Orizzonti review - THE CHILDHOOD OF A LEADER by Brady Corbet

An ambitious work that will most likely be snubbed by those too loyal to the sources it pays tribute to (or too careless to care about said sources). BRADY CORBET's film THE CHILDHOOD OF A LEADER had its world premiere in the ORIZZONTI section of the 72ND VENICE FILM FESTIVAL.

THE CHILDHOOD OF A LEADER, hints at an adaptation of a short story by SARTRE, but the adaptation is only loose and the film's largescale vision is far more ambitious. It feels, in fact, like just one of the many references and tributes that can literally be found in all of the many aspects of the film, and that will either frustrate and alienate or absolutely be endorsed by each individual viewer, but will more than likely sit best with the true cinephile, the one who is just as excited by BRESSON, EISENSTEIN, ABEL GANCE, LUCHINO VISCONTI etc. as BRADY CORBET obviously is. 

The story, from a screenplay written by BRADY CORBET and his wife MONA FASTVOLD, and CORBET here is also in his feature directorial debut. It is meant to serve as an allegory for the rise of the Fascist ideals of Europe between the two world wars, and takes place around the Great War at the start of the twentieth century. Here, chronicled by a structure split up into chapters, CORBET examines the life of the child of the advisor to the US president WOODROW WILSON in France.

The historical context in which the film takes place is obviously well informed, and remains an enriching marginal elements to the film rather than a simple after thought. Nevertheless, what is key in the film is the theme of parenthood, with LIAM CUNNINGHAM in the role of the father and BERENICE BEJO in the role of the mother representing the parental counterparts of that generation, therefore a counterpart that is almost hard to comprehend by today's standard but is similar to the illustration of other outdated concepts, such as that of the "gentleman" of the 18th century which was so wonderfully portrayed by KUBRICK in BARRY LYNDON - itself criticised at the time for being much too much. 

With BARRY LYNDON, the film also shares the fundamentally sombre development of the story, its enhancement of silent tension but most importantly the baroque under-lit photography, with plenty of yellows, greys, black and lights directed by candles and oil lamps. This is only part of the wild and punk rocking cinematography which LOL CROWLEY provides the film, along with meticulous tracking shots and moments where the camera is trown into the air with loose gestures to show the chaos of a maddedning crowd towards the end. 

Hypnotic eye candy that is enhanced even more by spectacular montage sequences for which editor DAVID JANCSO can be praised and in which CORBET also makes full use of a mastodontic and powerful soundtrack by SCOTT WALKER, which is particularly to die for in its orgasmic introduction, composed of archive footage, which directly incluences the majestic orchestration of silent cinema and provides a chilling historical contextualization to the film's narrative bulk. 

The vast majority of the film, however, is a chamber piece and rarely leaves the French countryside house in which the pivotal family resides. As such, a lot of the impact of the film fundamentally depends on the performances by the excellent European cast, that delivers solid turns. THE CHILDHOOD OF A LEADER also includes a cameo by ROBERT PATTINSON, who only appears for little under fifteen minutes of the film overall, but does so with great credibility. Nevertheless, it is also TOM SWEET, the British child actor, who has great charisma and recalls the rebel angelic kid who steals the show. His performance is tastefully underplayed, and his diligence clearly conceals a sinister mystery, almost as if there were some hidden motive between his every action. 

It may seem strange to some that such a huge philosophical and political theme as the rise of fascist idealisms be narrowed down by something so simple and simultanously shot so masterfully and shamelessly without restraint, a show of bravery that cinema more often than not disappoints with. But it is rather predictable that the film should be supported by confused thoughts by those who will snub it. As a whole, the vision is cohesive, the rhythm is consistent and hypnotic and the heavy handed post modernism equally passionate and exciting. 

Perhaps it is the pinnacle of the latest embodiment of post-modernism in cinema - cinephile pornography. But because its influences are not restricted to its own medium, and because its ingeniousness will most likely inspire many to look up its sources, we can already safely call THE CHILDHOOD OF A LEADER a monolithic misunderstood artefice of today's filmscape.