Cousin Jules Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Cousin Jules Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf June 16, 2014

“Cousin Jules” is a staunchly observational feature. It’s the only credited work from writer/director Dominique Benicheti, who poured five years of his life into the making of the documentary, emerging from the thick of production in 1973 with a portrait of man and a woman and the farm they tend to on a daily basis. It’s difficult to understand what Benicheti was hoping to achieve with “Cousin Jules,” but his commitment to this epic display of rustic minutiae is something to behold, filmed in CinemaScope to bring out visual depth, even for the most mundane of tasks. And believe me, the tasks are mundane. It’s a simple picture, but beautifully symbolic and endlessly fascinated with its subjects, looking to impart an appreciation for routine and its rhythmic elements, questing to manufacture screen poetry along the way.

Venturing to rural France to set the scene, Benicheti focuses on a farm owned by Jules Guiteaux and his wife, Felice. Nearing 80 years in age, the couple is tasked with keeping up the property to the best of their ability, working tirelessly throughout the day as they labor over projects and maintain the daily balance of life. A blacksmith by trade, Jules spends most of his time in his cozy workshop, forging metal into everyday objects. Felice tends to domestic duties, preparing meals and coffee, keeping her spouse on schedule. Despite the deafening clang of hammer hitting metal, it’s a largely silent life for the pair, who are so embedded in their groove, they have little left to say to each other.

Introductions are not made in “Cousin Jules.” To do so would break Benicheti’s concentration, and he wants to focus directly on the day’s work. Although Jules is established by the title, we don’t learn Felice’s name until the end credits, and the couple’s world beyond the farm (including children and social lives) is left a question mark. It’s somewhat frustrating, but the documentary isn’t interested in sentimentality, only movement and habit, setting the tone early during the first of many visits to Jules’s workshop, where the blacksmith slaps on a pair of wooden clogs and fires up his equipment, soon beginning the first of many projects that compel him to bang scorching metal into various items. Working diligently to keep his heat source alive while slamming his hammer over an anvil, Jules expertly carries out his undisclosed project while the camera studies the action with extreme patience, refusing to explain what we’re seeing or why we’re seeing it. It’s just labor in motion, communicating a drive within Jules to fulfill daily tasks as a matter of business and a point of pride.

Such stark depictions of diligence are common in “Cousin Jules,” with the entire effort devoted to the observation of farm chores. It’s bizarre, and I believe even a little comical, with a full minute of the picture focusing on Jules reading the local paper. Yet, as an art-house shot in the dark, the documentary retains a hypnotic appeal, isolating repetition as a means of tension and a test of concentration. It’s not just Jules who’s involved in the action, but Felice as well, who hunkers down to peel potatoes, retrieve water from a nearby well, and begin the rather extensive process of preparing coffee for the couple as a midday treat, accompanied by a rolled cigarette. It’s old world labor with flashes of new world comfort, including a delivery truck that parks in town, offering the community bread and butter to shave a few errands off the to-do list. Conversations are minimal, with Jules and Felice only really chatting up the weather, finding the couple perfectly comfortable with silences, locked in a harmonious quest to conquer the day with the same casual pace they’ve maintained for decades.

There are trips away from the farm, studying the collection of debris at another property, while a lonely cemetery worker digs a grave for an upcoming funeral. It’s not much, but the change in view is welcome to keep “Cousin Jules” fresh. The second half of the documentary doesn’t explicitly mention Felice’s death (that’s saved for the end credits), but focus narrows to Jules and his domestic duties, preparing himself for the day with a shave while tending to the house by making the bed and sweeping the floors. Responsibilities extend to the preparation of dinner, feeding the chickens, and the mending of clothes, each executed with skill by Jules, who wields a knife with precision. However, while it’s business as usual, there’s a slight tinge of sadness to this section of “Cousin Jules” that arrives without explanation, observing a man all alone keeping up the game of life with his comforting routine.

Cousin Jules Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Claims of restoration welcome the AVC encoded image (2.39:1 aspect ratio) presentation, and considering the unavailability of "Cousin Jules" (regulated to VHS purgatory long ago), fans should be quite pleased with the results. There are a few quibbles, including some minor framing issues that I'm not sure are intentional and few instances of crush clouding screen information. Grain is heavy but managed, gifting the image welcome texture, and detail is good for a picture with softer cinematography, with rustic particulars easily assessed. Brightness is noticeably dialed up, thinning out available hues, but greenery and red hot blacksmith projects offer some heft.

Cousin Jules Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix does admittedly display its age with some mild hiss and a slightly sludgy quality to the elements, lacking crispness. However, the general ambiance of the effort is secured through its layered presentation of sound effects, some natural, others recreated in post-production to offer maximum aural sweetness. Without much dialogue to work with, "Cousin Jules" is devoted to heavy atmospherics, with distant animal calls, interior echo, and crackling fire contributing to the soundscape. It's a welcoming package of elements, securely arranged with adequate definition, preserving the moment with tasteful emphasis. Distortion isn't detected, but stinging repetition of the metal clangs that ring out in Jules's workshop might test patience if it doesn't immediately transform into hypnosis.

Cousin Jules Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Booklet contains an essay by Haden Guest.

• "Origin of the Restoration" (11:30, SD) is an interesting peek at Benicheti's struggle to yank "Cousin Jules" out of obscurity, sharing ambitious plans that included a full retrieval of the work, and a dream to convert the effort into 3D. We see the director manipulate sound and visual elements, painstakingly cleaning up the negative while sharing bits of format history and technical achievements (also revealing how the movie was storyboarded). Clearly energized to have his hands on the picture, with dreams of its newfound potential, Benicheti's enthusiasm was cut short by his 2011 death, effectively canceling plans for a 3D overhaul.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (2:02, HD) has been included.

Cousin Jules Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Cousin Jules" is superbly shot with an emphasis on naturalistic beauty, also keeping a respectful distance from the subjects, allowing them to carry on without intrusion (although the movie does freeze-frame when Jules looks right into the camera, possibly in disgust). It's a feature for a specialized mood, as it doesn't carry any urgency or complexity, instead trusting in the basics of cinematic language, allowing viewers to understand ritual, commitment, and rest without being force-fed meaning.