It is very rare, I cannot say whether fortunately or unfortunately; but, from time to time, a film appears that makes us see cinema as the first time. Like the first time we saw cinema in our lives. Like the first time anyone saw cinema, ever. These films manage to reach the deepest and surprisingly simple core of their art. And bring forth the re-enchantment not only of art, but also of the world. And of being.

There is usually no secret to make a motion picture: turn on the camera and shoot; then, assemble the footage together in a certain sequence. But therein lies what is perhaps the only secret: knowing what to shoot and what to show thereafter. That’s expressiveness: narrative, lyric or dramatic. It is at this point that Faces, Places (“Visages, Villages”, France, 2017, directed by Agnès Varda and JR) reaches its greatest achievement. Very few films are so expressive, in terms of what they reveal. And so simply, so stripped down, to top it off.

This apparent documentary is, in fact and under a certain eye, a road movie, with a very organized and tight narrative, despite the apparent spontaneity of its planning and making. We are not going to tell the end of the story; suffice it to say that there is an end, very well tied, sensitive and meaningful. An end that is built through events, speeches, reactions, relationships – as in any ficcional narrative.

The story is of the journey undertaken by Agnès Varda –  a veteran filmmaker, forerunner of the french nouvelle vague – and the artist JR, known for photographic portraits of ordinary people, printed in large formats and pasted on the streets. Both travel together around France, with a common artistic project: to tell stories of different people and different places, uniting them through JR’s snapshots.

But, behind the most obvious layer of “road film”, Faces, Places reveals itself as a worthy representative of the classic poetry cinema tradition, with the lyricism of its shots – in open public spaces (villages – vilas) or in the private close-up sur-face (visages). Also the lyricism of the testimonies – life stories. And, above all, the lyrical spontaneity of the narration voice of Agnès Varda.

The filmmaker’s abandon and selflessness – we can’t help but remember Diary of a Pregnant Woman (1958), The Gleaners and I (2000) or The Beaches of Agnès (2008) – also make the “documentary” label serve very little here. Faces, Places is another beautiful film-essay made by the Agnès Varda. Planning the shoot with JR, she goes so far as to categorically state that “chance is my best assistant”.

The free form of the essay, in cinema or in literature, demands from its authors availability, spontaneity and enthusiasm (in fact, Agnès’ enthusiasm, at the height of his 89 years of age at the time, is contagious). Theodor W. Adorno, essayist of the essay (meta-essay), highlights the lively load of subjectivity of the genre; the essayist’s posture is like that of the child, dazzled by the discovery of the world.

The essay is assembled like a toy, with joy and playfulness: “happiness and play are essential”, concludes the philosopher. But why talk about theory? The theory only serves to reinforce the sensitive experience in the intellect: there is nothing that can be explained or systematized that isn’t already expressed very clearly, with suggestive force and simplicity, within “Visages, Villages”.

It is a film that enchants and attracts us, without being appellative. It is art, life and the human being on the screen, as they are. It is a film that we watch with contemplative attention and unarmed soul.