and not at all complacent.
Note: 8
The best: See Isabelle Huppert and Reda Kateb in action and how Kruithof portrays the complex political system.
Worse: Such is the complexity of politics, that the film reflects little on the personal background of its leading mayor.
Source: E Cartelera
