La Veuve De Saint-Pierre
2000
This dark drama explores a true tale set in 1850 on the isolated French-Canadian island of St. Pierre. Yugoslav director Emir Kustirica makes a fabulous acting debut as Neele August, an illiterate fisherman who brutally murders his ex-fishing captain in a night of drunken revelry. Sentenced to death, August cannot be killed .. Read more
| Starring | Juliette Binoche, Daniel Auteuil, Michel Duchaussoy, Marc Beland |
|---|---|
| Director | Patrice Leconte |
| Genres | Drama, World Cinema |
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La Veuve De Saint-Pierre
This dark drama explores a true tale set in 1850 on the isolated French-Canadian island of St. Pierre. Yugoslav director Emir Kustirica makes a fabulous acting debut as Neele August, an illiterate fisherman who brutally murders his ex-fishing captain in a night of drunken revelry. Sentenced to death, August cannot be killed until the remote island governor imports a used guillotine from the French government. While awaiting the arrival of the "widow," August is placed under the care of the reticent, iconoclastic Captain Jean (Daniel Auteuil) and his freethinking wife, Pauline (Juliette Binoche). Under Pauline's direction, August becomes a devoted social servant whose heroic deeds place the island's female population solidly against his death sentence.
The film's costuming and art direction are accomplished, setting the stage for Eduardo Serra's gorgeous landscape cinematography, at its best amongst the dreary seasonal changes of the remote island. Low angles, hand-held camerawork, and consistently foggy skies create a seasick feeling as director Patrice Leconte's pained attention to Jean's horse and the society surrounding the main characters elevates the film from a tidy chamber drama into a visually engaging philosophical discourse.
| Starring | Juliette Binoche, Daniel Auteuil, Michel Duchaussoy, Marc Beland, Christian Charmetant, Philippe Du Janerand, Emir Kusturica, Philippe Magnan |
|---|---|
| Director | Patrice Leconte |
| Studio | CINEMA CLUB |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 47 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Drama, World Cinema |
| Language | DVD: French |
| Subtitles | DVD: English |
| Released | DVD: not available Production year: 2000 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (3)
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Set in 1850, Patrice Leconte's sombre tragedy unfolds against the austere backdrop of Saint-Pierre, a small French island off the Canadian coast. A drunken drifter (played by Yugoslavian film director Emir Kusturica) is found guilty of murder and is sentenced to death. There being neither guillotine nor executioner on the isle, the condemned man is placed in the custody of captain Daniel Auteuil and his wife, Juliette Binoche, who become attached to their prisoner and plot his escape. It's an unusual story, told with empathy and precision, while Binoche and Auteuil are well-matched as the couple who risk all in a selfless and ultimately self-destructive act of compassion. Still, it's a bit dreary at times, with little of the visual splendour of Leconte's previous efforts, Ridicule and The Girl on the Bridge.
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Saint-Pierre is a small island off Newfoundland. The year is 1850. Fog and scandal enwrap the island in the wake of a... read more on Time Out
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Most helpful member's review
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20 out of 20 people found this review helpful
A very enjoyable film.
A beautiful period drama set on the french 'cod islands' off the Newfoundland coast in the 1850's.
La Veuve in the title has a double meaning, it translates as 'The Widow' but was also the french nickname for the guillotine.
Good performances from Daniel Auteuil as the Army captain and Juliette Binoche as his wife.
It is never clear thoughout the film who the widow would turn out to be, or wether someone does end up losing their head. I won't spoil it for you.
Watching the film with subtitles was not a problem, a great film. -
Most recent members' review
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12 out of 12 people found this review helpful
Warm hearts in a cold climate
Slow-moving but very atmospheric period drama set in the remote frozen landscape of Nova Scotia in the 1800s, dealing with some very basic human themes - love, friendship , redemption, loyalty, crime and punishment. It is the simple but affecting story of a man condemned to execution for a drunken murder, who is taken into the care of the local captain's wife and becomes a valued, popular member of the community while he awaits the means for his execution - the guillotine (the 'veuve' of the title)-to be sent from Martinique.
Between them, Daniel Auteuil - as the courageous, intelligent, fiercely moral captain of the guard, and Juliette Binoche as 'Madame La', his independent, passionate wife, create a memorable portrait of two people who trust each other beyond all doubt, and whose love is an unwavering force for good. Their relationship stands at the heart of this icy, wind-chilled film as a burning emblem of humanity and compassion. Some of the best scenes in the film involve Auteuil defending his wife's reputation against the gossipy local adminstrators, who seem somewhat embarrassed by the raw emotion of this couple who - for reasons we are never told - have arrived in their community.
It's beautifully filmed, and the acting is impeccable. The story moves steadily forward, but is perhaps just a little too lethargic in the opening 20 minutes. There are a few question marks - the murder is left as an unresolved mystery, just 'one bad act from a good man', and nothing we see from Neel the prisoner following his crime ever begins to explain his motivation for the pointless killing. Nor do we feel any sympathy for the victim, who is quickly forgotten by the townspeople. The erotic tension between Madame La and Neel (a fabulous performance from Emir Kusturica) is very subtly handled, and the film avoids many of the obvious narrative diversions you might think it is heading towards.
In the end, the key to this film is a line spoken by the Captain when he says 'the man who commited the crime is never the same man who is sent to his death.' The film acknowledges the possibility of true penitence and genuine redemption, a result patiently wrought by the catalyst of human compassion and understanding - exemplified in this film by Madame La Capitaine, but it never offers trite, happy endings. Ultimately, the prisoner accepts, even welcomes his fate, and there is no escaping the destiny that the actions of all the characters brings towards them.
Give it a chance. It's one of those films that you will find yourself thinking about long after you've ejected it from the DVD player, even though at times it seems a little ponderous. Worth it for the fabulous performances and the marvellous landscape. -
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La Veuve De Saint-Pierre
This dark drama explores a true tale set in 1850 on the isolated French-Canadian island of St. Pierre. Yugoslav director Emir Kustirica makes a fabulous acting debut as Neele August, an illiterate fisherman who brutally murders his ex-fishing captain in a night of drunken revelry. Sentenced to ...
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