Dissonances

Admittedly, Dissonances gets off to an electrifying start. A man and his two daughters are driving home from a trip to the toy store, singing along to Bobby McFerrin’s Don’t Worry, Be Happy (the opening is set during the late ’80s). Two men in a pickup truck begin tailing the family, and when Dad finally gets out of their way, the passenger opens fire – killing one of the young girls. The film is then divided in to three sections – Nat, Henry, and Margo – signifying the bereaved father, the cop on the case, and the surviving daughter. The first third of Dissonances, following Nat as he essentially goes insane trying to track down the killers, is easily the most effective portion of the film. Jacques Gamblin, who plays Nat, is convincing in his transformation from laid-back father to obsessed detective. And had the focus remained on Nat throughout, there’s no doubt that Dissonances would’ve been far more engaging. But in telling this story through the eyes of two other characters – characters that aren’t nearly as intriguing – the film can never quite live up to the opening half hour. It certainly doesn’t help that the script – by Jérôme Cornuau and Nicolas Saada, based on the novel by Stephen Dixon – is strangely lacking in the exposition department, leaving far too many questions unanswered (ie why is there only one cop working on this case?) This leads the viewer to assume that the story is also operating on the level of a mystery – there are certain clues planted here and there, including the revelation that the driver seemed to know Nat – but none of those issues are resolved, as the film is clearly far more content to operate as a character study. Finally, after everything is said and done, there are still some elements that just don’t make sense (why’d Henry wait so long to investigate such a pivotal piece of evidence?) Having said all that, Dissonances still remains worthwhile if only for the Nat storyline, which is unexpectedly gritty and uncompromising.

**1/2 out of ****