"If music be the food of love, play on". Over the years many filmmakers have given their own interpretations of the impact of music on one's life, and the importance of music in overcoming all manner of trials and tribulations. Think The Commitments, Little Voice and documentaries such as DIG! and Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster and you will see what I mean.

The latest along these lines is De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté (or The Beat my Heart Skipped to any Francophobes out there). The Beat… is a dark movie that tells the troubled story of the life of Thomas Seyr (Romain Duris, Exils). Seyr is an unhappy 28-year-old who is following in his father's (Niels Arestrup, Rewind) career in real estate. His job remit involves dispatching rats into houses and breaking windows in order to remove squatters. Other business interests involve a variety of dealings that could be best described as legally and morally suspect.

Thomas is your typical tortured soul, still mourning the death of his mother a decade before, and his relationship with his father is an uneasy one. But you feel there is the potential for redemption, for something to make all the difference in his unhappy existence. A chance encounter with someone from his past offers him that chance.

While in the foyer of a concert hall he meets his old music teacher, Mr. Fox (Sandy Whitelaw, Enigma), who used to handle the career of his late mother, a former concert pianist. Remembering the talent that Tom possessed in the past, he asks him to come for an audition as a concert pianist himself. The month before the audition gives him a new lease of life and the chance to focus his energies and frustrations into something positive and creative.

Having not played for about ten years it is natural that his skills will have become rusty from inactivity. He finds a coach to prepare him for his audition but, comically, she is Chinese and unable to speak any French while, needless to say, he cannot speak Mandarin. However, the thread that binds them together is the music, and many poignant scenes ensue where the pair sit together and exchange opinions that neither can understand; yet they full comprehend what is being said.

And all the while his life improves. The irrational violent behaviour subsides, and we see a more passive and passionate character. He even finds love with his friend's wife, but is unable to maintain it. The day of the audition arrives and it throws up and unexpected twist in the plot which is perfectly in keeping with Tom's tragic hero caricature.

The Beat… is a dark yet enjoyable story and the plot is reasonably sound if a little unbelievable on the whole. The month prior to the audition is a drawn out affair, which makes the hurried nature of the post-audition narrative slightly disappointing. Duris plays the part well and succeeds in obtaining sympathy and admiration. Provided that you're not put off by the subtitles, it's well worth a watch.

Eamonn Donohoe

Rated 15A (see IFCO website for details)
The Beat that my Heart Skipped is released on 4th November 2005.
The Beat that my Heart Skipped – Official website