Baden Baden – Film Review by Frank L.

Directed by Rachel Lang
Stars: Salomé Richard, Claude Gensac, Lazare Gousseau

Ana (Salomé Richard) is a twenty six year old who has found some employment acting as a driver on a film set. The story begins with her driving anxiously around trying to find the location of the film shoot somewhere in Baden Baden. She is hopelessly late and is unable to handle the rollicking she gets as a result. She returns to her home town of Strasbourg where she slots back into her aimless existence. Notwithstanding several amorous connections, it is with her grandmother who is physically diminished but mentally absolutely on the ball that she has the closest relationship. The grandmother has to go to hospital with a fractured hip as a result of a fall. Ana decides with the help of a friend to remove the bath from the grandmother’s bathroom and replace it with a shower. As she has little or no skills and the friend not much more this takes time and her amorous life intervenes.

Remarkably little of any consequence happens.  However Salomé Richard has a waif like, androgynous appearance which exudes an aura of indecisiveness which fits well with the ‘detached from the world of work’ personality of Ana. The grandmother (Claude Gensac) is the no nonsense, tell-it-as-it-is opposite. It’s her life and fragility that provides some purpose, all be it not much, to Ana’s laid back drift.

Notwithstanding the minimal content of the plot, Salomé Richard’s Ana’s vulnerability creates a world that makes her an anti-hero. It would be difficult not to be engaged by her as are her grandmother and her several male friends!