“35 Shots of Rum” October 2009
Claire Denis’ “35 Shots of Rum” sneaks up and takes hold just as smoothly and subtly as the liquor it is named after, the warm glow it infuses lasting well after the last frame.
The rite of passage story of a father and daughter is a simple one about major life changes, and all it takes is a brief introduction to each character for them to make a lasting impression.
Laconic Metro conductor and single father, Lionel (Alex Descas) , lives with his daughter, Josephine (the lanquid, beautiful Mati Diop) in the outskirts of Paris. Josephine is old enough to become an independent woman, her attention about to be permanently shifted from Lionel to Noe, (Gregoire Colin), the appealing, young free-spirited young neighbor. Noe has become family. So has neighbor Gabrielle, a cigarette-smoking gamine of a taxi-driver (Nicole Dogue), long-smitten with Lionel.
The film draws us in by showing the feelings of father and daughter in their daily routine, so worn and burnished, it has become ritual. Josephine comes home in the dark to an empty apartment that becomes lighter and lighter as she makes herself comfortable and cooks dinner for her father in a new rice cooker she purchased on the way home. By the time Lionel arrives from work – with a new rice cooker he purchases for her – and washes away the cares of the day with a shower, they can enjoy dinner together in the bright light of the kitchen. The years of doing for each other and enjoying each other’s company is obvious. That Josephine hides her own rice cooker and admires the gift from her father tells volumes of her respect and love for him.
Lionel drives the trains that move through Paris; Gabrielle drives the taxis. They may be blue collar, but they are secure in their work and personal history. Yet, as Gabrielle merrily tells an irate passenger, she is perfectly content but has no choice about the length of the trip. As it turns out this is true for Lionel as well.
The change begins as Lionel celebrates his work pal’s retirement with 35 shots of rum, as he does every major life moment. Rene (Julieth Mars Toussaint), totally disoriented when he no longer has a job to anchor him, reminds Lionel about his own age, and how important it is that his beloved daughter not live as though he is dependent on her.
Lionel is stoic but at the same time fearful that Josephine is his own anchor. And so the dance begins, culminating in an enchanting dance scene in a social club in which all the characters intertwine with one another. It leads to the ending of a timeless tale about love and separation, natural and healthy and still heartbreaking. Even as Lionel is still young enough to win over the hearts of two women in the room, he realizes his daughter is fast on the path to a life with Noe.
Denis is able to evoke all the wondrous moments of French film in these detailed moments, with golden camerawork by Agnes Godard, such as the pair sharing a plate of eggs or a cup of coffee while quietly standing around in the tiny kitchen.
Until the father and daughter go to visit relatives in Germany as the final move to come to terms with their past in order to move on, Josephine dresses in baggy t-shirts and pants. On the trip, the transformation begins. Josephine’s slim wrist artfully appears out of a beautiful silver-grey turtleneck as only the French can do. By the last scene Josephine’s elegant white pique wedding dress that could adorn the cover of Vogue Magazine (thanks to Judy Shrewsbury’s glorious costume design) lights her up from inside. She looks more a model than a niece of major Sengalese director, Djibril Diop Mambéty
“35 Shots of Rum” is international and contemporary in nature, with an obviously African father and everyone else, including his light skin daughter, a rich array of color, all except their staid German relatives we meet at the end. Heated political discussions in Josephine’s classroom about third world politics contrast with the soundtrack of composer Tindersticks’ original compositions and the soulful “Nightshift” by the Commodores. The music seeps through the room and around the characters in the nightclub, readying everyone for Lionel’s final “25 shots of Rum” to celebrate not a death but a wedding.