Tchao Pantin — Tchao Pantin ( Blu Ray)
Tchao Pantin is a decidedly glum, down-beat, though kind of enduring at points emotionally felt blend of character study and neo-noir. The mid-1980s French film regards the relationship between a middle-aged late-night petrol station manager, and a twenty-something small-time drug dealer/motorbike thief. Here from Radiance Films is a Blu-ray release of the film, taking in a 4k scan and a few extras.
Tchao Pantin (aka So Long, Stooge) is from the year 1983. It was directed/ co-written by Paris-born Claude Berri- between the 1960s and early 2000 he had twenty-three directorial credits to his name. He largely focused on making comedy dramas such as German-occupied France set The Two Of Us (1967) which regards the relationship between a Jewish boy & elderly anti-Semitic man. Or Le Sex Shop (1972) which tells of a man converting his bookshop to a private shop, and bulldog-focused romantic comedy Trésor (2009).
Tchao Pantin is set in the 18th Arrondissement of Paris- one of the more rundown & squalid districts of the French city. The film opens on a rainy late night- as we see a man trying to start up a moped- behind him is the hovering presence of a police car. He notices a small city street set garage- going into asking for spark plugs, and here we meet our two leads/ main characters- the man with the moped is Arabic jew Bensoussan(Richard Anconina), and the man behind the counter is Lambert(Coluche)- both men watch the police car pass, and as the film unfolds they develop a unexpected friendship.
As things unfold, we find out that Bensoussan is pretty criminal- he steals motorbikes & deals drugs. Lambert is a decidedly sullen loner, who spends his evening shifts hitting the bottle. The pair's relationship slowly but surely grows- as we find snippets about each man's past & present.
Added into the mix we have blond hair punk Lola (Agnès Soral), and wiry-but-constantly sweating cop Bauer (Philippe Léotard). The whole film is played out to the backdrop of the largely night set/rain-drenched city- with a mix of rundown apartments/ squats, garishly lite but shifty bars, and inner-city roads.
For the first half of this just over one-and-a-half-hour film, we focus on the men’s growing relationship- at points, homoerotic undercurrents are hinted at, at others, it’s a more father-and-son make-up. There is a fairly dramatic/ tragic twists mid-way through- but I won’t give this away, but from this point on we drop into the more neo-noir side of things.
The acting from our leads is spot-on/ believable- with Anconina playing the twenty-some living on his nerves small-time criminal. And Coluche as the pencilled moustached, hair thinning, and slightly tubby alcoholic. Fitting the films glum, rundown, and rain-drenched tone we have a largely stark organ/bass-bound soundtrack.
For the most part, Tchao Pantin remains engaging and lullingly eventful. There are a few slight clunky moments in both the plotting and the more dramatic action moments- but these are not enough to pull the film down. So, all in all, the film is a worthy mix of drama, noir, and urbane downbeat-ness.
This new Blu-Ray features a 4k scan- which really adds depth and clarity to the film's downbeat noir atmosphere. We get two extras on the disc. First off on the new side, we have a discussion about the film by French film expert Michaël Abecassis (7.27) he starts off by talking about actor Coluche’s early comic career. Talking about the film's character set-up, and its noir tropes. We find out that when the crew were filming, they had to avoid the day-to-day work of real drug dealers in the area. He also discusses the books in Bensoussan's room.
Otherwise, we have Once Upon a Time… Tchao Pantin (51.43) a 2003 French doc with English subtitles gives a more in-depth look at the film. As well as of course an original trailer.
Tchao Pantin is a downbeat yet oddly compelling blend of drama and neo-noir. It certainly is great to see it getting the Radiance treatment- with its wonderful new scan, and a small, but interesting selection of extras.