Entering into the unique space of St. They talk in the casual uninteresting way two technicians who are about to do the simple task of work would chat, mostly, it seems, about good coffee. And as they head out of the recording room to find that caffeinated stimulus, a young blond actress Nina Hoss enters.
The scene is a well structured setup, especially those magnetic first few moments of her quietly reciting her lines in a seemingly solitary moment. I was, on entering, unaware and unknowing about the philosopher and writer, Didier Eribon, and never heard of his book, Returning to Reims that this play revolves around. Images from the film are projected on the back wall, and we watch with utter amazement as we see the process of image, idea, and the spoken word melting into one another before our eyes.
The intensely personal exploration of detachment and estrangement is completely palpable, real, and very relatable, especially for this gay man. Within his beautifully poetic language, Ebiron then adds the shameful layer of self-reinvention into the separating world of Parisian intellectualism and artistic elitism that conflicts and solidifies a wall between him and his poor working class parents.
The act of confession and his attempt for reattachment is monumental and profound to many of us in the audience who also find themselves disconnected in the same manner, whether it be sexuality, intellectualism, or class, from their small town roots.
Ebiron and the documentary vibrantly shines a strong and harsh light on the physical and emotional cost of the poor being worked into the ground, and the scars left by and on the children that leave for the big and more exciting worlds of Paris, New York, or what ever other city allows escape.
