Alice oder Die Bescheidenheit

Alliance Française French Film Festival Alice is a philosopher who is invited to work for the Mayor of Lyon. Paul, the Mayor has reached the time in his life where he is suffering from a lack of new ideas, both political and of any other kind. Alice, unknowingly to herself is also having a crisis of self belief. Can these two very different people complete each other? What are the defining characteristics of a real friendship?

ALICE AND THE MAYOR is a slice of life gentle sort of film that touches lightly upon serious problems. There are no higher stakes and dramatic turns. But it's a timely reminder that those are often not needed to have a turmoil in one's soul.

The main focus of the film is in dialogue. It is swift, precise, somewhat intellectual but never snobbish. There are many characters, some are memorable even though they fleetingly enter and leave the scene. Fabrice Luchini, as the mayor, is warm, with not being overly friendly, and stern in a way that comes out as gentle. It's a complex character with only the tip of the iceberg being shown, but somehow we can feel the rest of it hidden away. A wonderful performance indeed.

This is not a film for everyone. It's very smooth and devoid of any sharp angles. If politics is a cutthroat business this is not how it's presented here. For most of the viewers the characters will seem to come from a parallel world. Even being very likeable, they are extremely detached from reality and this is the movie's weakest point.