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First, the Recap:
Covetousness and desire. We can allow ourselves to be ruled by baser instincts when it comes to feeling challenged by another who pursues something we long for. Even the closest of friends can be driven apart when one element gets introduced that puts them at odds thanks to mutually shared want and perceived need. Then, it becomes a question of whether its allowed to destroy everything we hold dear, or actually set us free from chains we didn’t even realize were holding us. Heralding from a common upbringing, Diego (Hugo Diego Garcia) and Abel’s (Thibault Servière) brotherhood is undeniable, even if a study in opposite demeanors. But, when a circumstance brings them both into connection with a beautiful, enigmatic woman named Christine (Marlène Rabinel), desperate envy and the hardest test of friendship comes about.
Next, my Mind:
From beginning to end, this 24-minute indie short film effort from writer/director Yann Perrin and producer Benjamin Setrouk is deeply infused with a vigorously raw, fervent, simmering, candid potency that lingers with you well after the end credits roll through, delivering an impactful narrative about the irrevocable forcefulness and influence jealousy can have on even the strongest of bonds. Yet even in the midst of the slowly burning and building tempest depicted, there’s also the innocence of infatuation and the unexpected choices people make that go so much against what the world dictates as “the standard”, the “norm” we expect in certain circumstances.
It’s a definitively moody atmosphere created here as we watch the narrative unfold involving two closely attached brothers who live decidedly different ways yet still maintain an overall kinship that supercedes their individual personalities and what they’re behavioral decisions are predicated on. Yet, their harmony suddenly gets abruptly interrupted when a woman they meet at a party suddenly initiates a road trip for her benefit that sees the two men at odds for her, even as she really seems to gravitate towards them both for varied yet prototypical reasons. However, the ultimate direction this attention elicits becomes much more surprising and leads to a rather emotionally jarring finale that leaves us with both a fulfilled sense of absolute revelation for the character’s paths and satisfaction for us as the audience.
What struck me then was that despite the finality of it all, it felt like there could still be a whole realm of actual possibilities the ending indicates, and there is therefore a small notion of non-closure we might experience, but again, not quite enough for appeasement to be abandoned. It was quite clever to intermix the concept of innocent attraction into the stormy seas the story sails on as well, and as I hinted at above, it adds that humanity to the tale that resonates with a relatability that in some form we can all acknowledge and/or admit to in our own lives. To see someone else gain that which we want is a force not easily dealt with, and how it gets presented here is potent and persuasive, while being a necessary foil to advance the events as they unfold and spiral towards their heated conclusion.
Additionally, the fact that all the characters are flawed, having hurts from the past they are trying to put behind them, only makes their interactions and the subsequent reactions they experience as their journey expands that much more believable and grounded. In many ways, they’re prisoners to their own faults, yet in some ways, they’re all set free from what holds them. Whether this is for good or ill, however, is what makes it come together so well here. As with another recent effort I reviewed, “Tony“, the film wonderfully utilizes the camera to effectively and smoothly buoy the ambiance and characters to affecting degrees while an 80’/90’s- influenced club music soundtrack grabs you as well and aids in immersing us into the heart of all we witness.
Garcia diverges from the character he played in “Tony” and emerges as a more deeply roguish gent in his role as Diego, a cavalier playboy who’s highly self-assured attitudes and charismatic charm makes him the ladies man and hard partier, even through we can tell those pursuits solely represent pleasure over meaningful entertainment or connections. His ways seem to win Christine over from the start, but the more he reveals about his own pettiness and volatility, it could spell disaster, especially given that his object of affection is much deeper in heart and feeling than he might care to realize or actually desire in any way beyond pure lust. Garcia is spot on with the character, giving a vividly explosive performance filled with the precise levels of resolute intensity needed.
On the opposite end of the spectrum (not in a BAD way, mind you) we find the more understated yet no less impassioned performance from Servière as Abel, the much more quiet and reserved one of the two men, and someone we can tell has at least a modicum of envy towards Diego’s more up front, outgoing, careless manner. Yet, Abel still chooses to keep himself reined in, and in doing so, becomes at first an object of curiosity for Christine who toys with him but then begins to potentially find a more meaningful draw to. Watching it unfold as it does lends the story much of its ultimate heart and soul from a character perspective, and Servière embodies the character’s subtleties and virtually impeccable nature with beautifully orchestrated intent and execution.
Finally, we have the conclusively lovely Rabinel as the real core of the film’s foundational thematic component via her role as Christine, a slinky, undeniably sexy woman the brothers meet at a party and become involved with when a need arises for her to be at a certain destination and they choose to get her there. She spends equal amounts of time getting to know each of them, showing at first a totally free-spirited mindset and fascination with each of them. Yet, as she learns more about one in particular, it shows a more mature sense of what she actually wants and gravitates towards. How this will all pan out is what then remains to be seen, and throughout the film, Rabinel is an overtly mesmerizing and captivating presence who makes the part her own to the fullest extent with appealing magnetism.
So, in total, “Imago” becomes a blunt force illustration of cool innocence vs. raging ego, time-tested loyalty vs. perceived betrayal, lust vs. love, and the overall human condition within the context of what is expected vs. being willing to go with your heart. There are certainly many of these life lessons to be taken from the film, and I always find that to be one of the best, most important, and honestly most creative facets found within indie cinema. Its ability to entertain while also making you think is paramount, and this film stands firm on those roots.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
