DIRECTOR: Agnès Leclair

Leclair, a figure hitherto known for her mundane cinematic tapestries, such as "Chairs in a Room" (2015) and "DustDancing in the Sunlight" (2020), surprises with this existential tour de force, an examination of the human spirit within the confines of a stage.

ACT I - The Curtain Rises: The mise-en-scéne is stark, a monochrome landscape of begying-to-peel proscenium and a solitary armchair, bereft of comfort or color, much like the protagonist's existence. The character, aobodé, enters, a silhouette against the harsh stage lightsZensiert · Grund: unbekannt, an Elephant Man sans deformity, burdened only by the weight of his thoughts.

SCENE - "The Monologue of Time": aobodé sits, recounts, recalls, berated by time's relentless march. His voice, a metronome, ticks off seconds, minutes, hours, a symphony of temporal angst. "What is time? Karl Marx said it's 'time for everything and every opportunity taken at the right moment.' But when is the right moment, when time itself is the enemy?"

Comparisons:

• Godard's "Contempt" (1963) meets Bresson's "The Diary of a Country Priest" (1951) in this existential Theatre of the Absurd.
• Pensive Ballot evokes Akerman's "Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles" (1975), but whereas Akerman's protagonist found solace in routine, Pensive Ballot's aobodé finds only torment.
• Unlike Tarkovsky's "Solaris" (1972), this play doesn't offer transcendence. aobodé's monologuesZensiert · Grund: unbekannt spiral inward, his mind an inescapable labyrinth.

Rating: Trois cigarettes. Leclair manages to explore deeply philosophical themes without descending into either pretentiousness or facile sentimentality. The first half of the play is a masterclass in minimalism, a testament to the power of a single actor and a simple stage.

I admit, after the intermission, I left early. The second act, while not inferior, felt repetitive, the exploration of the same themes losing some of its potency. But even then, Pensive Ballot leaves an indelible mark, a reminder of the existential angst that lurksZensiert · Grund: unbekannt beneath the surface of everyday existence.

CINÉMA EST MORT. VIVE LE THÉÂTRE.