(NEVER GIVE UP) is a poetic filmed metaphor. A man facing us, in all his strength and fragility. A man who sees his face swelling under the blows. The idea was to make him a real living painting, like a Francis Bacon painting.
The more blows he takes, the more his face changes and the better he becomes. Each bruise corresponds to a stage in his life. Each bump could be named after a parent, a wife, a child, a teacher, a friend, a cop.
The punches seem to go through the face and touch the actor’s very skeleton. They are perceived as an earthquake by the viewer, but strangely enough, the message of the film remains positive and poetic.
It could be summarised as follows: « What doesn’t kill us, makes us stronger.
The man calls on the viewer to « never give up », as if he were addressing his tormentors by provoking them and showing them that their blows can do nothing.
This wounded man, who never answers, is a modern representation of a religious idea. He does not turn the other cheek, but suffers with dignity. As if he knew deep down that you can’t answer hate with hate. That love is stronger than anything else and that despite all the obstacles, and all the blows we receive, we must live upright.
Our body, our face are the fruit of all our past experiences. What we are today is often built on blood and tears, as much as on laughter and joy.
For me, it was really about creating a hypnotic picture that would touch the deepest part of us and transmit a sincere emotion. What could be more essential than a face subjected to the shocks of life… A face that alone contains the very essence of the universe.
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