David O'Connell
First Snow @ the Sydney French Film Festival
February 21st 2010 11:17
by Cibbuano
First Snow is Lucien Jean-Baptiste's first feature film, made as a tribute to his mother - or at least, something about his mother. As a young child, his family immigrated from Martinique to France; though they were estranged from French society, the young Lucien wanted what the other white children wanted. This included ski vacations in the Alps, promised by his mother, even though the community at large laughed at their suggestion.
The director plays Jean-Gabriel, a no-good, useless layabout that avoids finding work by spending money on the horses - meanwhile, his three kids are raised by their mother, who cooks, cleans and works full-time to support the family.
Jean-Gabriel is well-meaning, of course, and promises to take his kids skiing, despite the lack of money, accommodation or ski equipment. The film that ensues is, predictably, a story of a black family on a ski hill, dressed in unwanted ski suits, falling and making a spectacle on the mountain.
First Snow breaks the mold, though, as it aspires to chisel dimensions on the characters. We see the reluctance of the oldest son, a moody teenager, to embarrass himself skiing in front of the comely young girls - on the other side, we see the cheerful innocence of the younger children. They are too young to understand that they fit at the bottom of the social ladder, but they're mercifully free of self-defeatism based on their skin colour.
At times, the film is so perceptive - especially as we see the father wrestle with his own desires to please his family, but without an idea how to do so - that all comedy has fled the scene, and I am touched on the verge of heart palpitations. First Snow forces us to recognize that adults are often childish, children have adoration for their parents, but eventually, come to see them as everyone else sees them. A difficult, remarkable film that is likely to be discarded due to the inevitable slapstick - but one that is wonderfully incisive in its approach.
I say: A strong debut film from Lucien Jean-Baptiste, seemingly predictable but blossoming into some unforgettable.
See it for: It's always easy to laugh at a surly grandmother skiing down a mountain out of control.
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Comment by Matt Shea
Haha Cib. Great write-up. This sounds like really good stuff - will be looking to check it out when it makes it this way.
Comment by Paul Martin