Review

In The House (Francois Ozon, 2012) 4/5

‘Home is where the heart is’, ‘There’s no place like home’, these and countless other sayings have reverberated throughout cinema’s history. Let’s face it; there is no film that doesn’t feature, in one form or another, a domestic space where all of our characters reside. Francois Ozon’s new feature looks to uncover what happens when we peep through the windows of the ‘perfect’ family unit and deconstruct its very construction. In many ways Ozon is merely continuing his signature style of blending a familial setting with a criminal or dramatic undertone. Films that echo this sentiment include Swimming Pool (2003), Ricky (2009), The Refuge (2009) and Potiche (2010).

The narrative follows a sixteen year old boy Claude Garcia (Ernst Umhauer) who ingratiates himself into the Artole family by befriending and tutoring the only son Rapha (Denis Ménochet). He begins to write stories about their activities and gives these to his teacher, Germaine (Fabrice Luchini), who, along with his wife Jeanne (Kristin Scott Thomas), becomes embroiled in a game of fiction and the very nature of storytelling. The film begins with a very naturalistic style with the focus on mise en scene and performance; however, without quite knowing it, it slowly develops into a self-reflexive take on contemporary families and suburbia. As such, Ozon carefully weaves a story that takes off the veneer of clinical domesticity.

You might say ‘hang on a minute; this has been done to death, right?’ Well, you’d be right, although, I can assure you; this isn’t an episode of Desperate Housewives that spirals into soapy drama. In fact, it verges on both the hysterical claustrophobia of Douglas Sirk and the keen voyeurism of Alfred Hitchcock. Indeed, what we get is a very knowing film that understands what has come before it, but at the same time is trying to create something new and intriguing. The way it does this is that most of the film is constructed around written assignments, where Claude communicates his findings of living with the Artole’s for a year. However, as he tries to break the classical convention of the family, which includes a brief fling with troubled mother Esther, his actions, have far greater consequences for Germaine.

The whole style of the film is fresh as Jérôme Alméras’s cinematography and Pascaline Chavanne’s art direction effortlessly guides us through the trials and tribulations of the characters. Note the fast forward shots at the beginning and the colourful imagery of the finale and you will see that the film becomes bookended. Much like, the books that Germaine wants his students to read for assignments, In The House not only tries to uncover the secrets of the family but also becomes a self-reflexive take on the novel. Indeed, all of the twists and turns of a paperback is conveyed visually through Ozon’s willingness to dive straight into the comical, sensual and uneasy character relationships.

The performances from the entire cast are great, with particular standouts being Luchini, Scott Thomas and Umhauer. However, it is Emmanuelle Seigner, who gives the best impression of a contemporary Betty Draper, which steals the show! In fact, in many ways, she embodies the very strict nature of the familial unit and its unwillingness to change. Her character is quietly unravelling; however, with the stabling force of another pregnancy she finds her place yet again as the stereotypical matriarch. As such, in the end, although prodded and poked, the perfect household remains intact, however, as Claude prepares another suburban adventure, there is a sense of the unknown of what he might find out underneath the bricks and mortar of what makes a house a home.




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