In the beginning, why do they put a tube or camera down Mathieu's throat- what does he have? And why does the psychiatrist ask if Cedric is his boyfriend, because by then, wouldn't she know who he is?
What is 'the thing he did' that the psychiatrist refers to?
And is there an important meaning behind why he burned out his cigarette on the dead bird?
The "thing he did" was try to kill himself. There are a few reasons why she could have put the tube down his throat, a routine examination of some kind, or maybe, if he took pills to try and kill himself, to either pump his stomach or just make sure his stomach is ok. She didn't know cedric was his boyfriend, just that he kept coming to see him, so she wanted to know their relationship so she could better treat him. As for the bird, I have no clue, sorry. Anyway, i hope that helps.
shareI too was thrown by "the tube" (referred to as a "fiberscope" in the subtitle). The implication that it was a fiber optic for viewing, rather than a stomach-pump to empty the stomach - presumably of pills - sent me guessing in entirely the wrong direction. And the gratuitous cigarette singeing of the bird carcass — how did that further the film? That only led me to later fear (needlessly, as it turned out) that some sort of unbearable-to-watch kitty mutilation was in the offing.
shareCan someone help answer my question? Who was that PIERRE guy at the end? was he the ex of Cedric? what are they talking about? saw the movie 5 times, but still don't understand that last part.
shareI'm with you on this one, the end of the movie totally threw me. The break up with Cedric was a bit hollow and why did Mathieu visit Pierre at the end? It didn't feel finished to me, it felt like...
Boy is confused, Boy meets boy, Boy finds himself, things don't work out, the end.
I have to say I was very disappointed with the end because the movie was actually brilliant in places. I especially loved the relationship with the aunt. I would have also liked the issues with the mother confronted. There were so many intracut stories weaved in, but none ever turned into anything.
I'm also was confused towards the end part, I guess Pierre only appeared when Mathieu moved to the little town and broke up with Cedric, they saw each other and nothing happened, I don't think he was an ex of Cedric, I may me wrong though (Cedric was a man whore like he said, getting laid for money).
shareThe ending was just so random! Why did he go visit his ex-boyfriend's ex? Who does that?
shareYes, that is a bit weird but hey... human behavior is not always very rational!
I think they had met already since that summer (otherwise, how would Matthieu know where he lives?)
Also, Matthieu is quite broken and, I don't know, when I was broken hearted, anything that had a remote link to my ex was of interest to me.
http://astudioincoventgarden.blogspot.com
how would Matthieu know where he lives?
Personally I found it really silly to even think that he would try to get back at him by contacting his ex Pierre, I mean really, there are no indications (or no non-indications, which is more the case in this movie, lol) that any of the boys are angry at each other, they are just broken up. Some people have seen way too many revenge-ful movies I think, and it's odd cause I have and I never thought at any moment in the movie revenge was ever a theme, in fact, revenge is not a theme at all in this movie, not even a hint. You could have the sister wanting to rat the brother out, which she doesn't, altho she kinda plays with him in the garden by saying he knows the "girlfriend".
Anyway, I had no idea who Pierre was until they said in the movie he was an ex and by then I thought the bad lighting in the fight scene in the club made Pierre look much better than he did in broad daylight and THAT was Pierre. So I think, since his move to the beach house etc was somehow motivated by the therapy process (someone somewhere said the doctor sent him there, but it is not so, the doctor actually would prefer him to stay in hospital) so meeting an ex of Cédric might help understand him, his relationship and the reasons for the break-up. As for ending up in his house with his mother, I would totally react like an early poster on this thread. He doesn't know him, his mother, he's never even talked to the guy, that's just ugly scenes waiting to happen, and putting Pierre in a dangerous situation at home, he can't know if he was out to his mother, and after all the "conversation" they have in front of his mother is not your everyday type of straight conversation.
I have watched the movie twice, in original with no subtitles. However they mumble too much and talk very slang-y, but I fear as usual subtitles are often misleading and sloppily done and in a movie like this, where the meaning of a single word could mean the meaning of the whole movie, I didn't want to risk watching it with any.
