The edge is sharp!

 

In his lecture "On Other Spaces" (Des espaces autres) in 967, Michel Foucault uses an interesting concept: "heterotopias of deviation" or in the literature: "heterotopias of deviation".

This concept is innovative in that it provides a framework for understanding how modern societies manage and control individuals who deviate from established norms through specific spatial arrangements. In Foucault's theoretical framework, heterotopias are real places that exist within society but function as "counter-spaces", simultaneously reflecting, questioning and reversing other places within a culture. Unlike utopias, which are idealized but non-existent spaces, heterotopias are real physical spaces that function according to their own rules and systems. Foucault argues that primitive societies had "crisis heterotopias", sacred or forbidden places reserved for individuals in crisis (adolescents, menstruating women, the elderly) according to their society. In modern society, these have largely been replaced by heterotopias of deviance, designed to accommodate individuals who deviate from established norms.

These spaces are characterized by a few key features:

They harbor individuals whose behavior deviates from the norm.

They operate under their own system of rules and power relations.

They maintain strict boundaries between inside and outside.

They often have both punitive and rehabilitative functions.

They reflect society's attitudes towards deviance and normality.

They can be institutional spaces such as psychiatric hospitals, prisons, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, correctional facilities, homeless shelters, addiction treatment centers; social spaces such as immigrant neighborhoods, ghettoized areas, living spaces of marginalized communities and even slum hotels...

Within heterotopias of deviance, power relations are particularly visible and intense. These spaces embody systems of surveillance, control and normalization that aim to change behavior and produce "docile bodies", what Foucault calls "disciplinary power".

Cuban writer Guillermo Rosales (1946-1993) is one of the most original and tragic figures of 20th century Latin American literature. Rosales struggled with schizophrenia throughout his life, fled the revolution, lived in exile and eventually committed suicide. His most important work "Boarding Home" (Spanish: "La casa de los náufragos") is considered one of the masterpieces of modern Cuban literature...

"Boarding Home", published in 1987, is Rosales' most important surviving work. The novel tells the story of a semi-autobiographical character named William Figueras and his experiences in a Miami nursing home. Figueras, like Rosales, is a fugitive from Cuba and a mentally ill writer.

An attentive reader will notice that the author has taken the "heterotopias of deviation" that Foucault once referred to as "heterotopias of deviation" as both social texture and dramatic backdrop for his novel. The novel is characterized by its use of simple and minimalist language, short and punchy sentences in the style of Hemingway, a direct and partly brutal realism, interior monologues and dream sequences.

Perhaps because of these characteristics, the novel was awarded the "Letras de Oro" prize by a jury that included Octavio Paz when it was published...

It was this damp and profound novel that inspired the first feature film by French filmmaker Joan Chemla. I realize that the introduction is long, but please allow me to give a little more background, because the phenomenon called "first film" is worth a little chit-chat!

The director in his purest form: First movie

From Nolan, the golden boy of Hollywood, to Tarantino, the rebel spirit of independent cinema... Do you know what they all have in common? Yes, you guessed it: That unsettling, exciting first movie experience, accompanied by sleepless nights and endless coffee.

Have a conversation with a director, ask them about their first movie. Their eyes will either light up or they will say with a slight sigh "oh those days...". Because the first film is the most naked, the most vulnerable, but perhaps the purest form of a director. Just like first love, clumsy but passionate, flawed but sincere...

Let's remember Nuri Bilge Ceylan; he stepped into the world of short films with "Koza", but dived into deep waters with "Kasaba". Using his own family as actors, working with minimal crew and equipment... Thinking about it now, perhaps the economic necessities of those days laid the foundations of the minimalist style we praise today.

"I have no money, but I have an idea!"... Is there any young director who hasn't said this phrase? Christopher Nolan shot his first movie "Following" on weekends. Why? Because everyone was busy during the week! The crew was more like a group of friends than a team behind the camera. But that movie became the business card of Nolan, who today shoots movies with multi-million budgets.

