Over dinner, Oury resolves to confronts his harshest critics as he shows films to his two ex-wives and his children: the video of his first wedding, which his ex-father-in-law and chanson singer Enrico Macias turned into one big show dedicated to himself. His first documentary about an artist who discarded all of his drawings before managing to finish them. And the film about Léah, his deceased daughter, which she herself shot during her time in hospital. All of these prove the starting point for a reflection on Oury's life. On his relationship with his father and the complicated relationship with his mother, starting from childhood and proceeding up to the present day and his professional life: he has never truly finished anything, now is the time to change that. As such, WEDDING BLUES evolves into both a making-of and a cinematic mise en abyme: Milshtein screens not only the films themselves for his family, but also the footage captured at the last dinners they shared together.
In what is a deeply personal story, Oury Milshtein places himself at the centre – not in a manner akin to his ex-father-in-law but instead with a witty and reflective self-irony – and thus opens up a universal dimension: one that engages with loss, grief, family, and the feeling of being excluded. The film's processual nature reflects the often protracted process of dealing with farewells and memories. What remains, what ceases to exist? And is it even possible to bring order to the chaos of the past?
Text: Merlin Webers
Every screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Oury Milshtein.