BY the way, I have the German dvd and it is I believe uncut. There is a short "masturbation" scene, the laying in bed naked, the nude beach singing scene at night with "Libertine" and the beach intercourse scene. Just like it was shown on French tv at night.
He was Cedric's ex. The left his girlfriend to be with cedric. Pierre and Cedric fought in the club, if I have it right.
shareThat is true. They keep seeing him around town after the fight. I think he wanted to see him to find out what life post-Cedric was like.
share
Ah ok, so Pierre was Cedric's ex who picked a fight at the club. The thing is, at the club he came across as a psycho but at the end while walking on the beach with Mathieu, he seemed normal. I noticed Mathieu saw him having a drink when Mathieu returns to the town but nothing is explained as to why Pierre was so friendly to Mathieu since, form our prespective, they're still kind of strangers. Seeing a stranger in my house who told my mom that he knows me is rather creepy. Anyway, I get how Cedric screwed those guys over but I'd have felt a lot better if they united and tracked down Cedric and confronted him. Maybe it's my American hollywood-trained expectations but after 90 minutes of depressing stuff, a revenge on Cedric would've been most satisfying.
Oh, and does anybody know about the song Cedric sings to Mathieu while naked and dancing on the beach? Was it made up for the movie or was it from something?
Philip: Shut your foul mouth, you ten-titted bitch from Hades!
Pierre is indeed Cedric's ex.
Pierre seems to know quite a lot about Cedric and Matthieu, so even though they are kind of strangers, they already know each other.
Revenge on Cedric... that is not how it happens in life, is it? Who goes around finding exs of his ex to confront him/her? We have to remember that Cedric, and the memory of Cedric, is probably painful to Matthieu (he tried to commit suicide after their relationship ended/went badly) I think it is much nicer that he meets someone new, and can move on maybe.
Regarding the bird, I have no idea either.
I though maybe there is a parallel:
happy Matthieu, summer, dead bird => things will go wrong?
sad MAtthieu, winter, live cat => things will improve?
No idea, it seems a bit cr*p, written like that. LOL
I totally agree with you, ben in france. I think the animals might be used as a representation of animal attraction, which we find between the two boys, and I also think the birds death leading on to the boys getting together shows one door closing, another opens, and vice-versa with the cat. It could just be a portrayal of Matthieu's sensitive nature tho, maybe his naivity?
sharesomething about the plot:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presque_rien:
(...) "A parallel plotline focuses on Mathieu eighteen months later, as he is recovering from the shock of their separation. Having tried to commit suicide, his psychiatrist sends him back to the small seaside town to learn to deal with what happened. While Lifshitz does not explicitly say why their relationship failed, the impression is conveyed that their characters are simply too different.
The film ends on a hopeful note, when Mathieu meets Pierre (Nils Ohlund), another former boyfriend of Cedric's, and finally gets the feeling he has found someone who understands him."
Before watching the movie, I saw the above mentioned romantic "trailer" at you-tube, therefore I had other expactations... So the movie - especially the scenes in the psychatry, the ending... - had something depressing. Unfortunately I don´t know any good gay movie, which ends happy for a gay couple. I remember the last and even better gay movie "The Bubble / Ha Buah", which ends extremly frustating.
But nevertheless "Presque Rien" is very sensitive, realistic and artistic, - and therefore a very good movie.
I love this romantic "trailer": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buzcBBllBrU
Thanks for the interesting posting (and for the youtube link - which I have not been able to get open, but I'll keep trying). One movie with a positive ending which I like is "Juste une question d'amour". I think most people who like a good story about the transformative power of love will really enjoy it, particularly if they liked 'Beautiful Thing' or 'You'll Get Over It (A cause d'un Garcon).' The script is strong and the acting is superb throughout - especially Cyrille Thouvenin.
This is not to say that JUSTE is a GREAT FILM. It was made for prime time network TV in France almost a decade ago. As such, it was aimed at a general audience and was obviously intended to open that audience's minds about certain aspects of the gay experience. It does not feature any innovative cinematography. There is some interesting symbolism - but it is accessible, not particularly profound, and not of the tree-crashing-between-Tobi-and-his-teammates variety (not to belittle 'Sommersturm' - it's also a movie I like). It does present some stock characters and is not exactly cliche-free; so if you're the sophisticated gay cineaste you should probably skip it or give it a look for the fine performances by a couple of hot young actors.
