On Tour

Joachim Zand was a television producer in Paris; he fell out with everyone and went to America. Now he is back with a show: a company of American new burlesque performers. They tour the port cities of France. The halls are full, but what Joachim actually wants is to play Paris, and his old circle will not open the door. Mathieu Amalric directs and plays Joachim. The women on stage are not actors. Mimi Le Meaux, Kitten on the Keys, Dirty Martini and the others are performers working in new burlesque, and they do their own numbers in the film. Amalric worked with them at length and shot the stage sections as actual performances. The film's interest is not the show but Joachim's failure. As the tour goes on, how he wrecks every relationship becomes clear; the women get on with their work while he keeps looking for a door. Hotel rooms, petrol stations and provincial halls give the film its texture. Paris is barely seen, which is also an idea. It won best director and the FIPRESCI prize at Cannes in 2010. Who it is for: viewers who like French independent cinema, performance culture and films built on character. Who it is not for: the narrative is loose, almost nothing happens, and Joachim is an unpleasant character.