A riveting French drama set in 3 time periods with 2 great stars.
I attended a special NYC advanced screening of “The Beast” the same week that “Dune: Part Two” came out, and I met Lea Seydoux who is in both movies. A friend of mine at work asked me if I asked her any “Dune” questions, and I responded “No, but I did tell her that “Midnight in Paris” and “The Grand Budapest Hotel” made my Best of the 2010s list.” She can find appeal in commercial films, but she puts more heart and soul into international films, and I don’t blame her for her comparisons of these kind of films.
The movie plays like a much better version of the 30-year-old Robin Williams bomb “Being Human,” by having Seydoux and George MacKay playing characters Gabrielle and Louis in past lives. But really the film is an adaptation of Henry James’ novel “Beast in the Jungle,” which shares its themes regarding loneliness, fate, love, and death. And it couldn’t be more poignant and thought-provoking.
We begin in the future in the year 2044, when A.I. has basically taken over the world, and masks must be worn outdoors. Gabrielle is still doing everything she can to work as a human. She also decides to undergo a procedure that would allow her to see her past lives and then erasing them. So what she in her past lives? Let’s find out.
In Paris, 1910, she is a wealthy doll maker’s wife, while Louis is an English romantic, and she doesn’t want to or can’t pursue a relationship with him. When she asks him: “Isn’t it dangerous to know the future?,” he responds: “It all depends on how you interpret it and how you do it.” I wouldn’t blame her, because even I don’t want to predict or see the future, and worry about doomsday. And she also wonders what would Paris be like if it was underwater, and of course, the Great Flood of Paris comes in, and helps form a thrilling sequence.
I admire the ambiance in this part of the movie, because of writer/director Bertram Bonello (“Saint Laurent,” “Nocturma”) presents these two characters in a vivid sense. It shows us how these two have the potential to have an affair, while circumstances are thrown in the way. And the costume designs make these two look and feel great.
And Santa Barbara, 2014, she is a model and would-be actress, who is watching a rich guy’s home, while he is a virgin YouTuber, who questions about why women don’t like him. And they both meet after an earthquake strikes, but more in the erotic thriller sense.
I’m a little mixed about the YouTuber, who seems too tedious to be as riveting as his 1910 character, but his choices in the final act of this subplot represents dangerous minds. And it also has Seydoux playing a woman from the East Coast, without trying too hard on the accent, and adapting to her character’s would-be dreams without desperation.
But all these stories represent a woman’s fear of the future, in which she knows disaster will strike or something will happen within her relationships. It’s all unpredictable, and beautifully acted by Seydoux, who has the voice and tone to convince us of her humanity.
I needed some time to process my emotions towards “The Beast” after two months, and I think my mind is clear. It’s a gorgeous and questionable movie about these two people and their past and present. Remember: this is a story about past lives. And the future sequences have their moments of exhilaration and ideas. It’s a universal and timely movie.
In Select Theaters This Friday