HEARTBEATS
Edited, Written & Directed by Xavier Dolan
Produced by Dolan, Daniel Morin & Carole Mondello
Released by IFC Films
French with English subtitles
Canada. 74 min. Not Rated
With Monia Chokri, Niels Schneider, Xavier Dolan & Anne Dorval
 

Xavier Dolan, the actor, meet Xavier Dolan, the director. Charmed, I’m sure. This sharp, 21-year-old Québécois kid’s first feature, I Killed My Mother (2010), was a therapy session on steroids. Dolan starred as the petulant son who consistently takes out his youthful frustrations on his equally frustrated mother and rants away in a state of narcissistic hysteria for nearly the entire thing. It was actorly, to say the least, and what’s more, Dolan put himself in every scene. Now a sophomore, he’s made a few changes.

This time around, Dolan seems to have found a muse in the beautiful Monia Chokri, who stars alongside him as one of a pair of hipster urbanite BFF’s, Marie and Francis (“Frankie,” affectionately). Their friendship is tested when Nicolas (IKMM’s Niels Schneider), a gorgeous and blissfully self-centered new boy from the sticks, shows up on the scene and ignites passion—and competition—in both of them. As magnetic as Dolan can be (he even pulls off the Morrissey pompadour), Chokri is unavoidable in this one, commanding the scenes she’s in and even getting her share of alone time. She’s an interesting casting choice as well, given that Marie is slightly older than Frankie and Nico. When the three parties lie together in any one of the wonderfully composed frames, the slight, telltale lines on her face add an unmistakable sadness and a much-needed level of complexity to an otherwise solipsistic story.

Speaking of wonderful compositions, Dolan and cinematographer Stéphanie Anne Weber Biron are fearless in their experimentation here. They employ multiple slow-motion sequences, bold and colored lighting, deliberately stylized framings, and we’re just getting started. However dramatic, this is no doubt a visual movie, an area in which I found IKMM mostly lacking. As a complete film, yes, the drama here feels indulgent nor fully explored. Perhaps this is due to a heightened concern for directorial flair, but it’s refreshing to see a highly dramatic filmmaker employ something besides a sparse visual scheme and have this much fun with the look. Then comes the music. A French-language cover of “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” and selections from Swedish electro-pop stars the Knife blend the ultra-hip sequences together (though their “Heartbeats” is ironically missing in this movie). Are these easy, poppy ways to spice up a rote story? Yes. Do you see me objecting here?

To put it plainly, Dolan is doing a lot of directing here. Think Bertolucci’s The Dreamers (2003), or even late, hyper-stylized Fassbinder, dare I say it, but the interesting thing about seeing influences, or similarities even, in such a young filmmaker is that whether they exist or not, there’s a freshness to these techniques that inspires more than a mere recognition of them. This filmmaking is exciting. Dolan will be a major star, as I said after seeing IKMM, and if he can soften his accent (French-Canadian English is notorious), get ready for a crossover. I’ve got Xavier fever. Michael Lee
February 25, 2011