Towards Mathilde
Biography
•
1h 23m
Directed by Claire Denis • Documentary • With Mathilde Monnier • 2004 • 84 minutes
Emphasizing raw physicality, craft, and in-the-moment fervor over exposition, Towards Mathilde, from filmmaker Claire Denis (Beau Travail, 35 Shots of Rum, Let the Sunshine In), is a documentary portrait par excellence.
At its center is Mathilde Monnier, whose title as head of the Montpellier National Centre for Choreography sends her and an elite group of dancers through numerous, demanding performance pieces, each captured on sumptuous 8 and 16mm images by cinematographers Agnès Godard and Hélène Louvart. Monnier's significant talents are a clear point of fascination and admiration for the film crew, yet her mysterious aura — that of an artist totally in command of themselves and, by extension, the viewers — remains throughout. Released in the U.S. for the first time, Towards Mathilde is a singular work among Denis' era-defining oeuvre.
"Startlingly beautiful. A star directorial performance that expands the boundaries of what a documentary can be." —Travis Mackenzie Hoover, Slant
Up Next in Biography
-
The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu
Directed by Andrei Ujica • Documentary • 2011 • 180 minutes
A monumental achievement, THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF NICOLAE CEAUSESCU tracks the rise and fall of the infamous Romanian dictator through his own propaganda footage. Writer and director Andrei Ujica, along with editor Dana Bunescu, crafted ov...
-
Gray Matters: Architect & Designer Ei...
Directed by Marco Orsini • Documentary • 2014 • 76 minutes
The documentary Gray Matters explores the long, fascinating life of architect and designer Eileen Gray, whose uncompromising vision defined and defied the practice of modernism in decoration, design and architecture.
Making a reputation...
-
Forgiving Dr. Mengele
Directed by Bob Hercules & Cheri Pugh • Documentary • With Eva Mozes Kor, Sami Adwan, Dan Bar-On, Michael Berenbaum, Albert H. Friedlander • 2007 • 82 minutes
Eva Kor and her twin sister were victims of the infamous Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, who conducted sadistic experiments on human being...
