A Poignant, Lyrical Film About Being 18
The French-language Wild Reeds (1994) brilliantly captures what it feels like to be an adolescent on the cusp of adulthood. The young people depicted here are earnest, and they are struggling to achieve greater maturity. The movie focuses on issues of sex and politics.
The director and co-screenwriter of Wild Reeds was André Téchiné, and he gave the film the tone and mood of an intimate, unhurried memoir as told by a middle-aged person looking back at events that took place three decades earlier. However, he avoided nostalgia and sentimentality. Nevertheless, the movie packs an emotional punch.
The character-driven story centers on three boys at a boarding school and a girl who is the daughter of one of the teachers. The actors all turn in fine naturalistic performances, drawing the viewer into their world. The school is in a town in southwestern France, and Téchiné shot many of the scenes at charming bucolic locations. The soundtrack makes effective use of half a dozen 1960s American pop tunes.
Coming of Age Means Dealing With Sex and Politics
In Wild Reeds, François is a shy, intellectual 18-year-old student at a boys' boarding school. His best friend is Maïté, a no-nonsense girl of about his age whose mother is one of his teachers. Their relationship is platonic, and François soon comes to realize he is gay.
François falls for Serge, a fellow student at the school who is outgoing, but rough around the edges. The changes in François' behavior put a strain on his friendship with Maïté, especially when later he begins to feel attracted to a bitter student named Henri.
Henri was born and raised in Algeria, but he left when his father was killed by a terrorist bomb. Henri fervently believes that Algeria should be kept under French control, and this puts him at odds with Maïté, a Communist who strongly supports those Algerians fighting to become independent.
As the film winds down, Téchiné artfully brings all these story threads together when the four young people go to a secluded swimming hole out in the picturesque countryside on a glorious day. None of the issues raised in the movie are completely resolved, but the ending is satisfying because all the young people come through their experiences better prepared to deal with whatever their futures may hold.
About the Film's Title
In the movie there's a scene where a class is given the assignment of analyzing La Fontaine's fable "The Oak and the Reed." The essence of the fable is that a fierce wind uproots a proud and mighty oak, while a frail reed survives because it bends and does not break. Téchiné's title evidently refers to his four main young characters, and he seems to be saying that an important part of maturing is to learn not to be too unyielding.
On DVD, Part of the André Téchiné 4-Film Collector's Edition
Wild Reeds is one of the movies contained in the three-disc set André Téchiné 4-Film Collector's Edition released by Lionsgate on July 22, 2008. The runtime of Wild Reeds is 1 hour 54 minutes. The other three movies in the box set are My Favorite Season (1993), I Don't Kiss (1991) and Hotel America (1981). All four films are in French with English and Spanish subtitles available.
