Cinema Derive - MON ONCLE D'AMERIQUE  1980
Line up: Gérard Depardieu. Nicole Garcia, Roger Pierre

MON ONCLE D'AMERIQUE  1980
Directed by Alain Resnais
125 minutes
In French with English subtitles

Here we have a movie that seems to be 'normal' - in the sense that it has a story. But as with many films by Alain Resnais (Last Year in Marienbad), what is experimental is the wild approach to the story. Where most movies use plots to suck the audience into some fictional world, here the plot is being used to illustrate the theories of a behavioral theorist - Henri Laborit, author of Decoding the human message.

Mon oncle d'Amerique focuses on the interactions of three main protagonists; an actress, a writer and a factory manager (Gérard Depardieu). As we follow their lives, the film keeps cutting away to professor Laborit explaining his theories in relation to the story. The result is absurd, but also insightful. What could be dry and stuffy becomes, in the hands of Resnais, totally engaging - charged with a good dose of irony and surreal humor. In fact, in the end, this flick makes clear how boring and dull most movies are, because so many directors are caught in a trap of simply imitating others. This one is absolutely unique.

The laboratory tests and theories of Henri Laborit revolve largely around how we handle stress in relation to society. And for me that also makes the movie more damn relevant than ever - because I have never seen the world in more stressful times than today. Another great thing about this crazy film, whether you buy the theories or not, is how it helps us to back away and look at our lives within a context... not to simply follow our feelings per se, but to always step back and see the entire picture. Some people have even compared this flick to a Greek tragedy, which illustrates human behavior. Take this outrageous premise for a movie, add some snappy and creative editing, a wicked sense of humor, and a multi-layered thought-provoking script, and you have one of the most original films in cinema history. (As pointed out in Gilles Deleuze's book Cinéma 2: l'image-temps).

Open Door: 19:30
Film Start: 20:00