Year: 1961
Director: Mia Hanson-Love
Films about clubbing. If great films about making music are in short supply, great films about clubbing are even shorter. John Simm gurning in Human Traffic, Kevin and Perry gurning in ibiza, Paul Kaye…in fact British films about clubbing generally just involve a lot of gurning. There’s no gurning in Eden. As befits a French film about clubbing the whole look of the film is immaculate, from the first scene in an early nineties rave deep in a forest, to the very-well dressed writers group at the end. Eden, a French film by director Mia Hanson-Love, takes an unpromising musical subject: the French garage scene of the 90s that gave birth to Daft Punk, and spins a tale that’s IMHO one of most successful films about music.
It follows Paul, a Parisian dj and producer, over sixteen years from 18ish to 34. He gives up his studies to pursue an initially-successful career as a DJ, fuelled by a love of garage (and drugs, the film is not short on chopping out action). However, and this is much the most interesting part of the film, it’s not structured like a classic success story: the coming together/early struggles/big break/unstoppable rise/hubris and fall. Paul enjoys some success – DJing in New York, but the film isn’t really interested in how successful he is. That story is Daft Punk’s, who flit in and out of the film and keep getting turned away at the door.
Instead his life, as told in a series of scenes that flit between his girlfriends, his music making and his relationships with his collaborators seeks to say something else. That music – above all dance music – exists in an eternal present. On the dancefloor we are all in the now. But though the music – in the words of Sterling Void – plays on and on and on, we don’t. Paul’s friends from the dancefloor get jobs, move away, have babies while Paul himself stays motionless and seemingly ageless behind the decks. But it’s not like that forever, and the last third of the film explores what happens when real life can’t be shut out any longer.
And – it shows – the music licensing is absolutely brilliant. This film I would put suggest has one of the greatest soundtrack of any film that isn’t about one artist since Woodstock. It’s a 50:50 percentage of stone-cold classics (Daft Punk licensed generously which helped get the film made) and ‘what the hell is this? It’s great. Strong on garage and the ‘filter house’ that defined late the late 90s Paris sound. From early rave classics from Joey Beltram, The Orb and Sueno Latino; garage staples from Frankie Knuckles, Joe Smooth and Juliet Roberts to tracks entirely new to me from people like Mr Onester, Octave One and Watanebe. The key line in the whole film occurs in the first few scenes, when Paul approaches a DJ after a club night and asks him about a record he played, that he particularly liked, as the track was euphoric and melancholic at the same time. It’s the whole film.The track is in the comments.
Might appeal to people who enjoyed:
Clubbing in the 90s, Paris. Boyhood (for the sense of time passing)
If this triggers you, you should definitely watch this film, then buy the soundtrack. The soundtrack is five hours – five hours – of garage and house classics, 40 odd full-length tracks, as featured in the film for £7.99 on googleplay. Almost as good value as that Bowie box set and does not contain any versions of God Only Knows. This is on it.
Actually 41 tracks, but still a fantastic selection for £7.99.
1961?
@admins the ‘year’ data entry thing on Chrome is impossible to see.
Sounds like a fab film. I see it’s on Prime; will have to get round to catching it.
This sounds right up my boulevard, cheers MM
Oh, and I think you are overstating the quality of the Woodstock OST too. That depends on how much you like electric blues and/or hippy noodling, which in my case at least is not very much.
The vast majority of the music hasn’t really stood the test of time, it’s true. The footage of the festival-goers is by far the best part, seen in retrospect.
Human Traffic has one of my favourite movie scenes. That bit where they’re sitting in the kitchen at the party, completely off their bonces and talking absolute cobblers. Been there, done that.
I was perhaps reaching for a default movie sountrack that’s about a genre/moment rather than a single artist. Agree the footage of the crowd/traffic/site is more interesting now than most of the live footage.
Eden is a lovely lovely film. Apart from the anachronistic appearance of some Pioneer CDJ’s in a 1990’s club (spanner alert) it is really well done. The reverent way the crowds sing along to the tunes is joyful. Great review!
As someone too old, too straight and too ignorant for the whole clubbing scene, seeing I now love the music, yet still appreciating I am not the demographic, this I would love to see, like a fly on the wall, to se what I missed. (Perhaps the same reason I found Woodstock so great, being, for that, too young, at school and too far away.)
Strange they haven’t made that many films about folk festivals in the mid 90s, fictional or documentary.
It’s not perfect, but the best representation of the appeal of clubbing I think on film. Chimes with my experiences, though we were never as well dressed as all these Parisiens.
OK @moseleymoles: I have searched the net for this soundtrack to no avail. Would you have a link to it (Amazon-free if possible) by any chance?
You can only really download it.
Here’s a Spotify link:
Ah, thank you.
Whatta shame, and the only quality I’ve been able to find is MPbloody3 shite. I’ve got a load of these tracks on vinlys, but I’d happily shell out for the lot on CDs in a decent lossless format. Their loss.
CDs are available but second hand & outrageously priced.
Available in 16/44.1 (CD quality) lossless from Qobuz.com, Foxy.
Didn’t turn up on my search, this, and I am a qobuz member *embarrassed face*
Good skills. I am on it like a Shakespeare sonnet.
Glad everyone is on this – it may be worth it just for the Whistle Song.