The vortex of life proposes to explode the multiple possibilities of a destiny. But is ultimately only a winded and cutesy melodrama.
One might think that The Tourbillon de la vie comes out of nowhere. Since in addition to a very discreet promotion, we had never been able to admire a feature film by Olivier Treiner, known for his work as a screenwriter on the sympathetic Dropped by Éloïse Lang, and on the much more debatable What is this family?! by Gabriel Julien-Laferriere. For his first feature film as a director, Olivier Treiner does not spare his ambitions since he directly tackles an alternate history tinged with melodrama. Puzzle exercise to explore the infinite possibilities at the time of the multiverse, where the greatest have risked themselves, with notable works the I love you I love you by Alain Resnais and the Mr. Nobody by Jaco Van Dormael. Unfortunately, Le Tourbillon de la vie is not one, worse, it never manages to be a simply convincing film.
Multi-silly
The vortex of life, it is therefore the story of the different destinies of Julia (Lou de Lâage), a student pianist, then, as you choose, a mother in the throes of depression, a cold (but recognized) artist or a courageous teacher acclaimed by all. Different tracks whose script by Olivier and Camille Treiner gets bogged down in vignettes, also to choose from, varying from the parody of melodrama to the most insignificant TV movie. Because despite its audacious principle, the feature film is the perfect antithesis: overplayed, under-illuminated, and also under-written, because over two hours that seem like an eternity, everything turns out to be a foregone conclusion.
While Gregory Gadebois and Isabelle Carré resume their hackneyed roles of humble and discreet parents, the young Lou de Laage alone must carry on her shoulders so many stereotypical roles, when she is not decked out in make-up and wigs reminiscent of the crude interpretation of Elsa Zylberstein in Simone, the trip of the century. A task too imposing for an actress yet talented, who is therefore most of the time completely off the mark. However, we can’t blame him for trying to bring a little life to this syrupy and completely telephoned melodrama.
Le Tourbillon review
Because Le Tourbillon de la vie could completely exist for what it really is without its principle of an ode to life through a deceptively random game of chance. The only originality of a project that is devoid of it until its staging, aligning the shots like its decorations worthy of a decoration magazine, Olivier Treiner’s feature film remains completely disembodied from start to finish. We are left with nothing that does not evoke our own destinies, like digging into those of its protagonists, but a long display of clichés hackneyed a thousand times, each cruder than the other.
Because by dint of wanting to be a story aimed at as many people as possible, Le Tourbillon de la vie is ultimately the story of no one apart from a grueling parenthesis of emptiness which overplays the codes of melodrama to the point of overdosing to arouse any emotion in the spectator. But in the end, nothing remains of this very bad alternate history except the impression of having witnessed two hours of the multiple lives of characters devoid of the slightest substance. A torture similar to watching an advertisement for life insurance, which at least has the luxury of lasting only thirty seconds.
Le Tourbillon de la vie was released on December 21, 2022.
Opinion
3.0
Multi-silly
The Tourbillon de la vie only surprises in the end by the audacity of its premise, as Olivier Treiner’s feature film turns out to be a complete antithesis. Overplayed, under-written and under-enlightened, all that remains of this so-called universal story is a wheezy and syrupy melodrama which, by dint of wanting to address the greatest number, forgets to bring disembodied characters and situations to life. the extreme.