Claire Simon cites Frederick Wiseman’s Hospital (1970) and Near Death (1989) as key inspirations for her latest film, and for much of its 168-minute runtime Our Body does function, à la Wiseman, as a study of an institution––in this case the various units of a public Parisian hospital where women receive all manner of care, including treatment for pregnancy, fertility, gender transition, cancer, and end-of-life needs. Simon and her all-female crew observe their subjects in close-up; except for occasional establishing shots in hallways and the garden courtyard, the camera’s seldom more than a few feet from the women and one trans man, their companions, and the doctors, nurses, and technicians who perform their jobs with uncommon professionalism and grace. That the camera is likely capturing an idealized version of the daily grind of modern healthcare––every person we see has signed a waiver and is presumably putting on their...
- 8/3/2023
- by Darren Hughes
- The Film Stage
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