FILM REVIEW: "Holy Cow” is a hasty, single-serve coming-of-age with a good heart
At exactly 90 minutes, Louise Courvoisier’s feature debut “Holy Cow” does not give itself much room to breathe. The film gives a distinct impression that a local has the wheel (which is true), moving down a French rural backroad at uncomfortable speeds. There is the Death of the Father plotline, a Found Family, conversations about youth, substance abuse and aimlessness, as well as romance, class struggles, and cheese. Each have full-length setups but are given no time to mature, much like the protagonist Totone (played by Clement Faveau) and his cheese.
The cheese, admittedly, is a clever grounding force for the film. To pair a necessarily aged food with the coming-of-age genre feels fresh and intentionally poetic; I only wish this was explored more deeply. The weight of the many aforementioned themes leaves the film winded. As the strongest threads are followed, nearly every subplot recedes, unfinished, into the background. Additionally, things feel more or less overtly segmented into chapters. These fulfil their function but feel a little jarring. Although we leave and enter scenes too rapidly to savour, the next character, locale, or conversation never fails to disappoint. This film is packed to the brim with the love of Jura. This is the part of France where Courvoisier set Holy Cow and was herself raised, and it shows. The empty fields, forests, and fauna, all warm, all sensory. The reviewers who are praising the textural diversity of the film are totally right – the lighting, colour and sound bring the rural town to life in a way not often felt. But again, it often feels ripped away before it’s done having its effect. For example, a quiet scene in the barn with a calf, bathed in afternoon light and dozing in the hay is given no more than 30 seconds on screen. It asks the audience to savour the romantic beauty of the setting but ignores our need for some time to soak it in.
Perhaps the film doesn’t want to overstay it’s welcome. Maybe, Holy Cow is not entirely confident in the strength of its first-time cast. Maybe, Courvoisier was preoccupied with tiptoeing around the risk of clichés. Most likely, it’s a combination of the three. Just as likely is the intention that the rapid editing was meant to bring a youthful vitality to the sleepy countryside. Whatever the case, I worry that in trimming the fat, too much was lost, and too little was brought in for substitution.
Despite this, though, Holy Cow is funny, warm and runs its course with a wry charm befitting of the characters. It is a film that provides real insight into contemporary youth culture. Though Totone and his friends are written to be 18, I don’t believe it’s coincidental that they all happen to look much younger. This movie shows us the world as seen by the high-schoolers today – a world where adulthood has no bar to entry beyond your own participation, with all the attached anxiety only outlined in the fine print. Our young characters struggle with sacrifice, exploitative love, substance abuse, and back-against-the-wall stoicism born of pure necessity. These are the feelings and troubles belonging of an older crowd, but ones that, notably, even Totone’s father never resolves.
Overall, Holy Cow rushes to its finish. I liked what I saw, but it left me needing more to fall in love.
3/5 stars
Holy Cow is screening as part of the Lotterywest Perth Festival, which started on the 25th of November and will run until the 6th of April! Check out its full program here.
