Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque)

Gainsbourg, the directorial debut of director Joann Sfar, chronicles the life and times of French singer-songwriter Lucien Ginsburg – more famously known as Serge Gainsbourg – from precocious, artistic Jewish prodigy hiding from German soldiers in the French countryside to the battled, senescent and increasingly bizarre man he had become before his death from a heart attack in 1991 and all the while watched over by his imaginary “guardian angel” La Gueule – a physical representation of the decadent side of Gainsbourg’s psyche.  A concept which works to a point but is wholly unnecessary in the greater context of the film.

Comparisons have been made to this year’s Ian Dury biopic Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll in that both films chronicle the entire life of a flawed yet highly talented genius from childhood to death.  Like Dury, Gainsbourg  jeopardised his fame by tackling off-limit subjects in his lyrics but at the same time cementing his place in counterculture and, like Sex & Drugs director Mat Whitecross, Joann Sfar has been keen to include these (his 1975 Nazism concept album, his reggae-erotica retelling of La Marseillaise although sadly not his ridiculous duet with daughter Charlotte on Lemon Incest) to give shape to the life story of this imperfect swashbuckler.  Where the films differ, however, is in the ease with which a novice may pick up on the events unfolding.  Gainsbourg almost demands that you know him and his work well, which is fine if you’re French but not so easy (albeit shamefully) if you’re British where he’s known almost exclusively as “that pervert who did that dirty song with all that heavy breathing”.

It’s this fact that could make watching Gainsbourg a trying experience for some as, with so much to cram into the film’s two hour running time, there is little time left to tie the events together and explain to the uninitiated who some of the characters are.  It’s almost impossible to mistake Brigitte Bardot (played with racy vigour by Laetitia Casta) but only Brits with an active interest in Serge Gainsbourg may know the history behind his Eurovision song with France Gall, for instance – too many chapters of his life are covered at speed.  With this in mind, it would do you well to at least read his entry on Wikipedia before entering the cinema.

However, there is still plenty to recommend Gainsbourg: from the set piece performances of his best known work (including an outrageously sexy ‘Cartoon Strip’ with a half-naked Casta and a chuckle-worthy first play of Je t’aime…moi non plus to his comically outraged manager) to excellent central performances from tragic Lucy Gordon (as Jane Birkin) and Eric Elmosnino as Gainsbourg himself.  There is little doubt though that the overall film would have benefitted from concentrating on a lesser timeframe than an entire vie héroïque. Since the film’s interest seems to peak with Je t’aime and then fall steadily afterwards, mirroring his career somewhat, perhaps that would have been a more logical point to end?