In past Movies with Jeff articles I have discussed films that have played on DePauw’s campus as part of the DePauw Film Studies Series. This semester, the series gets an international twist because of the Tournées Film Festival. I’m Jeff Collins, and for this week's Movies with Jeff I will be discussing the Festival and the first film from the series: “Loin des Hommes.”
Before getting into the film, a deeper understanding of the Tournées Film Festival would be beneficial. The Festival is part of the French American Cultural Exchange (FACE) Foundation. The purpose of the program is to bring French films to U.S. universities and college campuses. The first six films of this semester’s film studies series are French films from Tournées, so only three non-French films will be shown. Now, let’s get on with “Loin Des Hommes.”
The 2014 French drama, “Loin Des Hommes,” or “Far From Men” in English, is directed by David Oelhoffen. The drama was initially released at the 71st Venice International Film Festival where it won the award for Best Film. The story is based on an Albert Camus short story titled, “The Guest.” The film centers on Daru (Viggo Mortensen), a teacher who is charged with bringing Mohamed (Reda Kateb), a murderer, into town for justice. Daru is reluctant to do this and even gives Mohamed the option of leaving. Surprisingly, Mohamed refuses, believing that he should face justice.
The two aspects of this film that jump out to me right away are the setting and Mortensen’s performance as Daru. The film takes place in Algeria in 1954, and although I have never been to Algeria, the setting of the film seemed very believable. The mountain background throughout most of the film seems to compliment the isolation of Daru and Mohamed, two men who are alone. The openness of the setting worked well in contrast with the small cast; there are only about five principle characters in the film, the central one being Mortensen.
What I thought this film did very well was discuss and develop Daru. When we initially meet Daru, he is a schoolteacher in the Algerian mountains; however, the audience knows that there is more to Daru that what was initially told or shown to us. We learn that he was once a reserve officer in the army, but it’s his actions in trying to protect Mohamed that shows the audience the complexity of Daru. At moments throughout the film I could not help but almost feel a western vibe from “Loin des Hommes.” Daru is, in a sense, a Cowboy-hero-type character thrust back into the wild to protect Mohamed.
Admittedly, I do not have much experience with French Cinema, so for that reason “Loin des Hommes” was a nice change in pace from Hollywood style movies. I would strongly recommend my fellow DePauw peers to take advantage of the eye-opening opportunity that the Tournées Film Festival allows. It’s not too often that you get to see French films in Greencastle. Until next time, take care of each other and yourself; I’m Jeff at the Movies.