BPM (Beats Per Minute) (120 battements par minute) (2017)
RT Audience Score: 84%
Awards & Nominations: 50 wins & 57 nominations
Moving without resorting to melodrama, BPM offers an engrossing look at a pivotal period in history that lingers long after the closing credits roll.
BPM (Beats per Minute) is like a rollercoaster ride, but instead of loops and drops, it’s full of drama and heart-wrenching moments. The film manages to capture the essence of the AIDS epidemic in the early 1990s, while also showcasing the power of activism and community. It’s not always an easy watch, but it’s an important one. Plus, the soundtrack is killer. Get ready to dance and cry at the same time.
Production Company(ies)
House Productions, Trustees of the Imperial War Museum, London Wing Nut Films,
Distributor
The Orchard
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Paris, France
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
2017
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:2.35 : 1
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Runtime:2h 23m
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Language(s):French
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Country of origin:France
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Oct 20, 2017 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 23, 2018
Genre(s)
Drama/Lgbtq+
Keyword(s)
starring Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Arnaud Valois, Adèle Haenel, Antoine Reinartz, Ariel Borenstein, Aloïse Sauvage, Sean Dalmazo, directed by Robin Campillo, written by Robin Campillo, Philippe Mangeot, drama, LGBTQ+, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Paul Byrnes, David Stratton, Simran Hans, Ryan Gilbey, Alex Godfrey, Ed Potton, Carson Timar, Ben Turner, Hugues Charbonneau, Marie-Ange Luciani, The Orchard, MPAA rating, AIDS activist group, Paris, 1990s, radical approach, protests, pharmaceutical companies, data, protease inhibitor, dance, sex, activism, LGBTQ+ history, disease of the week, documentary, HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE, club atmosphere, cinematographer Jeanne Lapoirie, animated depictions, virus, urgency, ticking clock, social media, comfort food, Glenn G
Worldwide gross: $7,704,369
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $9,293,288
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,986
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 1,013,445
US/Canada gross: $125,189
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $151,007
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,593
US/Canada opening weekend: $8,566
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $10,333
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,697
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): 5383899
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $6,494,253
Production budget ranking: 1,826
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $3,497,155
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$698,121
ROI to date (est.): -7%
ROI ranking: 1,431
Arnaud Valois – Nathan
Adèle Haenel – Sophie
Antoine Reinartz – Thibault
Ariel Borenstein – Jérémie
Aloïse Sauvage – Eva
Director(s)
Robin Campillo
Writer(s)
Robin Campillo, Philippe Mangeot
Producer(s)
Hugues Charbonneau, Marie-Ange Luciani
Film Festivals
Cannes, Venice, Toronto
Awards & Nominations
50 wins & 57 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (136) | Top Critics (47) | Fresh (134) | Rotten (2)
And yet BPM (meaning beats per minute) is a beautiful film, full of drama and humour, love and politics, argument and action.
May 18, 2018 | Rating: 4/5
Paul Byrnes
Sydney Morning Herald
TOP CRITIC
It doesn’t try to be a comforting film, and it certainly isn’t. It’s strident, unwieldy and confronting.
May 18, 2018 | Rating: 3/5
David Stratton
The Australian
TOP CRITIC
Rebotini’s dissonant, humming, house-inflected score – and the metronome-like heartbeats that underscore the action – are reminders that, even on their deathbed, a person has a pulse. In its dying gasps, the film grasps at life.
April 8, 2018 | Rating: 5/5
Simran Hans
Observer (UK)
TOP CRITIC
There are elements to admire – committed performances and noble intentions – but as cinema it’s a non-starter.
April 6, 2018
Ryan Gilbey
New Statesman
TOP CRITIC
Fly on the wall filmmaking at its best, this is pure cinema – an enthralling, enveloping experience that seizes you fully, effortlessly mixing politics, sex, life, death and art.
April 6, 2018 | Rating: 5/5
Alex Godfrey
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Perhaps more impressively [director Robin Campillo] squeezes drama from the group meetings, which in most films would be snooze-fests.
April 6, 2018 | Rating: 3/5
Ed Potton
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
BPM (Beats per Minute) might not always be an easy or fun watch, but stands out as one of the best representations of this horrific time in LGBTQ+ history.
February 12, 2022
Carson Timar
Filmotomy
120 BPM is the movie about AIDS we have all been waiting for, delivered by the hands of one of the very best directors working outside Hollywood.
September 1, 2021 | Rating: 5/5
Ben Turner
The Pink Lens
Members of the advocacy group ACT UP Paris demand action by the government and pharmaceutical companies to combat the AIDS epidemic in the early 1990s. Perfection.
July 9, 2021
Charlotte Harrison
Charlotte Sometimes Goes to the Movies
BPM manages to tell this story with so very much life – forms twisting into one another in the darkness of dance clubs and unmade beds; parading proudly, high kicks down the streets
July 2, 2021
Jason Adams
The Film Experience
Little is wasted, and despite a lengthy running time of 140 minutes, ‘BPM’ moves with energetic and clear eyes.
April 18, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/5
Michael J. Casey
Michael J. Cinema
Comedy has more and more been expected to actively champion progressive causes. Ted 2 does, far more vociferously than most…
January 13, 2021
Scott Nye
Battleship Pretension…
Plot
In the early 1990s, with AIDS having already claimed countless lives for nearly 10 years, ACT UP Paris activists multiply actions to fight general indifference. Nathan, a newcomer to the group, has his world shaken up by Sean, a radical militant, who throws his last bits of strength into the struggle.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
NA
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