Louisiana stories (James Lee Burke )
Jacques LEVY
For the past two decades, James Lee Burke has been one of the most outstanding crime fiction writers in the USA. He is the only winner of two Edgar Awards and he is considered as one of the best contemporary American authors.
For the past two decades, James Lee Burke has been one of the most outstanding crime fiction writers in the USA. He is the only winner of two Edgar Awards and he is considered as one of the best contemporary American authors. His work has been translated in many languages throughout the world.
This documentary portrays a remarkable novelist –and a remarkable man- and is shaped as a double journey in his personal world and the one of his fictional counterpart, the Cajun character Dave Robicheaux, with Louisiana as a background. His presence on screen, his humour, his sensitivity, his generous and uncompromising look at Louisiana, America and the rest of the world shake up old clichés and conventional views.
This encounter with such a warm personality includes interviews with French director Bertrand Tavernier who has just adapted his best-seller In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead as well as interviews with Tommy Lee Jones, starring as Dave Robicheaux.
Depuis une vingtaine d’années, James Lee Burke occupe une place de premier plan parmi les auteurs de polars aux Etats-Unis. Seul lauréat de deux Edgar Awards, il est considéré comme l'un des meilleurs écrivains contemporains de langue américaine. Traduit dans un grand nombre de langues, il reste, en France, mal connu hors le cercle des amateurs.
Le portrait d'un romancier remarquable, à travers son univers personnel et celui de son "double" romanesque, le Cajun Dave Robicheaux, dans leurs décors louisianais. Sa présence à l'écran, son humour, sa sensibilité, son regard à la fois généreux et sans concessions sur la Louisiane, l'Amérique et le monde, bousculent clichés et discours convenus.
Les témoignages du cinéaste Bertrand Tavernier qui vient d'adapter un de ses best-sellers, Dans la brume électrique avec les morts confédérés, et de Tommy Lee Jones, interprète de Dave Robicheaux, complètent le portrait de cette personnalité attachante.
