UNE HISTOIRE DE FOU/ DON'T TELL ME THE BOY IS MAD

Friends, 2015, 134 minutes, Colour.
Ariane Ascaride, Syrus ShahidI Gregoire Leprince- Ringuet, Simon Abkarian.
Directed by Robert Guediguian.

This film has two titles with quite different emphases. The French title is very straightforward, highlighting history, highlighting madness, the madness of political violence and its consequences. On the other hand, the English title is a quotation from a popular song which is referred to during the film. While the lyric does have some reference to the young terrorist at the centre of the film, it is not as powerful a title as the History of Madness.
This is a film by Robert Guediguian, one of the celebrated French directors of the last decades of the 20th century and into the 21st century, a very strong history of dramas, capitalising on the atmosphere of his Marseille, the characters who live there, especially those of Armenian descent as he is. His Snows of Kilimanjaro is particularly recommended. He always works with his wife Ariane Ascaride in his films. In his film about Armenians fighting for the French in World War II, Army of Crime, the lead is Simon Abkarian who is also the father in this film.

The opening highlights the attitude of Armenians towards the genocide by the Turks in 1915, subject of a number of films including the Taviani Brothers’ The Lark Farm. A historic sequence serves as a prologue, a young Armenian mingles with a crowd, a Turkish official speaking.The man draws a gun and shoots him. He is overpowered, arrested, and tried in the courts and found guilty. However, he becomes a hero-figure, an ideals icon, a visual icon of the struggle of Armenians against the Turks and the continued resentments.

The main action takes place in the 1980s. There is a group of young people in the city of Marseille, inspired by the ideology of the assassin, planning attacks on Turks, including an assassination attempt on the ambassador on a visit to Marseilles. The young man at the centre of the film, Aram, is caught up in the feelings, despite the stern attitude of his father who is in favour of peace, running a supply store in the city, the man well respected by his clients, father of the family, with a devoted wife. However, he is a strong traditionalist, keeping order in his household.

The key scene of the film is the assassination attempt on the Turkish ambassador with Aram present and ready to pull the trigger. The dramatic complication is that as has to fire, a young French student cycles past and his court in the line of fire, severely injured. Aram’s parents are shocked by the news headlines, and their son flees to Lebanon where he joins a terrorist training group, led by a martial leader, who is particularly egocentric and fanatical, exercising his power and ideology over the group – though some rebel and even Aram decides to leave.

This part of the film focuses on anger, memory, resentment, vengeance.

Then the film shifts in tone, the mother deciding to go secretly to the hospital to visit the young Frenchman who has been injured, who is undergoing physiotherapy, has his own deep resentments and cannot relate well to his girlfriend or her family.

As he recovers, the Frenchman decides to go to Marseilles and visit the mother, where, after some hesitation, he is brought into the family, living with the family, working with the father in the store, meeting the clients, gradually working through his hatreds and moving towards some kind of hope and rehabilitation.

The mother and the Frenchman decide that they need to go to Beirut to meet with Aram. They do and there is some kind of apology, forgiveness, reconciliation.

The film does not end easily, more violence ensues. However, this is a strong film about wars, genocides, harsh memories, decades old resentments, outbursts of violence and acts of terrorism, but by the end, it is quite a noble film, with the best aspirations of forgiveness, reconciliation and hope.

Well worth seeing.

1. A strong French film about Armenian migrants in France, the history of Armenia in the early 20th century, the genocide and its consequences? Feeling against Turkey? Acts of terrorism and assassinations? The 1980s, use of terrorist acts, revenge?

2. The director, French, his Armenian heritage? His continued interest in Armenian themes? The focus on Marseille, life in the city, the Armenian population?

3. The city of Marseille, the city itself, homes, shops, the streets? The contrast with Beirut? War, occupation, slums, the apartments, destruction? Lebanon and the training camps for the Armenians? The musical score?

4. The title, the history of madness? The English title, the songs, the lyrics? The Armenian memory, vengeance, the film indicating much of the futility of this kind of vengeance? The importance of forgiveness, reconciliation and hope? Positive building?

5. The prologue, the background of the genocide, the crowds, the focus on the assassin, the Turkish authority, his being killed? The arrest, the court case, the condemnation of the assassin? The images, his becoming an icon, a hero? Later commemorations of his assassin attack?

6. The 1980s, Marseille, the focus on the family, the father, a serious man, touch of the patriarch, the importance of his shop, the goods? His being stern, his interactions with his customers? The range of Armenian French customers? The mother, love for her children, supportive of her husband? The traditions of the house? The memories? The effect on the family?

7. Aram, his role as son and the family, his age? The background, memories of the genocide, the people influencing him in Marseille, and involvement in the protests, his leaving, the assassination attempt, the Frenchman on his bike, Aram and his hesitation, motives, continuing with the assassination of the Turkish official? His escape, going to Beirut? His involvement with the group, the demands of the leader, the details of the training? The leader, his exercise of power, becoming more fanatical, his demands on the men, the effect on them, the effect on ram, and issues of loyalty, ideology? In action, the individuals rebelling against the leader, the old veteran? Aram and his decision to leave?

8. The newspaper headlines, the effect, the response of the parents to the assassination, tensions?

9. Gilles, ordinary Frenchman, his background, studies, relationship, his girlfriend’s family, his own family? The injuries, the visit of the girlfriend, his sense of distance? In hospital, the physiotherapy, his growing resentments?

10. Aram’s mother, her decision to visit the hospital, her motivation, seeing Gilles and his negative reaction, the effect? Her husband’s puzzle, telling him what happened?

11. Gilles, on the road to recovery, his coming to Marseilles, meeting the mother, the father, the children, the response? His being welcomed? His decision to stay, his room and the difficulties in getting up the stairs, the meals, but becoming part of the life of the family, with each of the members, with the clients in the store, and experience of reparation, his becoming a new son to the couple?

12. His girlfriend, her family, their puzzle, her visit and his reaction?

13. The mother, wanting to go to Lebanon, Gilles wanting to go to Lebanon, both having a need to see Aram? The phone calls, the friends in Marseille, the links, the terrorist group, contacting Aram? The flight, arrival, the quarters of the city, the destruction? Aram and the setup, trying to avoid the fanatic leader? The meeting, the upper room, the apology and its effect?

14. The leader, the ambush of Aram, the attack, the shooting, his mother and her grief?

15. Returning to Marseilles, the father and his sadness and dignity, the mother and her grief?

16. A film highlighting the intensity of patriotism, historic resentments, the need for revenge, idealising heroes, assassinations, by-products of violence? The issues in the thrust of the film to forgiveness, reconciliation, hope?