BPM (Beats per Minute)


BPM , also known as 120 BPM , is a 2017 French drama film directed by Robin Campillo and starring Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Arnaud Valois and Adèle Haenel. The film is about homosexuality and the AIDS activism of ACT UP Paris in 1990s France. Campillo and co-screenwriter Philippe Mangeot drew on their personal experiences with ACT UP in developing the story.
It had its world premiere at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, followed by screenings at other festivals. At Cannes it won critical acclaim and four awards, including the Grand Prix. It went on to win six César Awards, including Best Film, and other honours.

Plot

In the early 1990s, a group of HIV/AIDS activists associated with the Paris chapter of ACT UP struggle to effect action to fight the AIDS epidemic. While the French government has declared its intent to support HIV/AIDS sufferers, ACT UP stages public protests against their sluggish pace, accusing the government of censoring and minimizing the fight against the disease. When the pharmaceutical company Melton Pharm announces its plans to reveal its HIV trial results at a prominent pharmaceutical conference the following year, ACT UP invades its offices with fake blood and demands it release its trial results immediately. While ACT UP makes some headway with its public protests, its members fiercely debate the group's strategy, with conflicting goals of showmanship and persuasion, with conflicting aesthetics of positivity and misery. ACT UP struggles to plan a more effective Gay Pride parade than in previous years, bemoaning the depressing, "zombie" atmosphere the AIDS epidemic had created.
The film gradually shifts from the political storyline of ACT UP's actions to the personal stories of ACT UP members. Foreshadowing later events in the movie, Jeremie, an AIDS positive youth in the group sees his health deteriorate rapidly. Per his wishes, the group parades in the streets after his death, putting his name and face to the ranks of AIDS victims. A gay, HIV-negative newcomer, Nathan, begins to fall in love with the passionate HIV-positive veteran Sean. Nathan and Sean start a sexual relationship, but Sean is already exhibiting signs of the disease's progression. Nathan cares for Sean as they both discuss their sexual histories. When Sean is released to Nathan's apartment for hospice, Nathan euthanizes him, and ACT UP holds a wake at his home. As per Sean's wishes, they invade a health insurance conference, sprinkling his ashes over the conference-goers and their food.

Cast

Production

Director Robin Campillo co-wrote the screenplay, describing himself as "an ACT UP militant in the '90s", meaning he did not have to carry out any other investigation into how to accurately portray the experience. One scene was also based on his experience with the AIDS epidemic, as he said "I've dressed up a boyfriend on his death". Co-screenwriter Philippe Mangeot was also involved in ACT UP.
At Cannes, Campillo explained his decision to go ahead with directing the film, saying "BPM is above all a film I wanted to make where the force of words transforms into pure moments of action". The budget of $5 million was raised in months.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival on 20 May 2017. On 24 June, it went to the Moscow International Film Festival, followed by the New Zealand International Film Festival in July. With the number of films at the Toronto International Film Festival being reduced from 2016, BPM was nevertheless selected for the 2017 festival in September.
At Cannes, The Orchard acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film. It has been released in France on 23 August 2017 as scheduled.

Incidents

On 4 February 2018, a group of Christian protesters holding icons and singing church chants disrupted the screening of BPM at the Romanian Peasant Museum in Bucharest. Displaying banners with nationalist and Christian messages, the protesters claimed that "a film with this plot is inadmissible to be screened" at the Romanian Peasant Museum, because "it is a film about homosexuals", and "the Romanian peasant is Orthodox Christian." After half an hour of dispute, the police took the protesters out of the cinema. The screening of BPM was part of a series of events dedicated to LGBT History Month. Director Tudor Giurgiu, a supporter of LGBT rights and witness to what happened, criticized in a Facebook post such demonstrations and asked for protection measures in cinema halls where LGBT-themed films are screened.

