“Synonyms”– Movie Review

During the opening weekend of the 57th New York Film Festival, I attended the U.S. premiere of the new French/Israeli drama, “Synonyms”. 

Synopsis

When a young man leaves his home in Israel to live in France, will he be able to successfully assimilate?

Story

Yoav (Tom Mercier) has done his duty as an Israeli citizen.  Having finished his military service, he flees his home country for France.  He is not doing this because he needs a vacation, nor is he necessarily doing it because it’s been his life’s dream.  He’s doing it in order to renounce his Israeli heritage. Completely fed up with Israel, he vows never again to speak Hebrew; from now on, he will only speak French.  So, with a French-Hebrew dictionary in hand to help him with his translations, he secures a temporary apartment in Paris where he will stay until he can find something more permanent.  This is where his problems begin.

Awaking the next morning in his empty apartment, Yoav wriggles out of his sleeping bag, leaving it – along with his backpack, clothes and wallet – in the living-room while he takes a shower.  A few minutes later, he returns to find that all of his personal items have disappeared and the front door is opened. Unclothed, he first runs down the stairs to try to find the thief; unsuccessful, he then knocks on door after door of his neighbors’ apartments plaintively seeking help.  Failing to get assistance, he returns to his apartment and slumps in the bathtub, fainting.  

Shortly thereafter, his neighbors, Emile and Caroline (Quentin Dolmaire and Louise Chevillotte) happen into Yoav’s apartment.  Finding him unconscious in the bathtub, they take him back to their place and let him rest in their bed; when he eventually awakens, Emile gives him money and some clothes in order to help get Yoav settled.  Over time, Yoav develops a friendship with this couple and they become very close. Understanding Yoav’s desire to become a Frenchman, Emile recommends something of an unorthodox solution: Yoav can acquire his much sought-after citizenship by marrying Emile’s girlfriend, Caroline.  Will Yoav take him up on this offer? And even if he does, what will this do to their friendship?   

Review

The frenetic nature of “Synonyms” may accurately portray the personality of its protagonist Yoav, but it can prove somewhat tiresome for the viewer.  Not to mention obnoxious. While Mercier gives an impressive performance insofar as his physicality is concerned (he certainly doesn’t mind being naked in front of the camera), he comes across as too unusual a character to garner much in the way of sympathy or compassion when life seems to smack him down at every opportunity.  It’s not that you don’t root for Yoav or hope for him to fail, it’s that you wind up completely giving up on Yoav and don’t root for him at all.      

There were technical problems with “Synonyms” as well – or at least in the copy shown at this screening.  This had to do with the English subtitles. First of all, the subtitles are in white, which can be frustrating for the viewer; when the subtitles appear over a light background, they can be hard (if not impossible) to read.  A better choice would have been to either display the subtitles in yellow or to place a dark outline around each letter in the subtitle to facilitate reading. The other problem was that they periodically appeared to be out of synch.   For example, a character would say a line, the subtitle would appear, then he would say his next line and the same subtitle would display again. 

Following the screening, there was an interview with director Nadav Lapid.  Lapid admitted that “Synonyms” is semi-autobiographical; a citizen of Israel, he spent two and a half years living in Paris as a younger man, which is where he acquired his appreciation for filmmaking.  After initially completing his obligatory military service, Lapid remained in Tel Aviv, where he began to write novels. Over time, he felt incapacitated by Israel and eventually fled to France only to find himself surrounded by some very bad people.  Discovering filmmaking, he decided that this was the most essential way to express himself.