Film Screening: BEAU TRAVAIL (2000)

French director Clair Denis stuns with BEAU TRAVAIL, her postcolonial masterpiece about discipline and desire among French soldiers stationed in the African nation of Djibouti. Adjudant-Chef Galoup (Denis Lavant) of the French Foreign Legion develops a simmering hostility towards new recruit Gilles Sentain (Grégoire Colin), whom he views as a rival for the affections of beloved Commandant Bruno Forestier (Michel Subor). The tension between them finally erupts into naked hate, leading to a violent confrontation that exposes the enforced orderliness of life under martial discipline as dehumanizing. The famous concluding sequence, which somehow manages to strike a note of hope and redemption, is jaw-dropping. Languidly paced and austerely directed while perfectly balancing beauty and brutality, BEAU TRAVAIL is thoroughly captivating from start to finish. With this film, Denis cements her status as one of the greatest filmmakers of her generation.