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Les Choristes (The Chorus) Our rating: Your rating: 1 2 3 4 Your Comments: see all MPAA rating: PG-13 (for some language/sexual references and violence) Theater release: March 17, 2004 by Miramax Films Directed by: Christophe Barratier Runtime: 1 hour 35 minutes Cast: Gerard Jugnot (Clement Mathieu), Francois Berleand (Rachin), Kad Merad (Chabert), Marie Bunel (Violette Morhange), Jean-Baptiste Maunier (Pierre Morhange), Maxence Perrin (Pé;pinot) Related: Talk About It/Family Corner

Audiences love films about underdogs that overcome. One of the most beloved sub-genres in film history involves a seemingly controversial or unorthodox schoolteacher sparking the inspiration of students to rise above and achieve greatness. It's a familiar story that translates to nearly any era, setting, and subject. We've seen the effect of literature on a group of boys at a New England prep school in Dead Poets Society. Inner-city teens found confidence through calculus in Stand and Deliver. And then there's the transforming power of music, as shown in movies like Mr. Holland's Opus and Music of the Heart.

The French film Les Choristes (The Chorus) follows in this tradition and last year met with incredible success in its homeland, outperforming Harry Potter and other big budget film imports. Pretty impressive for the first feature film by director and composer Christophe Barratier, who adapted the screenplay from a little known 1945 film called The Cage of the Nightingales. The new movie's soundtrack features choral music by leading French composer Bruno Coulais and also became a surprise hit, contributing to an unexpected resurgence in classical youth choirs in France.

Clement Mathieu (Gerard Jugnot) brings light and life to a dark place

Les Choristes is set in post-World War II France, a time of social restructuring and economic recovery from German occupation. Not many movies have adequately dealt with what the French faced in the aftermath. Considering how many children were orphaned as a result, it's not surprising that the government instated correctional houses designed to discipline with military strictness—"Spare the rod, spoil the children."

Gerard Jugnot, as Clement Mathieu, directs the boys choir

One such school is L'Fond de L'Etang, which literally means "Rock Bottom," an old French castle that looks very much like a prison. When mild-mannered Clement Mathieu (popular French actor Gerard Jugnot) arrives to take a position as the new assistant teacher, he is immediately plunged into an educational system nightmare. His colleagues humorously introduce themselves by giving the names of the worst troublemakers. Headmaster Rachin (Francois Berleand) has the cold, hard demeanor of a warden, delivering swift punishment to anyone caught inciting trouble. And the boys behave as if discipline were an alien concept, pouring their efforts into driving the new teacher away for the next one in line to arrive.

However, Mathieu is not like other teachers (after all, who else would want this job?) and he sees great potential in the students. All they know is Rachin's disciplinary motto, "Action, reaction." But instead of resorting to similar violence, Mathieu demonstrates patience and love, using their taunts to teach. When he finds that the boys have some ability for singing through their schoolyard chants, he reawakens his abandoned passion for music and decides to begin a choir to promote unity and harmony.

Jean-Baptiste Maunier, as Morhange, has an angelic voice

Les Choristes is a film of great beauty and sweet intentions, offering a strong theme of grace vs. punishment—compassion of the heart in contrast to the hard discipline of the law. How one seemingly small act can transform so many lives, treating the kids like people instead of criminals. The film starts off well enough, appropriately building tension between Mathieu and both the children and the headmaster. Jugnot gives his role the necessary sweetness and believability, easily allowing the audience to want to see Mathieu succeed with his good intentions and gentler methods.

Unfortunately, the movie has a sloppy flow that relies too heavily on little clichés. This is a movie about transformed lives, yet the film cuts corners when it comes to the process of transformation. Mathieu decides to start a choir, and we see the first day of practice. From there, the choir's progress is generally detailed with Mathieu's occasional journal entries, and we're to believe that a group of boys go from complete inexperience to Vienna Boys Choir in a matter of two months, which for the film audience is a change from ragamuffins to star attractions in less than 30 minutes. Missing are scenes of Mathieu truly connecting with the kids, watching them light up with newfound musical passion.

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The Sound of Music	Printer view
French director—and music lover—Christophe Barratier helmed his country's No. 1 movie last year, Les Choristes. Now that it's coming to the U.S., we chatted with Barratier about his film.