jacques nolot Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Watching Jacques Nolot's Before I Forget, I couldn't help thinking of my friend Arthur Lazere, the late film critic and creator of the still-operational site culturevulture.net, ("Choices for the Cognoscenti"). Arthur was gay and in his 60s when he succumbed to a long illness in 2006; he loved movies but he rarely found one that pleased him, or rather spoke to him in particular. The Barbarian Invasions (2003) was one of his favorites, I remember, and I enjoyed talking to -- and arguing with -- him about it and many other films. I wish I could have talked with him about Before I Forget, a film about a HIV+ gay man nearing his 60s. I admired the film all on my own, but Arthur would have got it.

That's actually one of the best things about Before I Forget, which was selected as one of last year's ten best films by Cahiers du Cinema; it's the uncompromising work of an artist making a film for himself, rather than targeting a demographic. Jacques Nolot mainly works as an actor, with roles in films like Claire Denis' Nenette & Boni (1996), Francois Ozon's Under the Sand (2001) and many André Téchiné films, including The Witnesses from earlier this year. He has written and directed three feature films, all starring himself: L'Arrière pays (1998), Porn Theater (2002) and this one. The three films are certainly homosexual and appear to be at least partly autobiographical, and even if they're not, Nolot still opens himself up totally: in an early sequence, his character Pierre wakes up, throws up, pops some pills makes some coffee and walks around his apartment, naked. His thinning hair and thin moustache are perfectly placed, but his sagging belly shows a losing battle with age.

Boutique distributor Strand Releasing may be small, but they have exquisite taste when it comes to the films they acquire. They're willing to take on films that others might feel have limited commercial appeal. Yet they're still going strong after nearly 20 years in the business, which means they know what they're doing. Recent releases include Aki Kaurismäki's Lights in the Dusk and Eytan Fox's The Bubble. Brian Brooks of indieWIRE reports that their latest acquisition, announced in Toronto on Saturday night, is Jacques Nolot's Before I Forget.

Strand has picked up all North American rights to the French drama. Jacques Nolot both directed and plays the lead role, "a former gigolo who has been HIV-positive for 24 years," according to a review by Lisa Nesselson in Variety when it played at Cannes. He "navigates a slew of physical and emotional obstacles with mordant aplomb. ... Proceedings would be risible and sordid in less-refined hands, but Nolot has a knack, often via nicely handled incongruity, for finding the human comedy in awkward situations."

Before I Forget is the third in a trilogy by Nolot that includes 1998's L' Arrière Pays and 2002's La Chatte à Deux Têtes. Nolot's film acting career covers more than 60 roles essayed over a period of more than three decades. Before I Forget screens for the public in Toronto on September 13 and 15. It's due to be released in its native France on October 17. Strand has not yet announced their distribution plans.