Vertigo Releasing
Good intentions and a compelling Jesse Eisenberg sadly can’t save this sluggish, disjointed wartime biopic – a true story that tells the true story of mime Marcel Marceau when he assisted the French resistance in World War II to escort thousands of orphans out of Nazi-occupied France.
Eisenberg’s roles of late have made for some unexpected, interesting films; in both The Art of Self-Defense and Vivarium, Eisenberg plays up to his strengths. In Resistance, he once again fills the screen with a fittingly kooky performance as Marceau. It’s a performance that becomes more subdued as the film progresses and the action starts to unfold; it’s an honest turn that allows audiences to see a side of Eisenberg they’re perhaps not used to. The actor handles the material well to turn in yet another interesting performance – at this point, you can at least expect a fascinating performance from any Eisenberg-starrer.
That being said, it’s really the only good thing about Resistance. While Marceau’s heroism is to be admired, Jakubowicz’s script lacks the depth to really make it stick. The film struggles to balance the various characters and subplots it’s juggling; it can’t decide whether it wants to be a biopic or a war film so it sits half-heartedly in the middle and doesn’t really work as either – a lot of ideas aren’t developed or really given much due as a result. The characters are thinly-sketched too; even Marceau is reduced to cliche, despite Eisenberg doing what he can to bring dimension to his protagonist. He isn’t given much to work with though. So much of the story relies on empathy and investment in the material from the audience and, while this is naturally there given the severity of the situations being depicted, so little of this is drawn from the mawkish screenplay or the one-dimensional characters.
There are a lot of moving parts to Jakubowicz’s endeavour but the filmmakers are unable to get the balance between any of them right. As a result, the film feels very disjointed and tedious to watch. It’s handsomely shot and competently performed, anchored by a solid Eisenberg, but the lack of confidence can really be felt. The filmmakers aren’t sure what they’re trying to do with this material and it shows; the film feels is unsure of itself so it’s riddled with cliche and wartime tropes. Marceau’s tale is, of course, one of bravery in a harrowing time but Resistance doesn’t do it any sort of justice whatsoever.
Resistance is available on digital now.
