Our take
What happens to genius and complex filmmakers once they reach old age? Agnès Varda at 89 is one example. She maintains an interest in the same deep questions but portrays them in a casual way – basically tries to have a little more fun with things. She finds a friend in JR, a young artist with a truck that prints large portraits. Together they go around French villages (the French title is “Visages Villages”), connecting with locals and printing their photos on murals. Their interactions are researched, but not worked. In fact, they are deeply improvised. Because of this and because the movie is structured in an episode format, it will completely disarm you. And when you least expect it you will be met with long-lasting takes on mortality, loss, but also gender, the environment and the evasiveness of life and art.
What it won
Other
1 nom
The story
Director Agnès Varda and photographer/muralist JR journey through rural France and form an unlikely friendship.
Elsewhere
"Anecdote and history converge wondrously and insightfully in this playful yet painstaking collaboration between the octogenarian director Agnès Varda and the thirtysomething photographer and muralist JR."
— Richard Brody
"As JR explains, the project is about him and Varda expressing their imaginations on people's terrain, and they do it graciously and with good cheer."
— Jonathan Romney
The details
Streaming arrival
Who picked it
Bilal Zouheir is the founder of A Good Movie to Watch. He is based in the US and a member of the Nevada Film Critics Society. He grew up in Morocco, where he learned English from watching movies. Bilal's work with A Good Movie to Watch is focused on offering an alternative to streaming algorithms, which are often used as commercial tools by streaming services.
Can’t say I agree with the vouch % of this movie. I found it too worked. There were a couple of interesting moments but I couldn’t get over the feeling I was being talked to as if I were a 3-year-old.