Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life is a 2010 biopic directed by Joann Sfar, a French cartoonist and filmmaker. The film is a stylized depiction of the life of Serge Gainsbourg, one of the most influential French singers and songwriters of the 20th century, who was known for his controversial lyrics, his provocative persona, and his collaboration with many famous artists.
The film begins in 1941 with the childhood of Serge Gainsbourg (played by Eric Elmosnino) in Nazi-occupied Paris. His family is Jewish and he experiences anti-Semitic prejudice and fear, which shapes his identity and his artistic sensibility. He becomes interested in music early on and learns to play the piano, but his father disapproves of his passion and wants him to become a lawyer.
As a teenager in the 1950s, Serge rebels against his bourgeois upbringing and embraces the bohemian culture of jazz clubs, poetry readings, and intellectual circles. He meets and falls in love with Juliette Gréco (played by Anna Mouglalis), a famous singer and muse of existentialist intellectuals. They have a passionate but tumultuous relationship that inspires some of Serge's most famous songs, such as La Javanaise and Bonnie and Clyde.
In the 1960s, Serge becomes a major pop star in France, with hits like Initials B.B., Comic Strip, and Je t'aime... moi non plus, a duet with Jane Birkin (played by Lucy Gordon) that causes a scandal for its explicit lyrics and orgasmic moans. Serge's fame and success are accompanied by his addiction to alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs, as well as his reputation for outrageous behavior, such as burning a 500-franc bill on TV or provoking a fistfight with a journalist.
The film portrays Serge as a complex and contradictory character, who oscillates between self-destructive impulses and artistic brilliance, between cynicism and vulnerability, between misogyny and tenderness. It also features many surrealistic and poetic sequences that evoke Serge's imagination and his surrealistic vision of the world. For example, in one scene, Serge and Juliette dance in the clouds, while in another scene, Serge rides a giant cigarette like a rocket.
Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life received mixed reviews from critics, some of whom praised its visual style and its faithful portrayal of Serge's life, while others criticized its lack of depth and coherence. However, it was a box office success in France and won several awards, including the César for Best Music Written for a Film.