We watched this because it's got a great trailer and promises insight into the processes of how one of the most prestigious film schools in the world picks its students. Unfortunately, what you get is something that's slung together in an editing suite with little-to-no coherence other than a boringly linear track that doesn't follow any one would-be student or staff member, so it's impossible to feel genuinely engaged. This lack of structure or context might be a stylistic choice - I'm all for footage being allowed to tell its own story without any narrative tricksiness - and "raw" it is. However, there's barely any overall through-line, no cutaways or direct interviews to give greater depth to any of the situations or characters involved. Surely the purpose of a documentary is to lift the lid on and illuminate processes that might seem arcane to an outside observer, not make them more opaque? There is a payoff of sorts, if you're not asleep by the end of it, but we were left wondering how it is possible to make a documentary about a French film school so incredibly dull.
Review of The Competition
