“The Measure of a Man” – Depth matters [MOVIE REVIEW]
Vincent Lindon in The Measure of a Man. A Kino Lorber release.
Stéphane Brizé, a highly regarded, though little seen on this side of the Atlantic, French director/writer of amazing substance should rightly gain major international attention with his latest film “The Measure of a Man.” Multiple César and Cannes Film Festival nominee, Brizé won the Ecumenical Jury Prize at Cannes and was nominated for Best Director and Best Film at the César Awards, the French equivalent of the Oscar. He has written, with Olivier Gorce, and directed what may be the definitive portrait of the human face of unemployment. A character portrait of unimaginable depth, Brizé allows circumstance to define despair and resilience.
Thierry has been out of work for two years and his benefits are soon to be drastically reduced, putting him deeper in debt. He has done everything possible, followed all the rules and still he has gotten nowhere. An older worker whose entire career was spent working with very specific kinds of machinery, he has taken courses to retrain in a different field. Advised to learn how to operate a crane, he finds himself still unemployable because he has no prior experience in construction, something that his counselor should have realized before sending him off on a time-consuming and time-wasting venture destined from the beginning to lead nowhere.
Thierry, afraid of where the road to nowhere will lead, refuses to capitulate to desperation and pessimism. He will not join his former co-workers in the lawsuit they are contemplating against the manufacturers who moved the factory out of France to save costs and improve profit. Thierry does not want to dwell on what he no longer has and wants to press forward into the future, a future that he knows will bring less but will bring more dignity than the present.
Thierry has a loving wife and a handicapped son who they have raised to achieve beyond the expectations of others and who has a good chance despite his debilitating cerebral palsy to go to college. Thierry has pride and dignity beyond his circumstance and he will do everything in his power to maintain his personal integrity and that of his family.
What some might consider a further humiliation, Thierry finds a glimmer of hope in his new job as a store security guard. It will be, however, the greatest personal challenge he will face.
This film is a confluence of many forces and is a classic example of the perfect storm of great script, direction and casting, especially casting. Brizé deliberately chose a young cinematographer, Eric Dumont, whose only previous experience was on documentaries, something that paid off in the realistic, non-fiction-type approach to the story of one man’s quest for dignity in the changing work landscape. With one or two exceptions, the entire supporting cast was drawn from non-actors, individuals who were living the jobs of the characters they played in the film. Of special note is the outstanding Matthieu Schaller who had never acted before, as Thierry’s handicapped son.
But all roads must start and end with Vincent Lindon, the formidable actor playing Thierry. His approach is almost wordless, a man facing the humiliations of his diminished existence patronized unwittingly by those seeming to lend a hand and superfluous unhelpful advice. His expressions mask the hopelessness his slumping shoulders give away. His inherent goodness is revealed in the way he conveys to the world that he believes in a bright future for his son despite the son’s cerebral palsy. The road map of Lindon’s face is creased by sorrow and softened with hope. No other actor conveys as much depth and dimension through his eyes with the possible exception of Mark Rylance. Lindon is Thierry; it is one of the truly great performances caught on screen.
“The Measure of a Man” is a truly wonderful film. There are no chills, no thrills, no mysterious plot; only, if only is the right word, a phenomenal character study of a man down on his luck, a man who could be you or me or someone you know who hits a patch of misfortune not of his own making. There but for the grace of God…
Do not miss this film. It will resonate for a long time to come and features a performance by an actor you will never forget.
Opening Friday May 20 at the Laemmle Royal.