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May 15, 2009
« Les camisards » : slice of History. (3/9)
Many enthusiasts of Coppola’s « Godfather » trilogy list its most realistic depiction of the Mafia among the reasons why they love it : they nevertheless only know the Mafia through fiction.
« Les camisards » is no different : it works as a film, because it persuades us, as we view it, that the events depicted may have happened as it shows them to have.
That we are able to check, after watching the movie, that such is indeed the case, is only icing on the cake -or the film- : in fact, as a piece of filmmaking, « Les camisards » might impress us even more, if we discovered that, from the rolling introduction which lends it historical credence onward, the film had tricked us into taking for fact what was only, in truth, fanciful fiction.
« Les camisards » is an excellent film, compelling to watch despite its potentially arid matter ; however, it is hard to pinpoint why.
Just because it is History, and an episode of It we ignored ? Is « Les camisards » only interesting as a document and a lesson, for what it is about rather than what it is, i.e. a film ?
Other films come to mind, so realistic and austere they seem to shed all the usual seductions of cinema, and nevertheless riveting, if not hypnotic, as if they had mastered some kind of magic.
Like « Les camisards », Robert Bresson’s « Le procès de Jeanne d’Arc » is a faithful « slice » of History, based on the very minutes of Joan of Arc’s trial : there too, geopolitics meets religion and the film portrays a character who is both a prophet and a warrior, and shall be burnt for worse than heresy : sorcery.
Bresson’s « Journal d’un curé de campagne » is based on a novel, but strikes as equally realistic, is also centred on religion and, like René Allio’s film, though to a much larger extent, is told in voice over.
Bresson’s « curé » is a catholic priest, but Bresson is often labelled a « janséniste », in reference to a 17th century Catholic renovation movement, whose sympathisers included philosopher Blaise Pascal and which some, including Louis XIV, thought dangerously close to the Protestant heresy.
In perfect absolute power logic, the « Jansénistes » ended, like the « Protestants » and the « camisards » -and during about the same years-, in the Catholic monarch’s line of fire
All three films seem to draw their power of attraction from their apparent refusal to attract. Rather than seduce, they overwhelm or mesmerise. We seem drawn to them despite ourselves, sometimes against our better judgement, and ignore why. They appear to contaminate us like an act of faith beyond our control, to be thrown upon us like a grace we did not ask for.
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