Film Overview"Novo" is a 2002 romantic drama movie directed by Jean Pierre Limosin. Produced by Spain, France, and Switzerland, the film includes a worldwide cast, with Eduardo Noriega as the lead character, and Anna Mouglalis as his love interest. Its compelling storyline focuses on the ideas of love, amnesia, and identity.
Plot SynopsisThe movie's protagonist, Graham (Eduardo Noriega), suffers from a peculiar sort of amnesia - he can not form new memories, and old ones disappear swiftly like sand dripping through his fingers. He is constantly residing in today, able to keep in mind occasions of the previous couple of minutes, but not able to remember anything further back. His life is plunged into limbo, without a past, devoid of a future, and existing exclusively in the here and now.
Graham lives a basic life, working for low pay as a copy clerk to stay afloat, under the kindhearted and protective eye of his colleague and good friend, Sabine's (Nathalie Richard), who offers materials for his regular life documented in a red note pad. His clean slate awakens everyday, where he reads his note pad to know his environments and his more youthful enthusiast, Irene (Anna Mouglalis).
Emerging ComplicationsThough Graham's circumstance is a serious one, it doesn't deter him from living or loving. He takes part in a passionate relationship with Irene, a young and lively woman who is attracted to his tough circumstance. Their relationship, sensual and deep, forms the psychological core of the story. Nevertheless, their unconventional romance is strained by his condition and Irene's envious ex-boyfriend, Antoine (Eric Caravaca).
When Antoine finds their affair, he controls Graham's condition by removing Irene from his presence. He does this by removing all traces of her from Graham's note pad-- his sole tie to his personality and past. With no memories or mention of Irene in his guide to life, Graham quickly forgets her, illustrating the short-term nature of their love in the face of his condition.
ConclusionIn an ironic turn of events, Irene winds up sensation forgotten and erased, simply as Graham feels every day due to his memory loss. Similarly, the motion picture ends on a poignant note. Regardless of his amnesia, Graham acknowledges the inexplicable space in his life and starts looking for Irene, driven by a gut feeling, an instinctive reaction to her lack. The film reaches an open-ended conclusion, where Graham's life continues as a series of short lived present minutes, and his romance with Irene hangs in the balance, poised in between memory and oblivion.
General Impression"Novo" dives deep into the human material, providing a lead character with a distinct twist to the timeless amnesia tale. Extending beyond the triumphant power of love, the narrative harp on existential questions about the nature of memory, personal identity, and our conception of time. The interesting efficiencies, especially by Noriega and Mouglalis, along with the movie's artistic presentation of memory and lapse of memory covering an intriguing love story, make "Novo" worth an expect any film lover.
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