1. 11/18/2015 TIFF Review: Eden | CanCulture
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DISCOVER CANADIAN ARTS AND CULTURE
SEPTEMBER 16, 2014
TIFF Review: Eden
As the lights dim in the theatre on the last night of the Toronto International Film Festival
(http://www.tiff.net/), the crowd anxiously waits for Eden to start. However, it becomes glaringly obvious halfway
through that this was not the right film to end the festival with.
Set in the underground music scene of 90s Paris, this film promises more than it delivers. You go in expecting a

2. 11/18/2015 TIFF Review: Eden | CanCulture
http://www.canculture.com/2014/09/16/tiff-review-eden/ 2/4
euphoric high but leave feeling you need some anti-depressants. The film gives a glimpse into rave culture during a
time when DJs still scratched vinyl. The story is told through Paul (Félix de Givry) and Stan (Hugo Conzelmann), the
two members of Cheers, an electronic music group whose sound is described as “New York garage with a Parisian
twist.” This film, directed by Mia Hansen-Løve, starts in 1992 and spans almost two decades.
Although Paul and Stan are both equal partners in the group, Paul is the star of the film, which focuses heavily on his
relationships with Louise (Pauline Étienne), Julia (Greta Gerwig) and Anaïs (Zita Hanrot) and the disintegration of
his life. Also, painted as their prime rivals, we get a glimpse of Thomas (Vincent Lacoste) and Guy-Man (Arnaud
Azoulay) of Daft Punk in the era before they donned their iconic helmets.
Eden is the name of a fanzine that they read when Paul and Stan first become DJs. Eden can mean a state of absolute
happiness or bliss, which the movie certainly tries to play on.
It opens promisingly, with the imagery of a Parisian subculture that captivates and excites. The first half is rife with
dance and club scenes, titillating the senses with bright colours and vibrant sounds. This hides the fact that the loose
plot jumps all over the place.
Things fall apart the moment they return from a gig at MoMA PS1 in New York at the beginning of the second half.
Although the first half suffers from gaping plot holes, the second is an outright mess. It spans several years, the
pacing slows down and the scenes feel redundant. The skipping between years makes the plot hard to follow and
allows for little character development. As a viewer, you feel disconnected from the characters and their stories. One
character commits suicide about two-thirds through the film and because we know so little about his struggles, it’s
hard to care.
The acting in the film is solid except for one flagrant issue: Greta Gerwig’s scenes are painfully awkward to watch and
she seems utterly bored with the whole thing, as if she was forced to be in the movie. It leads one to believe they
needed an American in the movie for the sole purpose of not having the entire film be in French.
If one thing’s for sure, the soundtrack is great. There is plenty of French house, nu-disco, early Daft Punk tunes and
garage to keep your ears happy.
Eden attempts to show the rise and imminent fall of this electronic music duo, but instead it turns into a depressing
story of a pathetic thirty-something man-child with a cocaine addiction. The best bet is to only watch part one and
revel in the dream world of 90s Paris or better yet, forget the movie altogether and listen to the soundtrack.
On vinyl, of course.
Kelsey Adams is a regular contributor to CanCulture and studies journalism at Ryerson University.
This article was edited by Toni Baggos (mailto:toni@canculture.com), CanCulture’s film section editor.

3. 11/18/2015 TIFF Review: Eden | CanCulture
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by Kelsey Adams
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