Everyone knows how Tarantino made "Reservoir Dogs"; he wrote the script while working in a video store and went door to door until Harvey Keitel noticed it. Now imagine Tarantino, a video store employee, waiting in the producer's office. Who knows what was going through his mind? But that restless young man is today one of the most original voices in cinema.

Do you know the most common trap young directors fall into? Trying to fit everything into one movie. As if they will never make a movie again... They try to cram all their ideas, dreams and stories into one movie! That's why first films are often either too ambitious or too personal.

Greta Gerwig's "Lady Bird", for example, is a semi-autobiographical first movie. Or how interesting was Robert Eggers' "The Witch", the guy literally reconstructed 1630s New England in his first movie! Isn't that crazy? But this madness, this courage, this naivety... That's what makes the first movies so special.

Now, of course, everything has changed. You can shoot a movie with a smartphone in your pocket. Sean Baker's "Tangerine" was shot on an iPhone, for example. But this time there is another problem: Anyone can make a movie! Digital democracy is great, but standing out from the crowd... That's the real challenge.

In short, the first movie is actually a director's manifesto. It is the manifesto of young people who sometimes shoot commercials or make wedding videos for a living, but at the same time struggle to realize that project they call "my movie". Sometimes clumsy, sometimes brilliant, but always sincere.

And maybe that's the most beautiful thing, the purity of that first step, the excitement of that first love. Just like Truffaut's "400 Blows" or Demirkubuz's "C Block"... Sometimes a first movie is not only a beginning, but also a masterpiece.

For this reason, those who have a close relationship with the history of cinema always keep an eye on the first films of new directors. Because behind those nervous, excited and passionate first steps, perhaps the great masters of tomorrow are hidden.

French director Joan Chemla's "Seeing Your Heart" (originally titled Si tu voyais son coeur) is about all the above-mentioned issues. First of all, it is the director's first feature film. Chemla has an interesting career path. After his early work in law and journalism, he wrote, produced and directed his first short film Mauvaise Route in 2008. He then directed Dr. Nazi, based on a short story by Charles Bukowski (for which he won the Canal+ award at the Clermont-Ferrand film festival) and L'homme à la cervelle d'or, based on a short story by Alphonse Daudet.

Her first feature film "If You Could See Your Heart or Being able to see your heart" (S i tu voyais son cœur), which we will analyze in detail in a moment, premiered in the Platform competition at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. Cameron Bailey, artistic director of this festival, said, "Joan Chemla is someone who will have a long career as a maker of personal films. There is an individual stamp here." He spoke highly of the French director.

Let's talk about the movie, which has surprising depths...

Joan Chemla's first feature film in the director's chair, "If You Saw His Heart" in English, is a loose adaptation of Cuban writer Guillermo Rosales' novel "Halfway House". Of course, it is possible to say that it is a brave experiment that hovers on the borders of Film Noir and romantic melodrama. In terms of acting performances, it offers a narrative that swims in the dark waters of guilt, loneliness and the desire for self-destruction, especially through the character of Daniel, brought to life by Gael García Bernal's impressive performance.

Oh, hotel rooms!

Here's a very brief synopsis: After the accidental death of his best friend, Daniel finds himself in the Metropole Hotel, a haven for vagrants and lost souls. Filled with guilt, Daniel slowly sinks into the violence that surrounds him. His encounter with Francine sheds light on his life.

And let's look at the details.

The movie begins with Daniel, ostracized from the Roman community after the death of his best friend, taking refuge in one of the worst motels in the city. Chemla has an interesting cinematography. At times its lyrical visual aesthetic is reminiscent of Kar-wai's In the Mood for Love and 2046, at others it wanders through the slums like Jarmusch's depiction of America out of Parliament Blue in Stranger Than Paradise. The French director manages to present the ghettos of Marseille as an essential element of the story, rather than a setting for the movie. From a character perspective, Daniel's story, which intersects with the fragile Francine character played by Marine Vacth, is told in a Bukowski-like atmosphere.

