Benedict Andrews
Seberg

Although I still occasionally go to the cinema, I must admit that the Netflix platform boasts a wide selection of titles. And "Seberg" (Italian title "Seberg - Nel mirino") immediately piqued my curiosity, and although I did not find it entirely satisfying, I still feel compelled to mention it. If only for the cynical and harsh fate that struck the protagonist of Benedict Andrews' film, the actress Jean Seberg (portrayed here in the best possible way by Kristen Stewart) both during her life and after her mysterious death in 1979 at only 40 years old. Indeed, today few remember one of the best actresses and muses of the French Nouvelle Vague. Yet, in her time, Jean Seberg was unanimously appreciated.

But the film "Seberg" illustrates what happened to her when, towards the end of the '60s, already established especially in Europe, she returned to her homeland, the USA, to act in some films. The fact is that, at that historical moment, the entire Western world, not just the USA, was boiling with social tensions and student protests. Jean Seberg took the civil rights cause for African Americans deeply to heart, so much so that she generously financed the Black Panthers. Obviously, for the American FBI (always a champion of paranoia to the point of spying and stalking even John Lennon, who expressed radical political positions), the actress had to be watched to make her life a living hell. For her, a sensitive, fragile, and insecure woman, it would be the beginning of the end, prompting her, a few years later, to leave the USA and return to France alongside her husband Roman Gary. Already afflicted by fears of surveillance against her and a victim of recurring depressive crises, she would die possibly by suicide in 1979.

Intentionally, I did not want to reveal much of the film's plot, which seemed to me a diligent but incomplete account of the surveillance suffered by Jean Seberg. Yes, because as the story is presented, it almost seems that the actress passionately supports the Black Panthers' cause, perhaps more attracted by one of the group's leaders, Hakim Jamal, a handsome African American. And the film glosses over Jamal's violent and abusive behavior towards Seberg, who was also beaten by her lover Jamal, determined to extort money from her for the good cause of the liberation of black people. Or does the director almost imply that what the protagonist did was influenced by the so-called spirit of the times, where it was "cool" to engage politically?

The fact is, the film remains a bit superficial, fabricating doubts about an FBI agent intent on tracking the protagonist to incriminate her. It does not remind us that the actress, a cultured and sensitive woman subtly inclined to martyrdom, always cared deeply about the cause and fate of the downtrodden. A real shame, considering Kristen Stewart's chameleon-like performance.

But at least, to the credit of Andrews' film, it must be said that it recalled an incredible story involving a generous and unfortunate woman. And so, all this might encourage the recovery of important old films from the second half of the last century in which she acted, not only in Godard's masterpiece "A bout de souffle" but also (among others) in a so-called minor work by Chabrol like "Criminal story". Just to note how, when the camera captured Jean Seberg, it was as if a ray of sunshine pierced the scene.