If you have not seen the movie, I hope you'll give it a try.
Thank´s very much for the tip, of cours I have to watch "Juste une question d'amour", either I ´m a little bit bored of the coming-out theme...
I already had a look at some movie-scenes at you-tube, I like the movie already only becaus of the very handsome guys ;)
Thank´s again to leftbanker for the movie "Juste une question d'amour ". I have just seen it and I love it!! It´s made for a broad public but nevertheless it´s a great movie, and so very extraordinary because of a happy ending for the gay couple. Therefore I give 9 from 10 points ;)
The song is by Mylene Farmer, a popular french singer and gay icon. Its her first hit "Libertine" that hes singing, though after the beach sceen they sing again with changed, n hell of funny, lyrics
Listen to her if you get the chance, shes preatty good!
The bird for me symbolises Cedrics self mutliation. Hav to watch it again to back up that though, but a feelin i got when watchin, that hes destroying something hes saved and nurtured. Guess theevolution is with the cat that he doesnt hurt, showin his evolution, maturity, and that stuff.
The song Cedric sings to Mathieu on the beach is Libertine by Mylène Farmer, classic 80s pop, but there's also a remake of it by Kate Ryan, check them out they're both great. Desenchantée is also a great track, and may have influenced the french title of the movie.
shareYes, they sing Mylene Farmer's Libertine.
She is a huge star in France, and an icon to the gays.
Matthieu and Cedric actually change the lyrics when they are singing the song in the street, changing the sexual innuendos of the original into plain obvious terms.
http://astudioincoventgarden.blogspot.com
kewl, thanks for those responses. I downloaded the Farmer version and it's a fun listen even though I dont understand the words. hehe. Now to find the translated lyrics...
Tiberius: Fate chose me to govern swine, in my old age, I have become a swineherd.
hello elgatony - cedric didn't screw mathieu over... there would be no reason for mathieu to track him down and confront him about anything. it was mathieu who broke up with cedric... cedric tells the nurse at the end that mathieu wrote him a letter telling him he didn't want to see him anymore. so, there is no revenge to be had.
i agree with everyone here... the ending was abrupt, sudden, unexpected, from left field... i immediately said out loud, "get outta here"!
i would consider contacting the director/writer and purchasing the rights to re-write the story and re-make this movie. not interested in a typical hollywood happy-ending... the ending can be exactly the same. but the story merits consistency and clarity throughout, not an hour and a half of a poorly edited, spliced-up mess.
This is not poorly edited!
The story simply moves from the present (Matthieu at the hospital and going back to the summer house in winter) to the past (summer), constantly.
I never found it messy, on the contrary. It aroused my interest, and when I made sense of it, I thought "brilliant and clever"!
The ending is weird, but ok. How else could the movie end? He is sat on a beach, laughing, again. Nice no?
ben
http://astudioincoventgarden.blogspot.com
ben in france do u know jeremie's birthdate? cant seem to find it. thnks.
shareHi blinkinrogue
Couldnt find it but according to my calculations, he was born in 1979.
He currently stars in the French version of the sitcom The Office. See here: http://www.allocine.fr/series/casting_gen_cserie=787.html
http://astudioincoventgarden.blogspot.com
"That only led me to later fear (needlessly, as it turned out) that some sort of unbearable-to-watch kitty mutilation was in the offing."
I must admit to fast-forwarding through some of the cat scenes the first time I watched the movie. I was sure he going to kill it or seriously hurt it some way.
I had the same reaction. On first viewing I fast forwarded through the kitty scenes thinking that something really horrible was going to be done to the cat.
sharethe ending left me confused but i have a feeling that mathiue wants the ex of his ex.
sharei thought the thing with the dead bird was about mathiue's insensitivity about death....
the ending was okay i guess. i watched thisfilm like 10 times lols. mat wanted to move on and felt like maybe pierre could help him out considering he is also cedric's ex. its just sad that they did not end up together, physically, they were a perfect match hehe.
The dead baby bird may represent the dead baby brother, but I don't know what the cigarette burning meant if anything. Death. Loss. Pain. Suffering.
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