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April 8, 2008
The Page Turner (2007)
I rented The Page Turner because it received a few nominations for our local university movie bulletin board awards. I had never heard of it until then, but am glad to have given it a chance. This quiet little movie is right up my alley (for those who have seen it, what does that say about me?).
I don't want to talk in too much detail, because if a person hasn't heard anything about this movie, then it's best experience without knowing much about it. The more you know for first viewing, the less effective I think it would be. That being said, the movie begins when a young girl is taken to a piano audition. She has decided to quit playing if she fails. Melanie's performance goes well until a judge decides to give an autograph to a fan in the middle of her song. She stops, and when she resumes, she has lost her focus. Years later, by chance, she finds herself working for that judge's husband, and he needs temporary child care for his son while his wife focuses on an upcoming performance. Soon, Melanie is in the home of the woman who destroyed her young dreams. How will she react?
Director Daniel Dercourt keeps the audience waiting, wondering, and guessing, which is what makes this movie so good. Melanie is very quiet, and her life between the audition and her new job is unknown. We don't know her exact motives or what her plan is, so we have to wait and see what happens.
I loved the tone of the entire movie. I read that Dercourt directed another movie before this one about the demands of parents on musical children. In a similar vein, the character of Ariane is a tormented musician, who suffers from the pressures of stage fright. Her fears add to the overall tension of the movie, as well as make us feel some sympathy for her. The way Dercourt explores this area of performance art is intriguing, and I would really like to see My Children Are Different, were it ever to be released to the States.
If anyone wants to discuss further, it'll have to be in comments or emails, since I don't want to give anything away. Obviously, though, I thought it was great, though not for all audiences!
Posted by Jeri 
at 04:31:02 pm | movies, netflix/tivo, 2007 | 3 comments »
3 comments
I loved its use of source music to reflect the psychological tension of a scene in contrast to Deborah Francois ever expressionless face. My musician friends pointed out that the sound perfectly matched the keys being played at every point of the pieces, which attests to Dercourt's care for musical detail (I understand he's a pianist himself).
I'm glad the psychology of the protagonist was never explored, and the missing years were kept hidden. From her first scene I read Francois as calculating but my companion got a vibe of innocence from her, which is a credit to her performance.
Moreover it's nice and short, efficiently edited without any superfluous scenes. I'd love to see it a second time.
I, too, kept expecting certain things to happen that never did, which is wonderful. The tension kept building and subsiding, and I half expected a happy ending with the way Melanie kept her cool. Not knowing what happened in those years was brilliant, because it leaves the audience to wonder how much scheming she had or hadn't done. Did she work her way into that law firm specifically to get to Ariane? Apparently in a talk with an audience, the director admitted that he believes Melanie was behind the car accident that Ariane was in, which would make the tension of the movie even greater on a second viewing.
How awesome that you and your friend saw her character differently! I could see it both ways and kept trying to decide which one I sided with. She held the son under the water in the pool, but one might interpret that as her way of helping him realize how he was capable of staying under for longer.
I also love that her revenge was full, but not gratuitous.
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