FILM

The hand paintings found in the Magdalenian caves of Sub-Atlantic Europe are called negative hands. The outline of these hands — laid wide open on the stone — was coated with colour. Most often blue, black. Sometimes red. No explanation has been found for this practice. From Paris’ Bastille to the Champs-Élysées, Les mains négatives travels the empty streets at dawn in a continuous shot. Meditating on love and loss and far off places, Duras’ voiceover populates the scene as the city wakes, transitioning from night to day.

French spoken, English subtitles