18/05/2005

With Peindre ou faire l'amour [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Arnaud & Jean-Marie Larrieu
interview: Philippe Martin
film profile] presented this morning to the press in the Official Competition, a breath of refreshing originality found its way into a Cannes selection almost completely dominated till now by films with themes of violence and the weight of the past. Surprisingly bucking the trend, brothers Arnaud and Jean-Marie Larrieu display in fact a piece of work full of lightness and tender irony. In a visual style that plays with ubiquitous Nature as if it was a sound box and slowly creates an atmosphere of erotic tenderness thanks to carefully planned framing and slow fluid camera movements, Peindre ou faire l'amour deliberately establishes a dense universe under the guise of great simplicity. A cinematographic approach mixing classicism and individuality which has divided international critics, highly appreciated by some while disconcerting others.

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Carried by a quartet of impeccable actors with a special mention for Sabine Azema, the film follows the evolution of "an old couple", composed of her and Daniel Auteuil. Moving to the country and freeing themselves from their professional lives they meet a strange duo (blind Sergi Lopez and Amira Casar), forming a neighbourly complicity which comes about without warning through wife-swapping. This transformation will completely upset the lives of this bourgeois couple, liberating them and opening up a course towards hedonism. A story masterfully told thanks to a subtle screenplay set in the bedazzling countryside and mountains of Vercors, where environmental sound also plays a vitally important role (with abundant sounds of the countryside and songs, notably by Brel and by Ferré).

Produced by Philippe Martin for Les Films Pelléas, To Paint or to make love had a budget of 4,26 million euros, including an Advance on Receipts from the CNC of 420 000 euros, a co-production with France 2 Cinéma (500 000 euros), aid from the Rhône-Alpes region and pre-sales from Canal + and TPS. The film will be distributed in France from the 24th of August by Pyramide who also handle the international rights.

(Translated from French)