The first feature film of a (very) 19-year-old prodigy, Paper Flags narrates the return of Vincent, a young delinquent, after 12 years of detention. He finds his little sister who barely knows him, but who immediately welcomes him home without reluctance. But their life together does not go smoothly: Vincent must find a job and re-enter into a society that he barely knows.
The main character suffers from post-traumatic stress similar to that of a soldier returning from a war. The slightest noise attacks him, a misplaced word makes him enraged. But what trauma does he survive? Prison or a previous family problem? His sister seems to have taken refuge in a bubble too. The mother is absent. She sees the father only constrained and forced.
The film explores the limits of affection and family solidarity, the discomfort that invariably provokes a marginalized person, in all its fragility and violence, but also questions the responsibility of the prison world.
This young man locked up at the dawn of adulthood did not receive any directions for his return to civilian life. Vincent finds himself very helpless when he has to express himself, find a job, tell his past.
From the outset, we notice that Nathan Ambrosioni has the sense of montage (assumed by his own care).
Playing pictures as a card game, he knows how to appropriate the colors, the light, and caress the rough faces with delicacy. It’s obvious that cinema has been its playground for a very long time. But his great strength lies in the mastery of his scenario pulled to the line, which excels in the balance of being nervous enough not to be boring.
Not very talkative, he explains nothing but expresses a plethora of nuances and emotions. Ambrosioni, already winner of several awards, takes his hat to his actors (Guillaume Gouix and Noémie Merlant, both great), to his masters Xavier Dolan, Audiard and Dardenne, while asserting a very personal artistic leg.
Not to be missed at SFFilm Festival! Discover the Francophone films selection here.
Saturday, April 20th at 9:15pm – Roxie Theater
Sunday, April 21th at 7pm – Creativity Theater
Merci Isabella Demeulenaere
