Annette

ANNETTE is the extraordinary co-creation of three auteurs: director Leos Carax with composer-performers Ron & Russell Mael of Sparks. On every level, it is a confronting, paradoxical work: an almost non-stop musical with little choreographed dance but incessant movement; a romantic comedy that leans into high tragedy; a story inspired by myth, legend and fairy tale (especially Bluebeard) that also interacts with the latest reverberations of the #MeToo movement.
The narrative is more linear and psychological than what we usually expect from Carax, but the means he chooses to represent it (no spoilers here – it is best to know virtually nothing before seeing it) depart far from realism. The performers are up for the challenge: Adam Driver incarnates an “anti-comedian” with violent, self-destructive tendencies; Marion Cotillard is the embodiment of operatic high culture; and Simon Helberg almost steals the show as the frustrated accompanist/conductor in this melodramatic triangle. From its rousing opening song to its shattering final scene, ANNETTE stylishly lays bare every artifice – yet pierces our hearts with the directness of its bittersweet emotion. And the music is fantastic. (Adrian Martin)

Leos Carax: STRANGULATION BLUES (1980), BOY MEETS GIRL (1984), MAUVAIS SANG (1986), LES AMANTS DU PONT-NEUF (1991), POLA X (1999), NEW ORDER: CRYSTAL (ALTERNATIVE VERSION) (2005, K), TOKYO! (2008), 42 ONE DREAM RUSH (2010), HOLY MOTORS (2012)