New Yorker Video

Beau Travail

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Release Date: Tuesday, 08 October 2002
Country of Release: USA
MSRP: $29.99

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Directed by: Claire Denis

Featuring: Denis Lavant, Michel Subor, Grégoire Colin, Richard Courcet, Nicolas Duvauchelle, Marta Tafesse

Inspired by Herman Melville's Billy Budd, BEAU TRAVAIL is the most provocative and accomplished film yet by French director Claire Denis (CHOCOLAT, I CAN'T SLEEP, NENETTE AND BONI). This simple tale, distilled to the essence of a ballad or poem, is drenched with male eroticism and cast in the form of a languorous tropical dream.

Sergeant Galoup (Denis Lavant) seems the ideal Legionnaire: a brooding loner, cut off from his past. He runs the troupe like a well-oiled machine, until his jealousy for a promising young recruit, Sentain (Gregoire Colin), threatens the delicate balance of his life. With the haunting suspense of Greek tragedy, Galoup's uncontrollable urge to destroy Sentain ultimately leads to his own downfall.

Year: 1999
Time: 93 min.