Navigating the pitfalls and perils of growing up is difficult; reflecting upon the follies of youth with the benefit of hindsight, less so. In After May (Après mai) writer/director Oliver Assayas epitomises the inherent duality of telling an autobiographical coming of age tale both on and off the screen, flavouring his fictionalised account of his own adolescence with affection, yet never failing to highlight the errant choices and unexpected consequences that shaped his sense of identity.
Emerging artist and aspiring activist Gilles (debutant Clément Métayer) provides the filmmaker with his screen surrogate, a Parisian high school student mobilised to act yet uncertain of how to make an impact in the revolutionary climate of 1971. The conflict sparked by a university closure in May of 1968 may have passed, but the urge to protest remains, empowering Gilles and his contemporaries to participate in any way they can. Innocent acts of political subversion beget more serious activities, forcing his group of friends to escape to Italy. A bohemian lifestyle awaits, but so does adulthood, with Gilles trapped between his ideals and his dreams.
The duelling options pulling at the protagonist are embodied by his romantic entanglements: his creative muse and non-committal girlfriend Laure (fellow newcomer Carole Combes) and the impassioned advocate for change, Christine (Lola Créton, Goodbye First Love) who shares his same circle of friends. However, Assayas is delicate rather than obvious in his symbolic use of love interests to capture the conundrum faced and compromises made by his main character, fleshing them out with subplots and failed hopes as he compounds Gilles’ emotional reaction to the outcomes they stand for.
That the film has been re-titled Something in the Air in the United States is telling, an indication of the film’s exquisite ability to conjure a period and a mood more than a unified narrative. Attention to detail is paramount, with the production steeped in precisely-crafted signs of the time; yet often the simmering spirit of burgeoning potential that infects Eric Gautier’s (On the Road) lavishly captured images – handsomely edited by Luc Barnier (Farewell My Queen) and set to an eclectic but energetic score – overtakes the free-form story underneath, even as it wavers between nostalgic and bittersweet representations.
The mostly first-time actors prove a perfect fit for the material, particularly the unassuming but commanding Métayer in the lead role. Although occasionally lost in the absorbing, explorative evocation of an attitude and ethos that drives the film, the performers mirror the struggle at the film’s centre – endeavouring to make a unique, identifiable imprint, yet forever influenced by immersive, alluring exterior forces. After May is Assayas’ wistful recognition of his own journey through that process.
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
After May (Après mai)
Director: Olivier Assayas
France, 2012, 122 min
Alliance Française French Film Festival
www.affrenchfilmfestival.org
March 5 – April 7
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