Ari
French director Léonor Serraille’s third feature opens with Ari as a child, learning the story behind his name. The optimism in his mother’s voice speaks to great dreams of a fulfilled future she envisions for her son. But the next time the viewer meets Ari, he is an insecure young man, downright incapacitated by his anxiety. In his first class as a teacher, he starts crying because he can’t get through to his young students and they act up. When he doesn’t want to go back to work, Ari’s father refuses to tolerate his whims any longer. Looking for a place to stay, Ari is forced to canvass old friends and comes face to face with the stages of life his peers are at.
In true mumblecore fashion, Ari focuses on intimate, everyday situations and character development, explored predominantly through life-like interactions and dialogue. At first, there is a clear pattern to Ari’s journey: he will turn up at someone’s house and be welcomed with open arms, but the long conversations will reach a sore point, at which Ari can’t stay any longer and needs to find a new abode. While it may read like a running gag, these initial parts of the narrative are still very grounded and accessible. But the constant stations and restlessness prove unsustainable for the 88-minute runtime, and Ari’s path diverges when a more pivotal figure from his past re-emerges. This Deus ex machina device uproots the naturalistic approach, and suddenly, the audience finds themselves questioning the reality of subsequent scenes because at the drop of a hat, Ari is back at school, working competently, with a house of his own and having inverted the biggest regret of his life.
Ari succeeds in its setup of a rather unorthodox exploration of various themes of parenthood, however, a clearer through line marrying the first and second halves would have left a stronger impression on the audience, perhaps even increased its emotional impact.
Selina Sondermann
Ari does not have a release date yet.
Read more reviews from our Berlin Film Festival coverage here.
For further information about the event visit the Berlin Film Festival website here.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
RSS