Mon Oncle d’Amerique
aka My American Uncle, by Jean Gruault, Henri Laborit
My American Uncle is a formidable, jubilant film.
Alain Resnais directed it and in the leading role,
we have the majestic Gerard Depardieu, in his glory days.
The plot is in fact a combination of stories,
complex, sophisticated and mesmerizing, with psychoanalysis undertones.
To make the connection, perhaps to make the
narratives more comprehensible, experiments are weaved in between.
One refers to Learned Pessimism, and rats are
given electric shocks in their cage, with the possibility to escape the
punishment offered in one instance.
However, when the animal is left with no
choice, the door that he could access being closed, the result is disastrous.
They learn to be helpless and the effects on
the organism is devastating, with terrible biological consequences.
The same thing happens to humans who see no way
out of impossible situations and become pessimistic.
They can no longer face challenges and research
has proved that this psychological helplessness leads to an inability to fight
viruses, where a normal person can deter such a challenge, the helpless
pessimist becomes very sick.
There is an alternative and the founder of
Positive Psychology explains what one can do in the book:
Leaned Optimism by
Martin Seligman
It is amusing and somewhat disturbing to see
the main characters dressed like rats in various scenes.
This is to make the connection between studies of
behavior, the answers to provocation in the animal and human world.
When the rats are alone in their cage and they
are punished with electric shocks, they become helpless as aforementioned.
However, when another rat is placed in the same
environment and electricity is used to shock them, they fight.
Astonishingly, those who have the opportunity
to fight with an adversary do not have the same health problems as the lonely
animals.
It means that if they have the chance to do
something about the pain, they get over and do not get ill, as the helpless
rats.
For humans, things are more complicated, the
voice in the background of the film explains, because of social norms.
When they go through an important change and
they feel punished, they cannot go and beat their opponent.
Although funny versions of various
possibilities are offered in wonderful scenes from this masterpiece.
Rene Raguneau aka Gerard Depardieu is one of
the protagonists of the film and he faces various provocations that take a toll
on his mental and physical health, he has pains and a breakdown.
As the scientist that details the experiments
points out, when humans cannot battle with others, they may turn against themselves;
perhaps even commit suicide, which one of the characters tries.
Janine is another hero of the motion picture
and she first tries to become an actress, then, after an initial success, she
becomes the mistress of a very difficult, married man who is a big strain on
anyone’s nerves.
That man’s wife waits in the corridor one day,
to try to convince the lover to let the husband return home to his wife and
children.
Seeing as the first demand has little echo, the
wife explains that the man must come to his family.
She says that she has just learned that she is dying,
she only has a short time before death and this is the winning argument.
Even if there are tragic events, some of them
invented by the characters, this is a superb, jubilant comedy.
The confrontation between Rene and his new
challenger is often hilarious, in spite of the fact that we feel sorry for the
hero.
My American Uncle is on the list compiled by
The New York Times: The New York Times ‘Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made:
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