Isabelle Huppert Gives Daring Performance in Excellent ‘White Material’

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Rating: 4.0/5.0

CHICAGO – Can dedication overcome all odds? Film has taught us for years that it is the truly justified, righteous, and committed that will prevail. Of course, life is not that simple. And the films of the masterful French director Claire Denis often brilliantly portray the true complexity of life. Her newest film, “White Material,” completes an amazing 2010 one-two punch with the excellent “35 Shots of Rum” released earlier this year. She’s one of our best international filmmakers.

The dedication I speak of belongs to Maria, perfectly played by one of our best living actresses, Isabelle Huppert. One could call Maria dedicated or merely stubborn but as “White Material” progresses it becomes clear that whatever you call her, her story is unlikely to end happily. Maria runs a coffee plantation in an unnamed African country in tumultuous times. As the film opens, she is traveling back to her plantation and remembering the recent days of unrest that have led her to this place.

White Material
Photo credit: IFC Films

The world around Maria’s home, which she shares with a practically-useless son (Nicolas Duvauchelle), has become increasingly hostile. Like many African countries, it is unstable and deadly. Early in the film, a man from a helicopter warns Maria to leave as the French soldiers that have served as the dam holding back complete chaos are leaving. She ignores him. As her workers pack up and leave, she ignores their warnings as well. Everything screams at Maria to leave but how easy would it be to simply discard everything you’ve worked your entire life to have?

In a nod to the colonialism that has become the focus of violence from the natives, the plantation wasn’t even started by Maria. It was her ex-husband Andre (Christopher Lambert), a man who refuses to “get massacred over some coffee” and her ex-father-in-law’s but Maria is there now and she’s not going anywhere. When a rebel leader known only as The Boxer (Isaach De Bankole) crosses paths with Maria it changes both of their lives forever. Meanwhile, Maria’s son takes a left turn in an incredibly unpredictable way, a clear symbol for the shifting sands everywhere around her.

In “White Material,” Huppert reminds us why she’s practically reached living legend status around the world. She’s strikingly beautiful and yet also completely believable as a woman who has spent a lot of time doing manual labor. And as the film goes to some very dark places, she answers the emotional call of Denis, Marie N’Diaye, and Lucie Borleteau’s screenplay with one of the best performances of the year. It’s one of those rare turns that you know is simply spectacular mere minutes into the film. Like a great musician, it only takes a few notes and you simply marvel as the rest unfolds.

White Material
Photo credit: IFC Films

What separates Claire Denis’ films? Despite their radically different stories, I believe if most people saw “35 Shots of Rum” and “White Material,” they would know them to be from the same filmmaker. Both films have something incredibly rare in cinema from any country — a combination of realism and beauty. There are striking images in “White Material” that display the lyricism more commonly associated with French cinema but its Denis’ characters, her way with actors, and refusal to sugarcoat reality that makes her work feel genuine.

Denis never asks us to “understand” Maria. There are no attempts at turning her into a hero. There is no overt explanation of why she refuses to recognize the increasing danger. Or maybe she does recognize it and simply doesn’t care. When rebels try to get her to pay to cross a road she’s crossed a hundred times, she responds by pointing out that she knows them. Is Maria merely waiting out the revolution, hoping that those she’s known will protect her and knowing that the landscape changes every day? Or is she hoping to be saved? Does she even know?

Denis grew up in French Colonial Africa but instead of making a political piece or one with biographical undertones, she has created an amazing drama about a world where motives and personal dynamics change every day. Can you trust your government, workers, friends, or even family in such a hostile world? “White Material” is a daring, complex, lyrical film that shouldn’t be missed.

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com