A Magnificent Life Movie Review

“A Magnificent Life” is from Sylvain Chomet, the director of the triumphant “The Triplets of Belleville.”
That film received two Academy Award nominations (Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song). If you liked the animation of Triplets, you’ll like it once again as he uses the same hand-drawn style and it’s just as beautifully done. In this film, Chomet gives us the animated biography of French novelist-turned-playwright-turned-filmmaker Marcel Pagnol, who basically got into the film business from the ground floor.

Here, he’s older Marcel, and he’s alone. He has promised to write his memoirs for a women’s magazine called Elle. He has such a terrible memory that he’s having trouble even getting started with specifics, such as where he was born. He’s only 61 years old, so that’s hard to fathom, but he lived long ago, and times have changed. Little Marcel (a ghost to you and me) appears to help him recall who he was. When you realize why he’s there, it pulls from you both happiness and melancholy as the film traverses his career.

Interestingly, to make a point about the times, scenes from Pagnol’s real films are merged into the final product, an impressive idea to say the least. It’ll make you want to get to know this poet better and continue watching to see who he ultimately becomes. Pagnol does recall wanting to be a poet while he was growing up. His mother always encouraged him to stick to the arts. His father screamed at him that it was no way to make a living, so poetry would remain just a dream… or will it? After all, he promised his mother he’d stick to what he loved and what she loved about him… the colorful world he comes up with in his writing, so he does. He gets into theater, too, “where nothing is guaranteed, not even a flop.” Scary but worth every minute of his life. The talkies, particularly from Hollywood, are the best any person could hope for at first. People do like them, but, coming from America, they fear that Americans will hold sway and speak for people, especially the youth, who will become Americanized. In this case, create your own movie studio, as this is no passing fad, right? Well, you can’t if a Nazi wants you to make films for Hitler.

How the beginning of filmmaking is talked about is exceptionally intriguing. Pagnol loved the idea of focusing on a cheek, following a single tear, and flying through the skies, looking down just as a bird would. Giving his audience something they can’t have in real life. And for him, it’s through the magic lantern of a film projector that he’s able to see the smiles on the faces of “long lost friends.” The movie business is one of his true loves, and that’s made obvious here. Again, there’s personal tragedy; the film is a drama for sure. Keep up with who’s who. Don’t lose focus. This is worth watching, though you will be taken on an emotional rollercoaster ride to see his magnificent life.