Eden

Director: Mia Hansen-Løve

Starring: Félix de Givry, Hugo Conzelmann, Roman Kolinka, Pauline Etienne

Running Time: 131 Mins

Country: France

[dropcap]B[/dropcap]eing a DJ is a much harder profession than it looks. You must possess an encyclopedic knowledge of the genre you are spinning, you have to learn how to beat-match precisely – sometimes still on vinyl if you’re really old school – and you have to be constantly upbeat and ready to go despite whatever mood you might be in. And despite this constant hard work, there is no guarantee you will be the headline act at Berghain or Fabric one day; instead you may be condemned to playing pubs your whole life to people who don’t appreciate you.

Eden tells the bittersweet story of one such DJ who despite being part of a great movement – the “French Touch”, which repurposed classic garage through a classy european sensibility – somehow never reaches the heights of his contemporaries.

In detailing the rise and fall of this genre, Mia Hanson Løve is smart not to focus on the successes of groups such as Daft Punk, but instead to chart someone who never quite made it, finishing his career playing at hotels and wedding parties. In this she creates a universal story about failure that could translate to any creative profession.

Image: Metrodome Distribution

We start in 1992 – what some call the best year for dance music – at a rave in the woods. Paul (Félix de Givry) is there with his best friend Cyril (Roman Kolinka). They are young and carefree, high on ‘molly’, and they have hopes and dreams of starting their own dance label. Inspired by the music of Terry Hunter, Kerri Chandler and Frankie Knuckles, they finally host their own night called “Cheers” which for a time gives them huge fame. However, their success is overshadowed by their friends, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, better known as Daft Punk. In a couple of scenes we see what could’ve been for them also, as they get rejected from a club, only for a manager to say humorously, “Let them in, they’re Daft Punk”. Eden charts Paul’s journey (or lack thereof) all the way from the heady days of the early 90s to a much more sober 2013, detailing the loves and losses he’s encountered, the great nights he’s been a part of, and the way life seems to get ahead of us when we are not looking. The editing here fluidly takes us through the years – sometimes reminding me of Boyhood in its mastery of time. Félix de Givry gives a brilliant performance balancing endless naivety with sadness, even if he doesn’t age very convincingly.

Image: Metrodome Distribution

The world changes as the characters change, sometimes in seemingly imperceptible ways. This is testament to the elliptical nature of the chronology, avoiding big moments for a grander sense of a life being lived. One gets the feeling that things get tamer as time goes by. E-Cigarettes replace the real thing, and our impossibly beautiful females get swaddled down with children and compromise – many cannot afford to live in Paris anymore. Post-recession it becomes harder to get loans from the bank. Paul faces the sad fact that his DJ life may have to come to an end, and he may have to get a job like the rest of us.

This is a movie for anyone whose dreams have been slowly crushed by the boring reality of everyday life. 

Despite the inevitably fatalistic nature of the film, what keeps it buoyant is the music itself – featuring classic cuts such as “Sweet Harmony”, “Plastic Dreams” and “To Be In Love”, which could easily fill out a setlist at any good club. One’s enjoyment in watching will a be greatly enhanced a love for the house genre (hardcore techno fans may be disappointed) yet the storyline can be seen to transcend just one scene. This is a movie for anyone whose dreams have been slowly crushed by the boring reality of everyday life. Yet it is not cynical, filled with an intense love for the scene, thus inspiring the next generation to come and make a change. After all, house music is all about pushing things forward.

Eden is available now on Curzon Home Cinema.