Much of the film takes place in this bleak location, perhaps a veritable hell on earth, contrasting with the beauty of Marseille, which is often used as a backdrop in cinema as a city bathed in sun and sea. I think the director is not trying to give the viewer a moment of tranquility, but rather to reveal the inner chaos of the character who, while agreeing to stay in a marginal refuge run by a sadistic hotelier who takes advantage of the loneliness and poverty of his guests, is confronted with the violence of the gypsy gangsters he is trying to save. On the other hand, the title hides a very dark reality, so much so that viewers who are not used to this kind of darkness may find it difficult to follow the journey of a character who from the very beginning wants to hurt himself and suffer as much as possible. Even worse, the viewer will certainly find it difficult to understand the reasons for such inconsistent behavior of a character who expresses himself (very) little.

The character of Francine is perhaps the only Francine character in the movie that is faithful to the novel, and perhaps the only character in the movie that is left faithful to the novel. 

While watching the movie, Necip Fazıl's famous poem "Hotel Rooms" came to my mind.

"Your aches and pains pulse on the bare wall,

Nail wounds, nail wounds.

**

Weep, the unfamiliar, the voiceless, the dying,

In hotel rooms, in hotel rooms!..."

One of the most important features of the film is the way director Chemla twists chronology and uses a jumpy time flow. Obviously, from the very opening sequence of the movie, he consciously prefers a fragmented narrative that makes it difficult for the viewer to navigate. However, this stylistic preference sometimes reaches to the extent of undermining the overall depth of the movie. Despite its success in creating a visual feast and atmosphere, the movie falls short in terms of character development and emotional connection.

Obviously, the lead actor deserves a little more praise. Bernal's performance stands out as one of the strongest aspects of the movie. The actor, who can tell a story even with his eyes, manages to add depth to the character he draws with a minimal approach. The line "If you saw his heart", which is the title of the movie, gains meaning with Bernal's performance.

Let's take the musical palette. Composer Gabriel Yared's score for the first film (it's unclear how much he grasped the spirit of the work) is nothing more than a mediocre melody. The real jewel of the movie, however, is the eerie performance of Karim Leklou as the hotelier who wanders the gloomy corridors of the hotel, dancing in the shadows of violence and without a shred of sympathy. The dark atmosphere created by this terrifying character gets into the bones of the viewer. Leklou's presence breathes a bit of life into the slow-moving and dark script, while offering a multi-layered perspective beyond the limited perspective of the main character who flounders in his mental turmoil.

Risky chronology courage!

As we mentioned before, the movie has a non-linear chronology, which makes it a matter of time before the audience loses its attention and is suddenly thrown out of the story. Because Chemra gives no clues other than tiny visual details to help the audience as she jumps back and forth in time. A scar, some duct tape, etc...

The protagonists are clearly inspired by Rosales' novel. However, the caricature-like characterizations of the side characters sometimes undermine the impact of the movie. For instance, the character of Francine deserves more depth. This typology, which is very close to the characters in Demirkubuz's Innocence, somehow seems like an afterthought in the story. Likewise, Daniel's emotional awakening, which symbolically marks his coming out of his depression... It looks like a dramatic patch in the movie!

If we had analyzed the film in depth, it would have opened up much richer valleys. The film tries to touch the psychological depths of its marginalized characters by referencing classics such as One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and The Shining. And although the references made due to such formal concerns in the movie are not always successful, it is still possible to see it as a brave effort!

Yes, maybe not a masterpiece, but for all its flaws, "If you saw his heart" is much more than a first movie. It is bold, striking and has a story that you carry with you even after the movie is over. Maybe it doesn't draw the concepts of guilt and redemption enough, but it is a dark world of lost souls... And a warning, if you are prone to depressive moods, it would be in your best interest to stay away from this movie!