Reception

Critical reception

On the French review aggregator AlloCiné, the film has an average review score of 4.5 out of 5 based on 31 critics, making it the highest rated film of the year. It holds a 98% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 107 reviews, with a weighted average of 7.8/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Moving without resorting to melodrama, BPM offers an engrossing look at a pivotal period in history that lingers long after the closing credits roll." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 84 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
Jada Yuan, writing for Vulture.com, spoke of being moved to tears by the film, praising it as "a unique, intimate portrait of the community from the inside". The Toronto Star's Peter Howell observed French critics at Cannes were generally excited about it and opined it deserved a top award. The Hollywood Reporter critic David Rooney positively reviewed the dialogue and the youthful cast, while criticizing the pace. Tim Robey, writing for The Daily Telegraph, gave it three of five stars, complimenting the comedic moments and a sex scene, balancing awareness of risk, with one character being HIV positive, and sexiness. Vanity Fair critic Richard Lawson hailed it as a "half sober and surveying docudrama, half wrenching personal illness narrative". Lawson and The Hollywood Reporter critics compared the film to the play The Normal Heart by Larry Kramer.

Accolades

It competed for the Palme d'Or in the main competition section at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. In July 2017, it was listed among 10 films in competition for the Lux Prize. It was selected as the French entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.
AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipientResult
Cabourg Film Festival18 June 2017Audience AwardRobin Campillo
Cannes Film Festival17—28 March 2017Grand PrixRobin Campillo
Cannes Film Festival17—28 March 2017FIPRESCI PrizeRobin Campillo
Cannes Film Festival17—28 March 2017François Chalais PrizeRobin Campillo
Cannes Film Festival17—28 March 2017Queer PalmRobin Campillo
César Awards2 March 2018Best FilmHugues Charbonneau, Marie-Ange Luciani, Robin Campillo
César Awards2 March 2018Best DirectorRobin Campillo
César Awards2 March 2018Best Original ScreenplayRobin Campillo
César Awards2 March 2018Best Supporting ActorAntoine Reinartz
César Awards2 March 2018Best Supporting ActressAdele Haenel
César Awards2 March 2018Most Promising ActorNahuel Pérez Biscayart
César Awards2 March 2018Most Promising ActorArnaud Valois
César Awards2 March 2018Best Original MusicArnaud Rebotini
César Awards2 March 2018Best SoundJulien Sicart, Valerie de Loof, Jean-Pierre Laforce
César Awards2 March 2018Best EditingRobin Campillo
César Awards2 March 2018Best CinematographyJeanne Lapoirie
César Awards2 March 2018Best Costume DesignIsabelle Pannetier
César Awards2 March 2018Best Production DesignEmmanuelle Duplay
Chicago International Film FestivalOctober 2017Gold Q-HugoRobin Campillo
European Film Awards9 December 2017Best FilmRobin Campillo
European Film Awards9 December 2017Best ActorNahuel Pérez Biscayart
European Film Awards9 December 2017Best EditorRobin Campillo
Globes de Cristal Awards12 February 2018Best FilmRobin Campillo
Globes de Cristal Awards12 February 2018Best ActorNahuel Pérez Biscayart
Guldbagge Awards22 January 2018Best Foreign FilmRobin Campillo
International Film Festival of India28 November 2017Best FilmRobin Campillo
International Film Festival of India28 November 2017Best ActorNahuel Pérez Biscayart
Independent Spirit Awards3 March 2018Best International FilmRobin Campillo
Los Angeles Film Critics Association3 December 2017Best Foreign Language FilmRobin Campillo
Lux Prize14 November 2017Best FilmRobin Campillo
Lumières Awards5 February 2018Best FilmRobin Campillo
Lumières Awards5 February 2018Best DirectorRobin Campillo
Lumières Awards5 February 2018Best ActorNahuel Pérez Biscayart
Lumières Awards5 February 2018Best ScreenplayRobin Campillo and Philippe Mangeot
Lumières Awards5 February 2018Most Promising ActorArnaud Valois
Lumières Awards5 February 2018Best MusicArnaud Rebotini
Merlinka Festival13 December 2017Best Queer Film of the YearRobin Campillo
National Society of Film Critics6 January 2018Best Foreign Language FilmRobin Campillo
New York Film Critics Circle3 January 2018Best Foreign Language FilmRobin Campillo
Online Film Critics Society28 December 2017Best Foreign Language FilmRobin Campillo
San Sebastian Film FestivalSeptember 2017Sebastiane AwardRobin Campillo
Satellite Awards11 February 2018Best Foreign Language FilmRobin Campillo
Vancouver Film Critics CircleDecember 2017Best Foreign Language FilmRobin Campillo
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association8 December 2017Best Foreign Language FilmRobin Campillo