The chorus ‘Les Choristes’ is a charming and inspirational film about a teacher who moves to a boarding school for ‘misbehaving boys’ and encourages them to form a choir.
It may sound rather formulaic – in the mould of Dead Poet’s society: bad pupils – good teacher – everyone happy in the end. But, it is not like that. There is no easy path and the film has a simple charm and avoids any pretension. Not everything works out as expected Clement Mathieu (Gérard Jugnot) is the new supervisor and he has a wonderful role, failed musician, failed in love, and in the end we see him traipsing off into anonymity. Yet, his modesty and efforts to offer a different approach to the authoritarian rule of the headmaster do confirm the idea that most (if not all, can overcome adversity and find hope in unlikely circumstances.)
The music is at times ethereal and haunting. The fact that it stems from such a harsh environment only heightens the capacity of music to transcend difficulties and misunderstanding.
The Chorus is well done with a typical French flair and realism. It had me searching whether it was based on a true story or not.
Les Choristes at IMDB
Les Choristes at Amazon.co.uk
Sound Clip from Les Choristes