I understand that Claire Denis has made a number of movies addressing France's colonial history. Therefore, her "Beau travail" is par for the course. The movie takes place on a military base in Djibouti*. One can see a stark contrast between modernized France and Djibouti, where people have to walk around selling things to make a living.
It was only after watching the movie that I learned that it's based on Herman Melville's "Billy Budd". I recently saw Peter Ustinov's 1962 movie version of that novel. I would not have made the connection. No matter, it's an intense, interesting movie with complex characters. It won't be for everyone, but how often is it that we even get to see Djibouti onscreen? I recommend it.
*Djibouti also hosts both a US military base and a Chinese one. Sounds precarious.
It was only after watching the movie that I learned that it's based on Herman Melville's "Billy Budd". I recently saw Peter Ustinov's 1962 movie version of that novel. I would not have made the connection. No matter, it's an intense, interesting movie with complex characters. It won't be for everyone, but how often is it that we even get to see Djibouti onscreen? I recommend it.
*Djibouti also hosts both a US military base and a Chinese one. Sounds precarious.