Les Papillons Noirs

I've recently watched online on Arte.tv the amazing series Les Papillons Noirs (Black Butterflies), that I think is available on Netflix. I had seen some advertising on the street and I thought that it was set in the 70's, which was not particularlly appealing to me. Anyway, when I found that it would be available for free in Arte France for one month I decided to give it a try. I got hooked since the first minute. The 2-3 first episodes are really good. It's set in our days, telling a story that starts in the 60's. Albert (masterly played by Niels Arestrup), an old man with just a few months ahead, hires a writer (Modi, a hard guy that after a stay in prison rebuilt himself through writing) to write his biography. Modi (Nicolas Duvauchelle, that I knew from his pretty good performances in Braqo) is in a creative crisis and ends up accepting what apparently should be a boring, mundane task that will get him some cash. It won't be. It's not only Albert's story what is told, but also that of Solance, the love of his life. Two depossesed kids that grow together into two survivors that will end up changing sides, from that of the beaten ones to that of those who beat, and kill, and enjoy with it. The 70's, France, a rich, powerful country (las 30 gloriosas) a working class that can enjoy summer vacations, partying, sexual freedom. A free and optimistic country (so far away from these days), but where things could also go totally wrong.

The recreation of the 70's is amazing, the colorful aesthetic full of life and energy that contrasts with the dark aesthetic of the present, where Modi, his mother and Albert live in shadows. There's this so well chosen female character that makes her appearance in the middle of the series. A tattoo artist whose main role in the story seems at first to further enrich this visual journey by driving us into contemporary, alternative, cool, arty, sensual territories, and that will end up being a pivotal piece of this masterful story.

The characters grow and grow as the story evolves, so the last episodes are really tense, gripping, unsettling, thrilling... and then you have this twist in the story that left me in shock. A twist that I would almost compare to the one in Incendies (so if you've read my review of that Quebecoise masterpiece you get an idea of how much that means coming from me). When the last episode ended I was left with contradictory feelings. On one hand a profound satisfaction as I felt lucky to have spent my time with such an amazing story. On the other hand, the bad feeling left by the realistic question to this answer: how long will it take until I come across another story so good as this one? A long time I'm afraid.