Globalization, am I right?
Thierry Taugourdeau (Vincent Lindon) is a 50-something Frenchman who, after many, many years, gets laid-off from his job. Now, not having many skills in the world and a family to provide for, he’s finding it harder and harder to get his foot in a door, let alone, actually get hired. After all, when you’re his age, without much of a school career, or experience in a certain type of specific field, then sorry, it doesn’t look too bright. Thankfully, many months go by and Thierry finally gets a job, but it’s as a security-guard for some supermarket. While it’s fine because it allows him to have some money in his pocket, it also puts him in some uncomfortable positions where he has to stop people from robbing the system – aka, the same system that’s been laying people off like him for the past few years or so and won’t stop. Eventually, he’s got to give up and realize that the system is crooked, right? Or should he just stand by, collect the dough, and run on home?
The Measure of a Man is a smart movie in that it could have been a very preachy and agonizing movie about the slowly but surely depleting middle-class, the recession, the workforce, and most of all, how the government is constantly screwing over those who work their hardest, only to be replaced by someone younger and probably, far more inexperienced, but it’s not. Instead, it’s a very small, very short, and very slight little movie about one man trying to make a living in a world that is constantly moving and going into certain places that he doesn’t know if he can keep up with. It’s very simple stuff, of course, but co-writer and director Stephane Brize does a solid job of keeping us watching and waiting for this man’s life to unravel, because of all the tension he’s facing.
But once again, the movie’s much smarter than that – it doesn’t play by a sort of conventional formula, nor does it ever really seem to even have a plot. Mostly, we just sit around and watch as this guy gets fired, tries to get a job, go to class, get denied, get a job, and yeah, eventually, work it. But while that all may sound boring, it’s surprising how much of it isn’t; it’s like watching an all-too real and painful documentary that may help you realize that your upper-class, suburban life isn’t so bad after all.
See how these things work themselves out sometimes?
But really, it’s Vincent Lindon’s performance that remains the sole reason to see this movie and it’s the main reason why the Measure of a Man constantly stays interesting, even when it seems like it’s not going anywhere. Though he’s got plenty of say and is in every scene, it’s actually surprising how little Lindon actually speaks as Thierry. Most of his scenes either involve him staring off into space, looking sad, mad, or just thinking of something. Sure, he talks and yells, at one point, but for the most part, it’s a very quiet, subdued and subtle performance that remains interesting because there are so many different angles to this guy that it makes us want to watch him do more stuff, no matter what it is.
Sure, he’s the main character and perhaps, in a way, the only one that’s really worth remembering, but still, it’s a great performance nonetheless. The movie is definitely his for the taking, mostly because the plot is nonexistent, but that’s all fine, because Lindon knows how to make a scene of absolute silence, somewhat intense and off-putting.
Would it have been nice for the movie to get deeper and dirtier into what it really wanted to say about the business world? Of course, but when your lead actor’s this good, who cares?
Consensus: Even though there’s not much of a plot to follow, the Measure of a Man is a small, but interesting flick, anchored by a very good performance from Vincent Lindon.
7.5 / 10
Photos Courtesy of: Nord-Quest Productions
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