VAGABOND

VAGABOND (SANS TOIT NI LOI), 1985
France | DCP, Color, 105' | French, English, Arabic
Cast: Sandrine Bonnaire, Macha Méril, Stéphane Freiss

With a voice-over by Varda, Vagabond’s opening scene resembles a documentary, yet the film is more like Citizen Kane as it begins with the death of its protagonist, incorporates the testimonies of people who have touched his life and is filled with flashbacks. One morning, a woman’s body is found inside a ditch. The police are unable to identify this poorly groomed young woman. Born into a middle class family, Mona studies to become a secretary, begins working at an office but hates this life and sets off on the streets, choosing a life without identities. She lives the life of a vagabond, carrying a bag that only contains essentials and a tent. She doesn’t care about anything, she just keeps on moving. Mona breeds fear and disgust in people who encounter her during the final period of her life, but this fear and unease is because she represents the possibility of a different–good or bad—life. She doesn’t make concessions to her freedom, which engenders a feeling of resentment and latent envy.