The Princess Of France | Matías Piñeiro | NYFF 2014
Argentinean director Matías Piñeiro returns with The Princess Of France, the third in a trilogy of films inspired by the works of Shakespeare.
The Princess Of France revolves around Victor (Julián Larquier Tellarini) an actor who returns home to Buenos Aires after the death of his father. Waiting for him are his theater group, consisting of friends but mostly lovers of some sort. On his return he strives to put together a radio version of Love Labor’s Lost with the group. What results is odd-ball confessions from the female members of the group, often romantic, but mostly unclear and uncertain. Everything is a plot device for their interactions, none of which is ever delivered with any sort of clarity or understanding.
We are given a lot of names and characters, and they all speak at breakneck speed to the point where things can get a bit hard to follow. There’s his hard to track girlfriend Paula (Agustina Munoz), his ex-girlfriend Natalia (Romina Paula), Ana (Maria Villar), Lorraine (Laura Walls) as well as Carla (Elisa Carricajo) a new girl that joins the group.
Piñeiro moves quickly throwing a lot at you in it’s 70-minute run-time. It’s plot details aren’t really crucial, as Piñeiro is more concerned about capturing a specific spirit in his delivery. Admittedly, Piñeiro has a keen eye for framing, and uses space well for long shots. There’s a particularly memorable scene in a museum where Victor spends considerable time with the multiple women, each confessing their feelings in their own way. The way in unfolds is fun to watch, but beyond that it feels hollow.
What The Princess Of France lacks in a coherent plot, it makes up for it’s spirit and wondrous camera work. An extended shot of an urban football game that opens the film sets things up nicely. The camera is steady as the game progresses, letting the image work its magic. This was an imaginative piece of filmmaking that was honestly quite astounding, yet it felt like it was a part of a different movie. Piñeiro never captures this magic again with the rest of his film, and it’s a shame.
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