Chinese Puzzle (Casse-tete chinois) 2013
Craig Priddle
The wooden block puzzles that are sort of a 3D jigsaw are called Chinese puzzles. They’re complicated, and this movie from writer/director Cedric Klapisch takes its title only the slightest bit seriously. There is too much love, friendship, fun, lust, sex, romance and almost screwball comedy machinations for the complications the title suggests to bother the audience.
The third movie in the Spanish Apartment trilogy, this reunites the cast from the previous films (The Spanish Apartment (2002) and Russian Dolls (2005)). I haven’t seen the earlier films, although I want to now, so this is my first meeting with the wonderfully complete characters that populate this film.
Xavier (Romain Duris) is a successful writer whose ex wife Wendy (Kelly Reilly) is moving from France to New York with their two children. Xavier is compelled to follow to be near his children. He stays briefly with a lesbian friend Isabelle (Cecile De France) whose daughter he fathered as an act of friendship. Isabelle’s partner Ju (Sandrine Holt) has an apartment in Chinatown he moves into while he sorts out the issues of divorce, work and his immigration visa. He is visited by old flame Martine (Audrey Tautou) and, while all this goes on, is trying to finish his next novel while being gently hounded by his publisher in France. Simple enough.
The mostly linear story is punctuated by elements out of sequence which hint at where the plot is going. There is a brief and beautifully done sequence animated with what appears to be thousands of still photos. Xavier finds guidance in the works of German philosophers, so we get to meet some of them as well. These do not make the film seem uneven or quirky for the sake of it. They were more of a celebration of the story and the possibilities of filmmaking; they weren’t necessary, but then chocolate isn’t either, and I like it as well.
The film is set in a very day to day New York, with only distant shots of landmarks, and the city is celebrated by the characters as they admire its beauty. It would be interesting to ask Klapisch about his choice of New York for this film. It is a huge, complicated thing that seems to work well enough, and that is how Xavier’s life is. The film is in French, English, Chinese and Spanish, another little nod to the complex world we live in.
Xavier is, like most of us, picked up and carried along by circumstances that he struggles with. He has moments of peace and moments of chaos, and is working towards the future he wants while life throws all manner of things at him. One of the beautiful things about this film is that, even without having seen the earlier films, the characters all seem complete and with their own futures they are working towards, their own complications thrown up by life. All the actors bring joy to their roles. Romain Duris has a wonderful, slightly exasperated, exuberant yet never over the top manner that holds the film together.
This film is a treat. Great performances all around, especially from some of the minor roles. Xavier’s divorce attorney is a classic, almost scene stealing performance. Because the characters are so wonderfully complete, you care about them and wish them well. Xavier’s life seems complicated to him, but not to Martine, and not to the audience. It’s a life worth living. It’s a life worth watching. Go and see Chinese Puzzle and be carried along through it like Xavier.
8/10
Get Social