how good boys learn to
become bad
by Douglas Messerli
Martin Drouot and Pascal-Alex Vincent
(screenplay), Pascal-Alex Vincent (director) Candy Boy / 2007 [13
minutes]
After his study of film history at the
University of Paris III, Pascal-Alex Vincent worked for a while in the
distribution of Japanese films in France, most likely where he developed his
interest in anime, to which his 2007 animated short seems to be a tribute.
I
don’t know to whom this film in shown in France, but I’d like to imagine that
what is now clearly adult oriented material in the US might become a wonderful
children’s film not only revealing the problematics of Catholic orphanages, but
expounding on the dangers of our eco-system, the joys of queer love, and the
reasons for bad-boy behavior. It would be perfect entertainment for kids!
I’m
afraid, however, it would be banned in most of the nation’s red states these
days, and perhaps in even some of the blue ones. We’ve retreated into a time
when such wonderfully perceptive visions aren’t allowed to be spoken about let
alone viewed by the young.
The
central character here, Candy Boy (voiced by Julien Bouanich), is a model
student, a slightly older boy in an orphanage who serves as the perfect leader
for the younger boys, the sort of older brother you’d dream of. The nuns love
him, particularly La mère supérieure (Marie-Christine Darah).
But
one day, while out playing with the younger boys, he observes along with them
that most of the fish that swim in the local stream running through the
orphanage property are dying. Our vigilant and valiant Candy Boy will most
certainly be looking into the matter.
Except at that very moment, a new boy, closer in age or even older than
Candy Boy, suddenly is introduced into the community, Samy (Aymen Saïdi) a
tough kid, who smokes, gambles, and, in general, is up to no good. And, even
worse, he seems to particularly dislike the do-gooder Candy.
Of
course, his bad boy attitude, like a contemporary James Dean, immediately
attracts some of boys and girls. Indeed, Samy threatens Candy Boy’s
status—although Candy still beats him in a competitive foot race, perhaps
because Samy’s not in the fittest of conditions.
Candy Boy soon finds some of his peers missing from their dormitory beds
at night, hanging out in the bathroom where they’re corrupted into gambling and
smoking by Samy.
Yet, Candy Boy can’t help but be attracted to the new figure, who brags
of having refused to be force-fed at the previous orphanage from which he’s
been evicted.
But
meanwhile, Candy decides to concentrate his energies upon discovering why the
local fish are dying, and even more importantly, why some of the younger boys
are suddenly getting sick, in response to whose illness the Mother Superior
describes them as faking, particularly when they plead for Candy Boy to come
comfort them.
Cigarette butts have been found in the school toilet, and
Samy is taken away for detention, locked up in an orphanage cell. Candy Boy
assures him that he hasn’t told anybody about his night-time activities, but
all Samy can mutter is “Open your eyes, you might learn something.”
Two large smokestacks in the distance certainly hint of the matter. When
he tells Mother Superior of his suspicions that the McManus Company is causing
the local water pollution, he is told that McManus pays for his uniform, for
the fish they have each Friday. Who has put such sordid ideas into his head,
Samy? She grounds the boy, refusing to believe any of his accusations.
That night Candy Boy sneaks out to the McManus plant only to discover
Samy is already there as well, the two observing the plant workmen pouring
toxic waste into the waters, which is why the orphanage boys are getting sick,
so Samy tells him. “You shouldn’t be here Candy Boy. You’re a good pupil,” Samy
declares.
He
offers Candy a cigarette and soon tosses his own fag into the waters, an
immediate conflagration flaring up, burning down the plant. As the employees
rush out, ready to explore what has happened, the boys run off, falling into
the bushes on top of one another. For a moment as they regain their composure,
Samy insists that Candy Boy has “no place with us,” before the two quickly
embrace and quite literally ascend as two entwined, kissing bodies rise into
the stratosphere. Who “us” is, is never quite established, but he is certainly
taken off to “queer heaven.”
Candy Boy wakes up naked in a pasture, eventually showing up again at
the orphanage with happy greetings from his fellows. He looks for Samy only to
discover that he’s being taken off by the police, the Mother Superior insisting
that the river contamination was simply an accident. When Candy Boy argues that
she’s lying, begging Samy to tell her the truth. But he merely puts his finger
to his lips and the paddy wagon rolls off.
In
the very next frame, Candy Boy is at his window where he lights up a cigarette.
Mother Superior appears and demands he put out the cigarette and go to bed
immediately. Candy Boy simply turns and blows smoke into her face.
That’s what happens to all good boys who learn the truth about
themselves and the society in which they live.
If every animated feature was as enduring as Candy Boy, I might
become a fan of anime as well.
Los Angeles, May 30, 2023
Reprinted from World Cinema Review (May
2023).
