Mon Oncle d'Amérique (1980)
Director: Alain Resnais
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
After the disappointments of Stavisky and Providence, Resnais here retrieves his position as a great film innovator. My American Uncle takes three middle class characters (two of them from well-defined working class backgrounds) and leads them through a labyrinth of 'stress' situations. The tone hovers between soap opera and docudrama, consistently pleasurable if hardly gripping. Then it introduces its fourth major character, Henri Laborit, a bona fide behavioural scientist, who discusses his theories of biological and emotional triggers. Shortsighted critics seem to imagine that the fictional material merely illustrates what Laborit says, although Resnais inserts some jokey shots of 'human' mice to demolish any such notions. His triumph is to create a new kind of fiction: a drama that not only leaves room to think, but opens up fissures that thoughts flood into, some prompted by Laborit, others by personal reflections, yet others by dreams. Inevitably, it ends in a riddle, and one which proves that surrealism lives.Author: TR
Cast & crew
Director: Alain Resnais
Producer: Philippe Dussart
Cast: Gérard Depardieu, Nicole Garcia, Roger Pierre, Marie Dubois, Nelly Borgeaud, Pierre Arditi, Henri Laborit full cast
Duration: 126 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Has Michael Mann lost it?
Adam Lee Davies mourns the passing of a major Hollywood talent as Michael Mann's 'Public Enemies' sees the great director running on empty
Why 'Ice Age 3' is really for adults
Tom Huddleston takes a look at a selection of films which bring adult problems to a pre-teen audience
Is this Summer 2009's best film?
The French filmmaker Claire Denis speaks to Dave Calhoun about her new film, '35 Shots of Rum', a tender portrait of a father-daughter relationship in Paris
The Informant: trailer preview
Steven Soderbergh is at it again, this time with a screwball corporate caper starring Matt Damon called 'The Informant'. View the trailer here...
Rudo y Cursi: interview
Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna talk to Time Out about their highly entertaining new comedy, 'Rudo y Cursi'
An open letter to Peter Morgan
Tom Huddleston penned an open letter to Peter Morgan offering some friendly dos and don'ts for the new Bond movie
Outdoor film screenings in London 2009
Derek Adams offers a guide to the best places to see films outside in London this summer
50 essential sci-fi films
With 'Star Trek' making serious waves, we thought it would be a perfect time to select 50 must-see sci-fi films










What do you think?
Post your review now