Beau Travail

Inspired by Billy Budd, Beau Travail focuses on ex-Foreign Legion officer, Galoup (Denis Lavant), as he reminisces on his former life leading troops in Djibouti.

His satisfyingly strict and regimented life is upset by the arrival of a promising young recruit, Sentain (Gregoire Colin), planting the seeds of a destructive jealously. Galoup feels compelled to stop Sentain from coming to the attention of the commandant (Michel Subor) Galoup so admires, but who ignores him.

Beau Travail is a film as barren and empty as the desert which its characters populate. It is punctuated by age-old army routines and rituals, and macho posturing, with very strong homosexual undertones.

The film functions on multiple levels - it can be taken as a relatively uneventful drama, or as an intense study of masculinity underpinned by subtle hints and nuances.

Repression is the key word. Claire Denis' directorial presence is slight, the script is minimal and the photography of Agnes Godard is simple and beautiful, often suggesting there is more beneath surface appearances.