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LES DESTINEES Send This Review to a Friend
A film rich in overall texture, French director Olivier Assayas's "Les Destinees" is based on the novel by Jacques Chardonne. Three hours long, the drama is a tapestry of family and industrial problems involving the manufacture of fine porcelain in Limoges. The saga spans three generations and encompasses World Wars I and II. It is visually splendid with starring roles for Emmanuelle Beart, Charles Berling and Isabelle Huppert. While the film is interesting and generally engrossing, it also tends to be on the stuffy side.
The story begins in 1900 with the martial complications involving Jean Barnery (Berling) a Protestant minister whose family owns a porcelain factory. He believes his wife Nathalie (Huppert) is having an affair, which she denies, but she obeys his request to leave, taking her daughter Aline with her to a separate residence in Limoges. Huppert handles the role well, but it is not a particularly demanding part in comparison with other roles in which she has been so brilliant.
Emmanuelle Beart comes into the story as Pauline, whose uncle owns a cognac company. She falls in love with Jean. The pattern is set for the ups and downs of personal relationships, as well as the economic ups and downs that will plague the porcelain business and the fortunes of the family. Some of the most interesting scenes involve glimpses of porcelain manufacture. But mainly, we follow the characters through their lives, with all the attendant problems.
Unfortunately, it is difficult to become emotionally involved. It is like reading a long novel but not feeling much for the people in it even though they should be interesting. Yet there is majesty to the beautifully filmed production and its historical sweep that keeps one attuned on the visual and narrative levels. Assayas collaborated on the screenplay with Jaques Fieschi. Eric Gautier merits special commendation for his superb job as director of cinematography, for "Les Destinees" is always beautiful to watch. A Wellspring release.
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