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Title: Le Havre (2011)
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| André Wilms | ... | ||
| Kati Outinen | ... | ||
| Jean-Pierre Darroussin | ... | ||
| Blondin Miguel | ... | ||
| Elina Salo | ... |
Claire
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| Evelyne Didi | ... |
Yvette
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Quoc Dung Nguyen | ... |
Chang
(as Quoc-Dung Nguyen)
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Laïka | ... |
Laïka - Dog
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François Monnié | ... |
Epicier
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Little Bob | ... |
Little Bob
(as Roberto Piazza)
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| Pierre Étaix | ... | ||
| Jean-Pierre Léaud | ... |
Le dénonciateur
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Vincent Lebodo | ... |
Francis
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Umban U'kset | ... |
Mahamat Saleh
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Patrick Bonnel | ... |
Le directeur du centre de rétention
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A dock worker in Le Havre hears a human sound inside one of the containers in port, that container which left Gabon three weeks ago and which was supposed to arrive in London five days after its departure from Gabon, which didn't happen. The Le Havre police and French border guards find a still alive group of illegal African immigrants inside. On the sign from one of his elders, a young teen boy among the illegal immigrants manages to escape, news of which hits the local media. The first friendly face that boy, Idrissa, encounters is that of former artist now aged shoeshine Marcel Marx. Marcel decides to help Idrissa by hiding him in his house, news which slowly trickles through his community of friends - most of whom he associates with at his local bar - and neighbors, most who assist Marcel in this task. Marcel goes to great lengths to find out Idrissa's story, which leads to Marcel's further task of trying to get Idrissa to London, his original end destination. The one neighbor who... Written by Huggo
In 1992, Finnish director Aki Kaurismaki directed LA VIE DE BOHEME, where he transplanted to Paris for a story of impoverished, failed artists on the cusp of society. A funny, sad film about art, love, and loss. Nearly twenty years later, Kaurismaki returns to France in LE HAVRE; while some of the humor remains, its story of the impoverished and dispossessed is even more affecting.
LA VIE... showed a painterly visual sense, all the more amazing that it was filmed in black and white. LE HAVRE boasts an equally striking visual sense, with scenes that seem to glow. That said, other elements of the production are less convincing - and at times. almost embarrassing. (For example, a group of black refugees are locked in a container crate for almost a week; when it's opened, no one's hungry or even concerned, and several are freshly shaved.)
LE HAVRE sets up the camera in a stationary spot - much like an old silent - giving the film a real resonance. But this affection for older filmmaking will be familiar for Kaurismaki fans; his silent, black and white JUHA uses the same minimalistic approach, with good results.
If you're willing to forgive certain production details and the dependence on melodrama, LE HAVRE is a feel-good story of how those of modest means can help those in desperate straits. (LE HAVRE itself was directed under low budget.) The film's humanism is its saving grace. While the filmmaking is occasionally awkward, there's still a lot to be admired here.