My Writings
Review - Certified Copy
Abbas Kiarostami's first movie filmed entirely outside of his native
Iran, continues
his love affair with French cinema, ignited when he shared
the Palme
d'or prize in 1997 with 'Taste Of Cherry'. Kiarostami introduces what
appears to be a new friendship
between art historian James (William Shimmell) and book seller Elle
(Juliette Binoche)
and attempts to use this to encapsulate modern relationships. They meet
in Tuscany as
James makes a rather dry presentation at a book-signing of his recently
released work,
'Certified Copy'. The book lauds the skill of those who fake
original works of art since the faked product can often have a similar
intrinsic value. Kiarostami attempts to tie in this concept by allowing
the two
protaganists to embark on what seems to be a game invented by Elle -
that they are already a married couple - as they go on a date, touring
the local Tuscan villages. Kiarostami is attempting to present an
intellectual
challenge to the audience - to ask us whether the relationship is in
fact fake or not, and to make us understand that from our perspective
it isn't really
important.
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(cont) To the outsider what you see is what you get. To those in the
relationship however, its true standing is all that matters. The
pretence is clear at first as Elle actually suggests that they pretend
they are married at the start of the date, but the emphasis switches;
as
much of what is said requires mutual knowledge, and through their over
familiarity,
we come to realise that the pretence may itself be a fake, and we are
faced instead with what appears to be an attempt at reconciliation.
This is a slow and methodical study of the juxtaposition of
relationships from the point of view of those in it, and those that
perceive it. Juliette Binoche plays Elle
brilliantly as the layers of her character are stripped away, and
finally held
together by her inner core - her one 'non-fake' relationship - between
herself and her son (Adrian Moore). A French/Italian co production,
Kiarostami was able to
raise a budget of 3.8m Euros, with exclusive rights for Canal+, and the
studio felt obliged to market the film as similar to 'Before Sunrise'.
Audiences who expect a reprise of the sublime, funny and fresh Julie
Delpy/Ethan Hawke
romance are bound to be very disappointed.
With some movies you get maximum enjoyment by knowing as little as possible about the storyline beforehand, but with Certified Copy, you really need to know what you are letting yourself in for. For art-house movie fans and Juliette Binoche afficionados only.
My Rating : 4/10 Overly Exclusive
Review written by John Franklin : September 2010
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