IN THE HOUSE/DANS LA MAISON

France, 2012, 103 minutes, Colour.
Fabrice Lucchini, Ernst Umhauer, Kristin Scott Thomas, Emmanuelle Seigner, Bastien Ughetto, Denis Menochet.
Directed by Francois Ozon.

In the House seems a rather nondescript title for this intriguing film. However, by the end of the film it has quite some significance.

And the film can be recommended because of the work of its director, Francois Ozon. For almost 15 years, he has been making a film every year, many psychological dramas, Under the Sand, The Swimming Pool, 5 X 2, The Time Remaining, but also a excursions into musical, 8 Women, or fantasy, Ricky.
This film is based on a Spanish play by Juan Mayorga, The Boy in the Back Row. It is successfully transferred to a French setting, a town with the focus on the school where the central character, Germain, is a teacher. His wife, Jeanne, runs a rather avant Garde gallery in the town. He has been teaching for many years and seems rather resigned to his students not paying much attention, illustrated almost immediately by the very poor essays he receives from the students about their previous weekend. She is rather frustrated, the owner of the gallery having died and his twin daughters, whom she considers as lacking in culture, may fire her unless she produces a significant exhibition. So far, so ordinary enough.
But one student writes a standout essay, two pages worth, full of detail, quite mundane in detail. It is by a 16 year old student, Claude.
Germain becomes interested in Claude and his writing, the boy becoming rather a favorite student, the teacher giving him much time, analyzing his essays, suggesting ways of writing better. But he is also intrigued by the content of the essay which always finishes, ‘a suivre’, to be continued…
Germain reads the stories to his wife and she too becomes fascinated. We wonder about their curiosity, Germain’s motivations, why he is attracted to the boy and his writing: is it psycho-sexual, is it because he is a frustrated novelist, is it because he is childless and wants to father someone?
But the main question is: why are we, the audience, so attracted to the story, curious about what happens, more than a touch of the prurient as Claude delves deeper into the lives of the family that he has chosen for his stories? We are observing something of ourselves in the way that Germain and his wife are dramatized.
On the day-by-day level, nothing startling really happens. It is all in the detail. Claude has chosen one of his fellow-students, Rapha, to befriend and tutor him in matha in which he is hopeless room. Rapha response well, and invites Claude into the house. The meaning of the title begins to take shape. What Claude does is insinuate himself into the household, getting to know the father who is in business, frustrated by his boss, having to two extra work to entertain a Chinese business partner. His name is also Rapha. Then there is his wife, Esther, who intrigues Claude, who makes disparaging remarks about her, seeing her as a bored housewife, frustrated and reading home decoration magazines because that is what she wanted to do with her life. He prowls around the house snooping. All these details are reported to Germain in the stories. And they continue for some time.
Of course, we the audience are also interested in the two Raphas well as Esther. When, following Germain’s advice, Claude starts to invent material, with Germain sometimes appearing in the background of conversations, suggesting that a lot of what we’re seeing is fiction. We wonder about Claude and his motivation and, particularly, his manipulation of people, the family as well as of Germain.
Germain asks the class to write an essay about their best friend and makes Rapha read his in public, embarrassing him considerably, which arouses the anger of his father, and the suspicions of the headmaster. Germain has also compromised himself by stealing the text of a maths exam for Claude to show to Rapha and help him get an A, which she does.
Germain, and we the audience, become so entangled in the story that we wonder in which direction it will go. We see Claude becoming seductive for Esther and the possibility of the young Rapha killing himself.
There is the opening of the exhibition at the gallery, but Jeanne thinks she will be fired. And then Claude comes to the door… We’re almost to the end and the strange story does not quite have the ending that we might have imagined. While Claude was able to get right inside the Rapha house, he also intrudes into Germain’s house of the end. But is all this a house of fiction and we are inside that house.
Fabrice Luchini is excellent as Germain. Kristin Scott Thomas is also excellent as Jeanne, with Emmanuelle Seigner fine as Esther. The young man, Ernst Umhauer, who portrays Claude gives an assured performance which should guarantee his future in cinema.
Well worth going inside the house.

