By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.4
Director: Jacques Audiard
Starring: Aure Atika | Emanuelle Devos | Gilles Cohen | Jonathan Zaccaï | Niels Arestrup | Romain Duris
Original language title: De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté
Country: france
Year: 2005
Running time: 108
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0411270/combined
Chris says: “American remakes of French films are usually trite, dumbed-down abominations, so does it follow that a French remake of an American film should have the opposite effect? I can’t fully say—I haven’t seen the original, James Toback’s FINGERS (1977), although I’ve been meaning to for some time. The narrative’s a tad convoluted: Tom (Romain Duris) is a petty criminal who aspires to become a classical pianist. However, it buoys an intense, unhinged tour-de-force lead performance from Duris (Harvey Keitel played this role in the original). At times, it appears that director Jacques Audiard re-made Toback’s film as a blatant excuse to construct nothing more than an early Scorsese homage. It’s certainly more alive than anything Scorsese’s done lately: claustrophobic, kinetic and stylish without feeling empty. Admittedly, some stretches were a snooze (many of them revolving around Tom’s ‘business’), but whenever the focus was on Tom immersing himself in music (whether through headphones or at the piano or simply in his mind), the film provided the invigorating rush I always hoped FINGERS would. 3.5 cats”
Diane says: “I liked this a lot more than Chris. A successful thug is excited about the prospect of following his mother’s footsteps as a concert pianist. Lead Romain Duris has a Daniel Day Lewis look and swagger. Best acting nom for him. Father and piano teacher are fine characters. Plot turns at the end took me by surprise. Great cine and soundtrack. 5 cats.”
Scot says: “I just didn’t understand what was so special about the story here. The actor is certainly working his butt off and it shows. (And mostly that’s good, in this case. Can often be bad.) And he’s hot, of course. But unless it’s Hamlet, I don’t quite get the ‘avenge the father’ stories. Especially with this father.
“That said, I slept through the first third of the film, so I may have missed something.”2.5 cats for the 2/3 I saw.”
Michael says: “I fall squarely between Chris and Diane for THE BEAT THAT MY HEART SKIPPED. Without a doubt lead actor Romain Duris owned this movie with a scintillating performance that carried the film. I also enjoyed the cinematography and direction quite a bit, creating a dark, noirish atmosphere that enhanced the tone of the film. Where I think the film falls short is in the screenplay. I get the feeling that FINGERS, the film’s source material, is probably not a very good film (although like Chris, I haven’t seen it.) I found the subplot concerning Thomas and his business partner’s wife to be pretty stilted and silly… especially the way it unfolded. However I loved the gentle unfurling of the relationship between him and Linh, his piano coach. The parts of the story that focused on Thomas and his piano playing were terrific, and I enjoyed watching the two sides of Thomas’ personality revealed through the different areas of his life. This duality is something that director Jacques Audiard likes to explore. His previous film READ MY LIPS also explored this duality, and it was nice to see that film’s star Emmanuelle Devos appear in a small role (Thomas’ father’s girlfriend) in BEAT.
“There was some discussion after the film about Thomas’ relationship with his father, and why he did what he did at the end of the film. It was suggested that the story didn’t provide any rationale for his behavior, but I disagree. I thought Thomas’ behavior made sense and that his emotions and the behavior they prompted made sense. Clearly this film isn’t for everyone; the eight of us who saw it together had reactions ranging from complete enjoyment to loathing. As for me, I give it 4 cats.”
Bruce says: “Every so often there is a film that seeps into my pores and becomes part of me. Such a film is THE BEAT THAT MY HEART SKIPPED a French re-make of FINGERS, an American gangster opus circa 1978. The film delivers on every level but it is the transcendence of Romain Duris as Thomas Seyr that pulls all of the pieces together: the marvelously moody cinematography, sleek editing, atmospheric lighting, excellent set design, eclectic music and a plot much more complex than we anticipate. Add to that a memorable performance by Niels Arustrup as his father and a strong supporting cast.
“Seyr fils is a petty thug who makes his living buying up inexpensive apartment buildings using cheap tricks like dumping bags of rats on premises or beating up squatters, tricks that make the owners willing to sell below market value. Fabrice (Jonathan Zaccai), one of Thomas’ business partners, is a womanizer and for a time Thomas takes advantage of his lonely wife (Aure Atika) tricking her into thinking he cares. From our observation point Thomas doesn’t really care about anything.
“Thomas has inherited his professional acumen from his father. The parent/child cycle is in a new phase, the roles slowly reversing. Thomas now gives his father business advice. His father once had some stature in the French underworld but today there is a new order. The Russians are moving into his territory and they play with a nastier set of rules. Thomas’ deceased mother was a concert pianist and Thomas planned to follow in her footsteps when he was young. Years ago, many music professionals believed that he had inherited her talent.
“For the first twenty minutes or so of the film Thomas goes about his harassing of poor Algerians, heartless to their plight. Thomas has a mean looking mouth, one that conveys not an ounce of sympathy or compassion. One day Thomas runs into his mother’s former booking agent, and the moment their conversation begins Thomas cracks a smile, our first indication that the man is vaguely human. The agent reminisces about Thomas playing Haydn’s sonata No. 32 years ago and suggests that Thomas should audition for him soon. To ready himself Thomas hires a Miao Lin (Linh Dan Pham) an accomplished pianist and refugee; she speaks Mandarin and they converse in linguistic rhythms in the absence of sharing a common language. Thomas becomes obsessed with his goal as he practices a Bach toccata in E Minor. As his audition approaches, the suspense builds from every direction.
“The most difficult thing to understand is how Thomas’ father and mother connected in the first place. That puzzlement fortunately is incidental to the film. What is key is the effect each of his parents has had on Thomas’ development and behavior. His external self has been formed by the relationship with his father; his inner self is his mother’s child. THE BEAT THAT MY HEART SKIPPED is a coming of age story. The protagonist, however, is a full-fledged adult stuck in a place of convenience and comfort of the familiar found long before he matured.
“From what I have read about FINGERS, Harvey Keitel’s Jimmy Fingers is a man with a split personality. In Jacques Audiard’s retelling, Thomas is a man with an evolving persona. Duris has total grasp of his character; Audiard understands the human condition. That is an unbeatable combination. 5 cats”