Beau Travail Film Review: Reproving Repression

Claire Denis gracefully dismantles toxic masculinity, war, and repression in her film Beau Travail, which features one of the most effective endings of all time.

Those who know the movie, however, know the ending is one of the greatest of all time, and one that masterfully conveys Claire Denis’s ideas and overall vision. Viewers may only remember the ending, but there is so much more to this powerful, poetic work of art.

The ending does not produce the same level of emotion out of context. Rather, it works in conjunction with the rest of the film. Beau Travail textually deals with soldiers in the French Foreign Legion training in Djibouti. Galoup leads these men, but under the direction of his Commandant, Bruno Forestier (Michael Subor), whom Galoup envies. Galoup reflects on his relationship with Forestier in his voiceover: “I feel so alone when I think of my superior…I admired him without knowing why.” Galoup also acts aggressively towards a new recruit, Gilles (Grégoire Colin), for seemingly unknown reasons – reasons that become clearer to the audience, however, as the story progresses.

Denis implies that Galoup has issues that he has been unable to work through. Much of the film plays out in slow, methodical training montages and Galoup’s interactions with the other two men. Interspersed throughout are scenes where the soldiers dance in a club with some of the local women, scenes that could give way to some much-needed freedom for the soldiers, but often play out in a choreographed, structured fashion. 

Denis carefully crafts an aesthetic that is both simple and beautiful. She often focuses on shots of the desert landscape, reminding her viewers of the conditions these soldiers are in and their relationship to their oppressive surroundings. The aforementioned montage scenes do not play out like a typical war movie; rather, Denis quietly shoots these scenes with a certain elegance, with the training exercises playing out almost like a dance. The dancing motif is relevant to what is Denis’s overall message: male repression.

In terms of themes, Beau Travail contains multitudes. Reflections on toxic masculinity, the nature of war, and how humans relate to each other and nature abide. One of the most prominent ideas is that of repression. Galoup is weighed down by the military system, and is therefore unable to fully express himself, or feels that he cannot do so. In the voiceover, he sings a song about “tradition.” Denis uses this character to emphasize how traditions and systems can often repress those who are under them in one way or another.

The film ends with Galoup being sent back to France for a court martial. Free from the system he has been a part of for so long, the ending dance number can be seen as his breaking free from that oppressive system. The audience sees Galoup hesitant to dance at first, but his moves grow increasingly wild and freeing. He is now able to express himself in ways he’s been unable to do.

Again, one cannot begin to explore every theme within Beau Travail in a single review. Ultimately, though, the film is about relationships: the relationship between broken people, the relationship between human beings and their surroundings, the relationship between war and peace, the relationship between expression and repression. It’s a staggering work, one that will quickly hypnotize its audiences and leave them reeling with its final act of defiance and self-expression.

Beau Travail is now available to watch on digital and on demand.

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