Forum Message

Topic: Saint Omer
Posted by: Joe Conneely
Date/Time: 19/02/23 15:11:00

I appreciate this film was premiered in festival in 2022 and commented on under the 2022 thread but as I have just seen on general UK release, I include it here.



If one was looking for a contrast between Hollywood and European filmmaking, comparing this French film and the concurrent release of “Women Talking” (which I have reviewed separately) would certainly provide it. This true event story of infanticide by a Senegalese unmarried mother largely takes place in a French provincial court (the Saint Omer of the title) from the trial’s start to the summing up by her female defence lawyer.



Observing the trial is another Sengalese woman, a successful author and herself in the early stages of pregnancy. The two women never talk to each other exchanging just one long glance during the trial but the facts of the case and the accused woman’s history are clearly stirring deep emotions within the author about her own pregnancy and motherhood. Since this is a European film, long silences and small actions by the different characters and minimal dialogue (except for the female judge and the defence lawyer) pervade the whole film. Story links to the Greek tragedy “Medea” and the French post WW2 liberation treatment of women accused of fraternising, ensure this is portrayed as more than just a murder trial.



The film avoids being a courtroom drama, helped by the French court system avoiding adversarial cross examinations and the judge leading overall proceedings. By the end, after the key witnesses and the accused have been exposed during their testimonies and a defence summing up that makes for great cinema but feels unlikely to sway the outcome, you are not aware of the final outcome. I admit I came away perplexed but with lots of thoughts, so it was certainly a different cinema experience to usual!

Entire Thread
TopicDate PostedPosted By
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