Now available on physical media from Radiance Films
A man living in world with a gibberish language leaves society behind and creates his own lifestyle that involves a woman, no clothes, a destroyed building, and a lot of misunderstandings.
This absurdist comedy directed by Claude Faraldo is one that will either hit just right or bore you to death and unfortunately, for this viewer. The film has plenty going on, the language being gibberish is not actually an issue, but it does get old pretty fast. There is a story, and it has something to say about society, its rules, what is proper, and a bunch of other themes, but it all comes together to just not hit the mark. The humor here is often lost, and it shows that something is off here. Some will love it and likely look down their noses at those who don’t but when watching this many films a year, this one is more annoyance than brilliance.
The cast here is interesting and the lack of proper lines likely both helped and hindered their performances. The lack of language means no learning lines needed, but it also means that there is no true communication between the characters or the actors. They end up having to follow direction and hope for the best. Of course, the film is led by a solid actor and that helps it greatly. Michel Piccoli plays the man who is disenfranchised with life and who decides to just leave society while still living in the city. His performance is central and the best aspect of the film. He gives in and goes with the flow beautifully well, giving the film a performance well above what it deserves. French celebrity Coluche shows up as a neighbor, a fun moment that works for what it is, a cameo. Béatrice Romand also gives a decent performance, but it gets a little lost in the noise and chaos happening in the apartment where Themroc is holed up.
The film’s look here is quite normal, giving the cinematography and editing not a ton to do or shine through. Their work is on point, but not particularly challenging or inspired. There is something here in terms of it all works together and makes for a cohesive film, as cohesive as the story will allow. The film overall looks decent, and the images do not interfere with anything.
Overall, Themroc is a film of very limited interest to most but that should fascinate others. In the case of this viewer, it was a thoroughly meh experience. The acting is good, the story is just there, much like the cinematography and the editing or the music. There is a decent amount of talent here, but the film presented is dated, not particularly inspired, and not exactly entertaining.
As for this new release from Radiance Films, the new restoration (from the original StudioCanal negatives), looks good as can be for this film. The sound is decent and there are no dubs or subs (beyond the ones for the deaf and hard of hearing) for this given that all the language is gibberish on purpose. In terms of extras, the usual suspects gallery and trailer are there, then we get the more interesting extras including an archival interview with Michel Piccoli and Claude Faraldo, an interview with Manuela Lazic about Piccoli. There are a few more things included here.