1. An impressive drama? Interest, tantalizing, characters and plot? Truth and fiction?
2. The work of Francois Ozon? Dramas, character studies?
3. The film based on a play, Spanish, transition to France, a French feel and atmosphere?
4. Homes and apartments, the school, the art gallery? The limited number of locations? Successfully confined? The musical score?
5. Germain, his character, age and experience, work as a teacher, his earlier published novel, his failures in writing? The new year at the school, arriving at the assembly, the speech, the issue of uniforms? Assigned to his class?
6. Jeanne, at home, coming from the funeral mass, challenging Germain? her work of the gallery, her fears of being fired? Germaine correcting the manuscripts, Jeanne reading them, his reading the further chapters, a suivre…, to be continued…?
7. Germain at his class, the range of pupils, the scene sped up for their arrival at school? The thronging students? His class and the inattentiveness, the essay about the weekend, treatment of it?
8. Correcting the essays, the students and their poor imagination? Reading Claude’s, his curiosity aroused, Jeanne’s interest? The further chapters?
9. The film reflecting on the creative process, styles of writing, dramatic writing, issues of content, mundane detail? Germain’s interest, Jeanne’s interest?
10. Germain talking to Claude, befriending him, the coaching on writing, diagrams and the blackboard? Correcting his style, suggestions, their being incorporated?
11. The visualizing of each chapter, real and observed, imaginative and fabricated? The fantasy element and Germain appearing in the background of some scenes?
12. The audience and its response to each chapter, curiosity being roused, a prurient curiosity, the audience identifying with Germain and Jeanne, sharing the curiosity? Wanting more? Audiences sharing with Germain and Jeanne as they read further?
13. Claude, 16, in himself, the voiceover? His decisions? His decision to be a friend to Rapha, the close-up of Rapha, appearance, eyes? The issue of maths, Rapha not being good, meeting coaching? The bonding between the two?
14. Claude and the family, interest in the father, his work? His seeming lack of interest in the mother, the comment on her being middle class, being bored? Claude’s choices and his being manipulative, wanting to get into the house, the gradual steps into and within the house, his searching and snooping? Finding the X-ray, the shoes, the effect on him?
15. The principal, his speech, the uniforms, education policy, discussions with Germain, the issue of the maths test? Questioning Germain about the test, a bout making Rapha readt his essay in public? Eventually sacking Germain?
16. Claude and his invading the life of the family, reporting it in minute detail, this being visualized? the kiss, the sexual implications? Watching Esther? Imagining the love-making? The discussions with the father, on sport, broader issues, China and his work?
17. The effect on Claude, the sexual implications, with Esther, Jeanne and his questioning him? Jeanne, the gallery, the Avant–garde pictures, sexually explicit, her fears, wary about the twins sacking her, the visit and their conversation, the comic touch with the two women? Inviting Rapha’s parents?
18. Germain, his growing devotion to Claude, prepared to steal the exam, doing it, copying it? Denying it? Rapha and his good results? Germain’s throwing Claude’s text into the rubbish bin, taking it out and reading it? Germain and his having no children, a father-figure for Claude?
19. Rapha, maths, basketball, playing with his father? Claude and basketball?
20. The father, his job, being called upon by his boss, entertain the Chinese businessman, worried about the money, eventually being sacked?
21. Esther, bored, reading the magazines, the discussions about the pictures, Claude’s knowledge, translation of the German titles? Her wanting to decorate the house, the continued reference, the ambitions? The relationship with Claude, sexual, how much real, how much imagined?
22. The developing imagination, Rapha hanging himself? Representing aspects of Claude’s imagination?
23. His visit to Jeanne, discussions, Germain’s book, the meal, his being seductive? The effect on Jeanne, her packing, leaving?
24. The ending, Germain in the institution, Claude coming to visit him, the discussion, for the stories?
25. The glimpse of the windows in the apartment block across from the institution, the Rear Window effect? The possibilities for more stories for Claude?
26. The title: in the house of Rapha, into Germain’s house, and the house of fiction?