Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: MA BELLE, MY BEAUTY [Sundance Film Festival 2021 - Virtual]

The conceit within "Ma Belle, My Beauty" [Next] revolves around both inspiration and reliability. The film is drenched in the sun of the hills of France in the beauty of summer but Marion Hill, the director, hails from New Orleans so the characters and especially the music is drenched in a sort of jazzy blues context while still giving a sense of the French countryside where it dwells. The film focuses on a couple, transplanted from New Orleans, to France where the husband is from. A former girlfriend (Lane) who disappeared from the wife Bertie's life shows up at the request of the husband who hasn't told his wife why. Now the context could be taken in different ways but in a way it comes off as selfish on his part. His wife was a such a great singer but only seems to come alive when her former flame Lane is around. Lane is hellfire always going with her gut but can't control what she feels even it makes everything messy.

There is a third entry by another amour for Lane: Noa (an Israeli girl and breathe of fresh air) who understands the impulse but also isn't compounded by the situation. It can sound kind of soapy and melodramatic and it does hit beats of that but the music and environment keep it many times from becoming overly so. One specific night in the house plays to the irony of the situation and is punctuated with a bit of humor (and New Orleans pride) the morning after. The film undeniably has a tinge of the film of "Swimming" (especially with the ode to the pool) but the music by Mahmoud Chouki with the sensual guitars gives the base of the story a grounded hue to lead the characters on their journey. B-

By Tim Wassberg