Man at Bath (2010)
Starring: François Sagat, Omar Ben Sellem, Chiara Mastroianni
Plot: Emmanuel, a gay hustler living outside of Paris with
his lover Omar. After a quarrel between the two, Emmanuel is left brokenhearted
to fend for himself as Omar makes his way to Manhattan. The film separately
follows the two men, as their lives diverge.
Discovering how their heartbreak gives way to fresh outlooks and
exciting new sexual encounters.
My Review and Thoughts:
First off this is directed and written by truly a visionary
talent that I absolutely love behind the camera and also his writing talent. He
is able to capture his actors and also create a feel that leaves lasting
impressions upon the viewer. He is it stunning in creating and building up his
characters and also the scenarios those characters are going through.
Christophe Honore is a brilliant talented young fresh original and brilliant
director, He has directed so many very stunning films such as 2006's Dan's
Paris and 2007's Love Songs and 2009's Making Plans for Lena, just to name a
few.
Just about every picture I see that he creates ends up
leaving a lasting mark on my love affair of cinema. I was finally given the
opportunity to watch this film titled, Man at Bath which was a 2010 film.
What's interesting to note about this movie is this stars gay porn actor
Francois Sagat. This would be his second main stream performance in a feature
film. Now many diehard gay porn lovers will know him throughout many of his
pornographic films probably most notably in the many Titan Media Porn Studio
film. His first main stream film was in the 2010 violent and controversy L.A.
Zombie. Now he did appear in another mainstream movie but really didn't act, he
was just billed as the male addict in 2009's Saw VI. He is a very muscular,
beautiful, sexy handsome looking man and he is very gifted and versatile in the
sexual department and also acting. Very lustful, very eye candy-ish. Very manly
man in the overall persona, specifically in the gay porn world. He is of French
nationality. Most recently a model. Many will know him as a pornographic God to
the fans of his appearances and abilities. Ultimately it was a treat to see him
acting in this movie.
Your main character Emmanuel is a gay hustler who lives with
his lover Omar. Both live in Paris. They fight and Emmanuel is heartbroken and
has to basically strive for himself and on his own. Now Omar heads to Manhattan
and the movie follows both men as they discover a new life and accepts on their
challenges of breaking up and coming to terms with their current life settings.
They have to ultimately find themselves again and both are having to struggle
and find their ultimate stable in life.
This is a wonderful drama picture that leaves an
understanding with the viewer, because I think we can all relate to it
throughout a person's relationship. There are struggles and there are actions
and moments that every relationship goes through. Relationships do break up and
your life, which basically was the relationship is no more. Everything you use
to know, is gone and so you have a new outlook. You have a new struggle. You
have a new reality that you have to face.
What I love about this film is it feels real. It is
relatable and basically the viewer can sense that this is everyday life. This
is every day struggle. The emotions and the overall reality through the
performances and dialogue is something that everyone can relate to. It has a
non-fantasy reality. So many love stories or relationship stories or break up
and finding oneself stories are always filled with so much happy-go-lucky
fantasy and that is one thing that Cinema has a downfall with. Specifically
Hollywood's downfall is so many of their movies are such cock and bull, whereas
this one is real. It feels real. It's acted real. It's directed real and it
comes together real.
To me this is possibly one of the most significant Gay films
in modern times. I think it's one of those gay films that stand out that create
a stunning reality and a relatable social commentary and overall important
environment and statement through these characters. Two lovers passionately
involved know that they are on the outskirts, know that the relationship, the
bond is slowly fading. The passion for each other is something there, but also
pulling them apart and once they are apart, they realize the overall reality
that what they have known. What they have loved. What they have created is now
something that has to be developed all over again. The separation and the
longing of completion or a fixed setting plays on that emotional reality.
This film is a foreign realistic and experimental film. For
some reason foreign films can capture real life. They are able to create
relationships or characters throughout their movies and their scripted reality
plays out like life. In America we seem to not be able to create films like the
foreign film market is able to. They can express situations, sexuality in a
positive way, in a lustful way. Here in America sexuality of a gay nature is
still a taboo but in foreign film, especially French filming, gay sexuality is
a non-taboo. Foreign film lets the viewer experience what it's like being alive
as a gay person or in a predicament as a gay person that seems real and not to
Hollywood glamorized or covered up.
This is an art-house style film. Wonderful performances,
wonderful realistic filming. A great character study. A great reality on
relationships and gay life. On struggling to find oneself and to be, something
or to find oneself in what they think they are supposed to do or be.
Omar Ben Sellem plays his part extraordinarily believable
and does a fantastic job at creating the character of Omar on-screen. He is
able to hold the viewers’ attention right along with the lustful and beautiful
reality of two passionate people. He is also able to express the ultimate
struggle of two passionate people in a relationship that is faulting.
You see sadly people in the cinema movie world, or those who
call themselves cinema lovers don't understand that there are different
categories of cinema making. It's not all about car chases, guns, mass murder
and destruction or bigwig acting or big-budget 200 million Dollar adventures.
No you see there is a category of filmmaking called French New Wave. Now this
particular term ended up becoming a mainstream reality in the 50's and 60's but
it still exist today. That is exactly what Man at Bath is. It is a Nouvelle
Vague. This style of filmmaking was a filmmaking reality or is a filmmaking
reality, where they would adventure outside, what basically was being filmed or
the popularity reality and what they added was more of an experimental type of
setting, where it dealt with social issues and personal locations, real stuff.
These filmmakers would use portable equipment and very little if any sets to
film on. To simply put the reality of the filming techniques basically had
fragmented moments, discontinuously editing, and very long filmed takes of one
setting of acting. It basically created a narrative or the film ended,
basically with no massive conclusion or Hollywood explanation.
This style of filmmaking basically created characters that
showcased thinking, or dealing with the idea of the human subject. The
character would have disorientation or confusion in the idea of a meaningless
world. As in this film everything they have known is falling apart and is no
more. The characters in the New Wave world expressed realities through irony or
sarcasm or stressing out. In the New Wave movement of film it had the actor,
stressing someway in their current human existence; which Omar and Emmanuel are
going through.
Christophe Honore owns this type of filmmaking. Man at Bath
is basically a wonderful modern day French cinema New Wave creation. Mad at
Bath is a beautiful film with stunningly sexy actors and a realistic
reality-based concept. A wonderful written script, wonderfully acted and
amazingly directed. I enjoy this style of filmmaking. I love the movement of
this filmmaking. I think Christophe is truly an extraordinary film director
that created a memorable piece of film that one has to experience in the
reality of this style of filmmaking; to understand it, is to grasp its beauty.
Info: