THE REST OF THE WORLD - MIFF 2012

This is one of those “filler” titles that seem to fill the MIFF calendar during its daytime hours.  Small films that you rarely hear about before or after the film festival is over, and they are often competent pieces but limited in scope.  “The Rest Of The World” is typically French and was actually made as a television movie.  The film is about three sisters, Eve, Judith and Aurelie, and the problems they all have.  Eve is the main character of the film and after her partner commits suicide she finds out that she is pregnant with his baby.  Judith on the other hand finds out that she may have a different father than her sisters when her father’s current girlfriend, Katia, deliberately spills the news of her mother’s infidelity during her drunken rage.  Stunned by this revelation Judith sets out to find this man and to see whether or not he is her real dad.  Aurelie on the other hand seems to have problems with aggression and growing up and being more mature.  She never takes anything seriously particularly her relationships with men.  Throughout the film topics of parenting, family, depression and identity are all explored as Eve tries to work out what is the best thing for her and her baby, whether it is right to bring a baby into this world knowing it is not going to ever have a father.

Due to its origins being in television, “The Rest Of The World” is a little film, full of nice performances, while tackling interesting themes.  Visually, it does have that flat television look, so there is nothing to get excited about in that regard.  The biggest asset going for the film is Marie-Eve Nadeau’s performance as Eve.  She is great and does an amazing job at showing a girl with so much going on in her head while keeping silent to everyone around her about her problems.  You can see the tension and pain in her eyes as she struggles to work out what to do.  She is also stunningly gorgeous and I really loved the scenes of her with her deaf students, including one special scene when one of the students goes to find her in the ladies toilet to see if she is ok.  While her character is very unlikable, Emmanuelle Beart does an amazing job at representing someone in so much pain and constantly depressed that her only way of escaping it is to hit the bottle.  Although we never know the reason behind her pain we can tell it is deep rooted in her soul.  It also appears that Beart does not age because she looks the same as she did twenty years ago.

My main problem with “The Rest Of The World” in my eyes is the character of Aurelie who serves no narrative purpose at all.  She does little in the film and her problems are rarely explored.  I also wasn’t a fan of Aurelie Mestres’s performance in the role either.

Overall, for what it is “The Rest Of The World” is a good little film.  It has been well directed and its look at a dysfunctional family and the skeletons hidden within has been dealt with truthfully and emotionally, while never overly sentimental.  While I am sure I will forget ever seeing this film, in the moment it was an enjoyable watch, but nothing more.

3 Stars.