Film #67 - Laurence Anyways

From The Master to another feature that is all about substance but no so much about story we have Lauirence Anyways, the third feature from Quebec based enfant terrible Xavier Dolan.

I’ll be upfront about this; I’ve nearly insanely envious of the 23-year-old Dolan’s talent since his first feature I Killed My Mother came out when he was only 20. Three years later and he’s raised the bar yet again with Laurence Anyways, a sumptuous romance that is gorgeous to look at and fascinating to listen to.

To call Laurence Anyways a romance is little misleading, given that the central relationship is doomed, but given the central characters remain infatuated with each other even after they discover this, I really don’t know what else to call it.

Laurence (Melvil Poupaud) and Fred (Suzanne Clement) have been madly in love ever since they met and are happily ensconced in a bohemian bliss where he works as a writer and teacher, and she pursues a career in film. Their delirium is abruptly shattered by Laurence’s birthday declaration that he has realised that he is transsexual and intends to start transitioning into a woman.

II can only assume that top is the
height of women's fashion in Quebec

From there the story meanders over the next ten years of their off-again on-again relationship: from Fred’s initial break up and breakdown that her lover “hates everything she loves about him” to Laurence’s tentative first steps into womanhood to their mutual agony over their continued romantic feelings for one another.

It’s masterful work and Dolan takes pains to look at the subject of transsexuality from a wealth of different angles whilst standing back far enough to not get swept up into any overbearing messages on the topic. The two leads may be intensely in love, but the audience can see their flaws as well the characteristics that make them sympathetic.

Indeed, to the extent that Laurence Anyways has a message at all it’s that nothing is easy in a situation like this. As much as we sympathise with Laurence’s struggle to get the people he loves to accept his new identity, the way he goes about courting their support is frequently frustrating. As much as Fred is justified in not wanting to pursue a relationship she just can’t connect with anymore, her push and pull as she tries to extricate herself clearly cause her partner avoidable pain.

Yes, we even look at violence against transsexuals

It’s beautifully nuanced and is probably one of the most sympathetic depictions of transsexuality I’ve ever seen that doesn’t slip into sloppy sentimentality (I’m looking at you, Glee). Not being transsexual myself I can’t speak to how realistic it is but it certainly carries a verisimilitude that I don’t recall having seen before.

The complex three dimensional script is supported by lavish production design the is quasi-expressionistic in the way it the exterior world expresses the interior life of the characters. The use of autumn leaves in the final scene in particular is pitch perfect and Fred’s big breakout party scene is visually stunning even as it makes a major plot turn without even using words. Seeing Dolan’s name down as costume designer in the credits only deepens my envy of him.

This dress looks even better in the actual movie.

However, there is a problem with Laurence Anyways - and it’s a major one. At two hours and forty minutes, the film is simply far far too long and becomes exhausting by the time you round the 120 minute mark. Given that the story is less a coherent narrative and more a collection of vignettes, it’s a bit of an indulgence of Dolan’s that he could extract some of the more minor instances to make for a tighter, more pleasurable session.

All of that said, Laurence Anyways is a masterpiece and I’m glad to see Xavier Dolan is already filming his next big project.