- This event has passed.
Film – GAGARINE Fanny Liatard / Jérémy Trouilh, France, 2020, 98m, 12A, English sub-titles
10 November 2024 @ 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
On Sunday 10th November Off the Wall Films brings this wonderful recent French film to WSC.
This acclaimed debut fiction feature sees space mad 16-yr-old Youri fighting to preserve his community and to save Cité Gagarine, a Paris high-rise opened with great fanfare in 1963. Youri and friends Jamil and Diana work tirelessly to restore failing lights and lift circuits in an effort to convince the authorities that the block is still habitable. Meanwhile, the bulk of the residents is moving out as the contractors move in… but Youri isn’t in a mood to budge.
Filmed in the lead-up to the actual demolition of the block in 2019, Gagarine is a highly effective blend of urban social realism and cosmic fantasy. As Youri desperately strives to preserve his sense of belonging, and tentatively falls in love with Diana, he retreats into a fantasy world in which he imagines the doomed building as a vast space station drifting through the cosmos. Strong performances from the young cast and a unique approach to pressing issues make this film a mesmerising watch.
“Free of cliché, visually ingenious, Gagarine is a pleasure – pure magic realism, a homespun spectacular” – Danny Leigh, The Financial Times.
“It takes courage to attempt a film like this and a certain genius to pull it off. [Fanny Liatard and Jérémy Trouilh] have created something special” – Jennie Kermode, Eye for Film.
“Balancing whimsy-tinged magic realism against serious themes of community and displacement, Gagarine is as bracingly original as it is ultimately poignant.” – Rotten Tomatoes
