What’s better than a movie about filmmaking to open the Cannes Film Festival 75th edition? Well, a movie about filmmaking that also features zombies. After an unusual and COVID-19 restrained edition held last year, the festival returned to its usual May slot and enjoyed an attendance like in the old good days. As the opening-night out-of-competition pick, Final Cut is a delightful comedy that leaves the fans upended for half of the story before unveiling an unexpected second act.
Director Michel Hazanavicius, best known for The Artist, had the difficult task of starting Cannes on the right foot, and he did it with his usual style and irony. For the occasion, he directed and wrote a comedy in the vein of his OSS 177 films. While Hazanavicius’ movie draws heavily from its source, the ultra-low-budget One Cut of the Dead, it surely entertains the fans for its 111 minutes. Hazanavicius knows how to play with his audience, winking at the source with tiny details, including enrolling veteran actress Yoshiko Takehara in the same role she portrayed in Shin’ichirô Ueda‘s original movie.
The plot involves a crew that needs to shoot a low-budget zombie film in an abandoned factory. During the filming, part of the crew starts to behave strangely, as if they were the real living dead. On the set, Director Rémi Bouillon (Romain Duris) deals with all sorts of troubles to wrap up the project, including last-minute defections, whimsical actors, bossy producers, drunkards, and more. The story develops linearly until the movie’s midpoint, where it suddenly flashes back to reveal the origin of Bouillon’s project. In fact, producer Mme Matsuda (Takehara) hired Bouillon to shoot and live-stream the French adaptation of a Japanese zombie film that was a box office hit in her country.
The film draws metanarrative power from Hazanavicius’ cast choices, including the director’s wife, Bérénice Bejo, and his daughter, Simone. Ironically, Bejo portrays Bouillon’s zealously enthusiastic wife, Nadia, while Simone acts as the director’s daughter. Up-and-coming Finnegan Oldfield performs well as Raphael, the difficult lead actor. Matilda Lutz as Ava performs without infamy and praise.
On the score of the always elegant Alexandre Desplat, the first half of the movie makes the watcher wonder what the heck is going on as it seems to be watching the most incoherent of zombie movies. Truth be told, a few people left the screening after they were duped into believing that it was an amateur movie employing shaky cameras and dozens of fake blood, where only the lush cinematography by Jonathan Ricquebourg seemed to stand out. However, the film really starts to kick off in the second part, presenting an original perspective and explaining the many pending questions from the first half.
Hazanavicius’ remake is very faithful to the original — even in the plot, Bouillon must stay faithful to the original Japanese project. If you’re looking for a traditional zombie movie, Final Cut isn’t the right choice for you. However, if you enjoy a metanarrative reflection on the intrinsic value of films and art and a love letter to the purest of moviemaking, where the budget is low, but the passion is high, then you won’t be disappointed.
Score: 7/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 7 equates to “Good.” A successful piece of entertainment that is worth checking out, but it may not appeal to everyone.
Critic attended a press screening at Cannes 2022 for our Final Cut review.