NYFF Diaries: A Class-y Opening

The 46th New York Film Festival opened tonight in what could only be described as a Class Act. The red carpet was rolled out and while the celebrities weren’t numerous (John Waters walked right by me—I, too stunned, said nothing). It probably had something to do with the case of the film—Laurent Cantet’s The Class. The carpet was populated by Cantet, his producers, and ten of the film’s young stars.

After a brief introduction by Film Society director Mara Manus, which could be summed up by a simple thanks to our sponsors, NYFF director and Columbia Prof. Richard Pena introduced The Class. He spoke an important idea of cinema: While some films take us to far away places, simple places like factories and schools can provide as much insight, in a truly psychological experience.

Finally, Cantet came out and introduced his producers and cast, and told us to enjoy the film. While Cantet made a huge splash at Cannes, he was obviusly overwhelmed by the NYFF experience. In poor English, he thanked us for being here for him and his work. The Film Society played his debut film in 2000 at the New Directors/New Films Festival, and this is his third appearance at NYFF. He was obviously excited to be seen as a headliner.

But to the film…

The Class is a deceptively simple film, yet I didn’t figure this out until one of the final scenes. When the kids of the middle school leave for summer vacation, one of the kids approaches teacher/protagonist Francois Marin and remarks to him how she learned nothing. And then I tried to think, what did we learn during this film? In one sense, nothing. Yet in another, everything.

If The Class had to be summarized, it is a portrait of French society through the lens of the classroom. It’s beautifully shot in a photorealistic documentary like fashion by Cantent, and is funny, intriguing, and powerful. The film takes place in an inner-city high school, where Francois Marin teaches a challenging group of 8th graders. Marin is played by Francois Bégaudeau, who is pitch perfect. Why? Bégaudeau wrote the autobiography that Cantent based the film on. The kids of the film aren’t actors either—which only adds to the realism of the film.

While the film doesn’t have a central plot, the classroom scenes are filled with interesting conversations. From the inner workings of French grammar, to racial tensions, to the abuse of authority, Cantent offers questions to his audience. He always makes us double take, like in a scene where a girl we have written off tells us she has read Plato’s Republic. Her explanation might not suffice to make us believe that she understands it, but it’s against the point—we think we have Francois’ entire world figured out from the beginning, yet it is much more complex.

The final shot leaves us stunned—an empty classroom, that looks as if it has been ravished by a hard year of work. I think Cantet is asking us to fill those seats. How do we fix these problems that plague French society? How can we make a difference? It’s challenging cinema at its peak.
The Class was picked as the official entry for France in the Oscars, and Sony Pictures Classic will distribute the film later this year.

From Left to Right: Richard Pena, Laurent Cantet, his three producers, and the film’s ten young stars.