LAETITIA MASSON has worked in the French film industry "below the line" and this shows in the high level of production values obtained with very little money. "En Avoir (Ou Pas)" was shot in Super 16 by Caroline Champetier the dp of Godard's HELAS POUR MOI and shows how the use of available light and actual locations (long a fixture in New Waves films) can still "work" if the director has the skill to weave the proper characters and situations into the mix.
Ms. Masson is a graduate of FEMIS (one of the top film schools in Europe) and this is evident in her film and editing style ( a mix of neo-realism and direct address) and in an awareness of film theory and history. This gives TO HAVE (OR NOT) a sense of balance and a historical and political resonance.
FESTIVALS: Venice (Official Selection), Montreal Festival of New Cinema, Sarasota French Film Fest., New Directors/New Films, Toronto, Vancouver, Berlin (Forum).
SYNOPSIS: Two lonely young people in search of something better than their shabby pasts meet and explore the possibility that "love" might still be worth the risk amidst the uncertain flux of this post modern age.
REVIEWS
Stephen Holden, NEW YORK TIMES " ...a prickly realist film...could be described as a romantic reality check...it is the antithesis of that quintessentially swoomy Gallic romance, "A Man and a Woman.".... but in its guarded, skeptical way, the superbly acted film is as much on the side of love as is its glossier forerunner.
Dave Kehr, NY Daily News. "The 30s French school of poetic realism gets a beguiling update in "To Have (Or Not)", a working-class romance directed with a fine, light touch and a disciplined eye for social detail by newcomer Laetitia Masson. Gentle and good-spirited but never sappy, TO HAVE (OR NOT) strikes a note of non-manipulative charm that few contemporary films have been able to achieve."
Kent Jones, TIME OUT NEW YORK, "Every place, every encounter carries that odd feeling---simultaneously deflated and up-for-grabs---of getting fired on Friday at three o'clock...a doleful romance, made oddly compelling by the wonderful cinematography of Caroline Champetier and by the Caesar award winning Sandrine Kiberlain.
Elizabeth Vincentelli. VILLAGE VOICE, :"... a snap shot full of humanity...its quiet charm is worth enduring Anthology's rockhard seats."
F.X. Fenney, LA WEEKLY "FILM PICK OF THE WEEK" "TO HAVE (OR NOT) unfolds a beautifully layered story, and writer-director Laetitia Masson--blessed with a transparently passionate lead actress in Kiberlain--makes sure we never lose sight of Alice's heart.."
Kevin Thomas, LOS ANGELES TIMES....low key, pitch-perfect first feature....a small, intimate film and Masson displays an easy assured style and a flawless sense of proportion. She's gotten everything just right, you feel she has a sense of humor, although her film is not a comedy...inviting and graceful TO HAVE OR NOT has a bracing dash of reality and leaves us eager to see what Masson and her actors do next."