Little White Lies

Guiallme Canet previously directed the excellent Tell No One so I went along to Little White Lies with high hopes of some excellent French cinema. And it certainly is very French.

A group of friends go to the coast to spend the holidays at their rich friends villa. Much wining, dining and philosophising ensues. If anything a bit too much ensues. About an hour too much.

I quite enjoyed the film, at least in part because I enjoy French cinema style but the main characters all need a slap so by the end I felt a bit weary and the trite end undercut the main point of the film leaving it feeling hollow.

Senna

A documentary about the racing life of formula 1 driver Ayrton Senna, his struggle in the corrupt F1 environment and competition with World Champion Alain Prost.

This film is remarkable for being composed only of existing footage be it race coverage, TV interviews or amateur camcorder clips. The result is a documentary that has a strong narrative and the feel of a dramatic production. Where a regular doc would cut to "talking head" shots, removing all tension, here the action is built up with audio clips adding any extra information the picture isn't adding. It's compelling viewing and I'd bet the human drama would occupy people otherwise uninterested in motorsport. So compelling is it a friend of mine has been converted to formula 1.

This is likely to change the way biocumentaries are approached in future and thoroughly entertaining. Knowing in advance how the story played out removes none of it's drama.