I didn’t really know much about Serge Gainsbourg before I saw this film, and I think that may have been the best approach to it. If you’re expecting a documentary-like attention to historic detail from Gainsbourg you’ll be disappointed. What you’ll get instead is a wonderful insight into a larger than life character - a musician, a painter, an artist, a creator.
The quirky, almost surreal elements to the film – namely Gainsbourg’s “mug” which grows from being a device created by his childish imagination to help protect him, to an almost grotesque manifestation of his more destructive elements – help to take us out of the real, out of the desire to compare every detail to what we may know of Gainsbourg’s life, and let us sit back and enjoy the story which is unfolding before us.
I honestly have very little idea how much accuracy there is in the film. And I don’t really care that much. Gainsbourg is a beautifully made film, with wonderful characters, wonderful storytelling, great cinematography and a lovely balance in tone towards its main character. It’s no surprise to learn that the director, Joann Sfar, works primarily in graphic novels and comic books. He treats Gainsbourg in the traditional manner of a hero – there is reverence, but there is no hiding the man’s flaws and faults either.
Overall, a very enjoyable, engaging and intriguing film, about a fascinating and absorbing man. Definitely worth seeing.
For those in/around Belfast, it's only on at the QFT, 30th July - 12th August. Go see it!!
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