Well yes! From the very beginning of the film, a murder, an imprisonment, a breakup, and a stroke “color” the animated images in black. “It looks like a battlefield,” a prisoner remarks while looking at fireworks through the bars of his jail.
But where is the comedy? Wait, with the talent of Isabelle Mergault, the introductory situation will rise from its ashes. And there, the burlesque will take part either through the choice of songs that accompany the scenes or through the wordplay.
The synopsis? “An escaped prisoner wanted by all the police, Constant Billot (Daniel Auteuil) finds refuge on an abandoned barge. Silvia (Medeea Marinescu), a young resident of this lost corner she dreams of leaving, discovers the hunted man. She proposes an implacable deal: Constant must kill Jeanne, her adoptive mother, or she will report him to the police! It’s give and take!”
“This film contains all the humanity and kindness that shape Isabelle’s movies. There’s a freshness, a sincerity, and a choice of subjects that are not formatted. She doesn’t aim to make a comedy just for the sake of it. Her film talks about real people facing real problems, with her own vision. And it’s funny! We are out of the codes and trends,” comments Daniel Auteuil. “‘Give and Take’ is a mix of comedy and drama that moved me,” adds Medeea Marinescu. In this film, Isabelle offers composition roles to these two actors. Particularly for Medeea: “Like me, Silvia is a pianist and is very sensitive. She loves life and is cheerful,” adds Medeea.
In this third film by Isabelle Mergault, you will find the same universe as in “I Find You Very Beautiful”: that of small villages with old gossiping neighbors.
“Give and Take” is a love story, some might say a bit “sentimental,” but it also deals with communication between individuals, false feelings, and imprisonment: imprisonment behind bars and imprisonment in a kind of emotional prison. Not to mention we enjoy viewing the beautiful images offered by this film: a starry sky, a riverbank, an accordion playing…
Website: https://donnant-donnant.gaumont.fr/
