I agree that Xavier Dolan is a true voice of cinema, perhaps most of all because as you say his films are honest. His films have something to say and to convey and what they say whether big or small is genuine. Personally, style doesn't bother me, but Dolan's films to me all have great emotional honesty (and also emotional and psychological complexity) and he's certainly both an inspiring guy and makes me feel pretty worthless that I hadn't written my own film (or something comparative) before I was 20! In terms of style, I believe what fits a particular film works best, for instance I love the more abstract moments in Dolan's films and yet one of my favourite of his films is Tom at the Farm in which there is none of this. So, the style doesn't matter. Although I have found a general sensuality to his films. Perhaps this is because all of his films thus far have in some way addressed love?
Since you address some of the criticisms of Dolan's work, I'd certainly say that for me his work is full of substance. The lightest of Dolan's films I would say is Heartbeats and funnily enough, though it is one of my less favourites of Dolan's films (I really like it, but it's just not my favourite), in terms of what it says it is perhaps the one that resonates with my own experience most fully because I have felt what it does say completely. Surely everyone has felt this "imaginary love" in the way the film tells it? Perhaps this film doesn't have anything too profound to say, but it still has something affecting to say and at it's heart is this substance of what it expresses, not it's style (which is obviously there too.)
In terms of style, you mention this and I like the style in Dolan's work, particularly when he uses literary quotes and more abstract sequences, however this is not why I like his work. Tom at the Farm is one of my favourite Dolan films and it does not contain this at all. I think whether a film is stylised or realistic has nothing to do with the quality of a film or a filmmaker other than in how much whatever style works for the specific film in question.
Another criticism Dolan gets is that he's narcissistic because he shows his own face in his films a lot. Well, first off, I think it's probably true that any actor, especially in recorded medium has to possess some amount of narcissism... Discuss...
Anyway, here, has anyone thought about what it would be to watch a film without having it in mind that Dolan is the director? I only saw my first of Dolan's films, Tom at the Farm earlier in the year. I didn't know until later who had directed it and as such such a thought would never enter into my mind. In fact I think contrary to comments on Dolan's narcissism for putting himself in his films and being pretty, Dolan's acting skills are often overlooked in reviews. I think he can be an affecting actor and he is certainly a charismatic actor. Most of all, I think people should experience a film for the film it is. If you love or hate it, love or hate it. It's impressive (or otherwise) after the fact due to who made it, but while you're watching the film, why would you be thinking about the director rather than experiencing the film for itself. I can't explain myself well here.
My point here is either all actors in a lead role are narcissistic because they will be on screen a lot or it is an irrelevant comment. In my opinion for a Director to be deemed narcissistic when they also act the case would have to be that they gave themself a role even though they are not very good in it/it is obvious other people would have been better and so would have resulted in a better film. This is in my view not at all the case with Xavier and in fact his own charisma and skill as an actor adds to his films (for certain in I Killed My Mother and Tom at the Farm in my view) and as I say I don't feel he gets enough credit acting-wise. It's just to separate things: as a director it is what you have to say and as an actor what you express and Dolan is considered so great due to his directing which does have something very special to it, but why should it mean he shouldn't act? If a role is suited to him, as director too, surely he ought to be most able to also convey his intention?
As for what Xavier's films have to say: his first film on first watch was emotionally devastating to me and I find it a complex, emotionally powerful film which has a lot of empathy for all of its flawed but sympathetic characters. It is I think still my favourite of Dolan's films, although I do also adore Tom at the Farm: it's hard for me to say which of these very different but both very powerful (to me) films I prefer - I think they're just equal in their different ways. I've spoken of Heartbeats and Laurence Anyways is an extravagant in the telling, yet also based on a simplicity of feeling love story (for me, Laurence worked least well, but I still really liked it. It just didn't make me feel quite as much as any of the other films did.) Tom at the Farm captures the kind of mood that I imagine no matter how many times you'd watched the film you would still feel it: oppressive, dark, claustrophobic, sad, violent. It's both a dark, psychosexual thriller and a meditation on grief and I think very powerful for being such a combination of things and always so utterly intense an experience. It may be a less personal expression, but for me I suppose it ensnares you in that strange way it does Tom. And I also feel it personally as I have lost someone I've loved (though not a lover, and I didn't get trapped on a farm after and so on, haha). I guess I have a special place for this one since it is the first I saw and having recently re-watched it it got at me in just the same way. It's why I bothered to even look up and investigate who made the film in the first place!
I also can't wait to see what Dolan does next. I can't say I know a great deal about specific filmmakers of past or present, but I know Dolan's work thus far has always had interesting and pertinent things to express emotionally and psychologically which can really get to my core - be it in a personal work, in a lighter work, in a work spanning decades or in a work with more theme behind it. I'm so excited to see future work from Xavier.
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