Faces Places (film)

2017 film

Faces Places

Theatrical release poster

Directed by|

* Agnès Varda
* JR

Written by|

* Agnès Varda
* JR

Produced by| Rosalie Varda
Starring|

* Agnès Varda
* JR

Cinematography|

* Claire Duguet
* Nicolas Guicheteau
* Valentin Vignet
* Romain Le Bonniec
* Raphaël Minnesota
* Roberto De Angelis
* Julia Fabry

Edited by|

* Agnès Varda
* Maxime Pozzi Garcia

Music by| Matthieu Chedid

Production
companies

* Ciné Tamaris
* Social Animals
* Rouge International
* Arte France Cinema
* Arches Films

Distributed by| Le Pacte

Release dates

* 19 May 2017 (2017-05-19) (Cannes)
* 28 June 2017 (2017-06-28) (France)

Running time

| 93 minutes
Country| France
Language| French
Budget| $1 million[1]
Box office| $4 million[2]

Faces Places (French: Visages Villages) is a 2017 French documentary film directed by renowned filmmaker Agnès Varda and artist JR. The film documents the duo as they journey through rural France, capturing the portraits of the people they meet along the way. Their collaborative process leads them to create large-scale portraits, which are then displayed on buildings and other public spaces, leaving a profound impact on both the subjects and the communities they visit.

The film was screened out of competition at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, where it earned critical acclaim and won the L'Œil d'or award, which is given for the best documentary. It was officially released in France on 28 June 2017, and later in the United States on 6 October 2017.

At the 90th Academy Awards, Faces Places was nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Notably, it was Agnès Varda's second-to-last cinematic work before her death. It was followed by the two-episode 2019 documentary series, Varda by Agnès, which offers a retrospective look at her career.

The film is an exploration of art, human connection, and the power of shared experiences, bridging generational and cultural gaps through the simple act of portraiture.

## Synopsis

[edit]

JR (left) and Agnès Varda (right)

Varda and JR, who is 55 years Varda's junior, visit villages, small towns, and factories throughout France to meet communities of people and create large portraits of them to plaster on walls and structures. Over the course of their travels, the two artists get to know each other and become friends.

Varda refers more than once to "Les fiancés du pont MacDonald", a short film she made in 1961 about a young man, played by Jean-Luc Godard, who sees the world through dark glasses. She notes the resemblance between Godard, who frequently even wore sunglasses inside, and JR, whose public image also includes wearing sunglasses. Eventually, Varda and JR travel to Switzerland so she can introduce him to Godard. When they arrive at Godard's house, however, he rudely refuses to see them, bringing Varda to tears. To soothe her, JR shows her his face unobscured, but, since she is losing her sight, we only see him blurred.

## Reception

[edit]

### Critical reception

[edit]

Faces Places received widespread acclaim from critics.[3] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 99% of 144 critics' reviews of the film are positive, with an average rating of 8.8/10; the site's "critics consensus" reads: "Equal parts breezily charming and poignantly powerful, Faces Places is a unique cross-generational portrait of life in rural France from the great Agnès Varda."[4] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 94 out of 100 based on reviews from 22 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[5]

Amy Taubin of Film Comment called the film an "unassuming masterpiece" that is "both personal and populist, a celebration of artisanal production (including cinema), worker solidarity, and the photographic arts in the face of mortality."[6] Film critic Imma Merino wrote that it is "a road movie through rural France in which the protagonism is yielded to homes and anonymous women that the filmmaker turns into giants. It is also an X-ray of the way to understand life".[7]

In July 2025, it ranked number 23 on Rolling Stone's list of "The 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century."[8]

### Awards and accolades

[edit]

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2017)

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The film won the Grolsch People’s Choice Documentary Award at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival,[9] and the Most Popular International Documentary Award at the 2017 Vancouver International Film Festival.[10] It also won the award for Best Non-Fiction Film at the 2017 New York Film Critics Circle Awards,[11] and the award for Best Documentary Feature at the 33rd Independent Spirit Awards.[12] Time magazine selected the film as one of the top ten films of 2017.[13]

At the 90th Academy Awards, the film was nominated for Best Documentary Feature.[14] It was nominated for Best Documentary and Best Original Music at the 43rd César Awards.[15]

## References

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1. ^ JP. "Visages Villages". JP's Box-Office. Retrieved 17 April 2018.
2. ^ "Faces Places (2017)". The Numbers. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
3. ^ Hudson, David (22 May 2017). "[The Daily] Cannes 2017: Agnès Varda and JR's Faces Places". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
4. ^ "Faces Places (Visages, villages) (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
5. ^ "Faces Places (Visages Villages)". Metacritic. CBS Interactive Inc. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
6. ^ Taubin, Amy (July 2017). "The Speed of Light in a Vacuum". Film Comment. Film Society of Lincoln Center. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
7. ^ J.C.L. (18 May 2019). "Agnès Varda, sota la mirada d'Imma Merino". El Punt Avui. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
8. ^ "100 Best Movies of the 21st Century". 1 July 2025.
9. ^ "Announcing the TIFF '17 Award Winners". TIFF. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
10. ^ "Indian Horse Wins Coveted VIFF Super Channel People's Choice Award". Vancouver International Film Festival (Press release). Greater Vancouver International Film Festival Society. 13 October 2017. Archived from the original on 15 October 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
11. ^ "List of Awards by the NYFCC". NYFCC. Retrieved 9 February 2023.
12. ^ Nyren, Erin (3 March 2018). "2018 Independent Spirit Awards: Winners List (Updating Live)". Variety. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
13. ^ Zacharek, Stephanie (7 December 2017). "The Top 10 Movies of 2017". Time. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
14. ^ "Oscars 2018: The list of nominees in full". BBC News. BBC. 23 January 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
15. ^ "Best Sound - Cesar Awards: '120 BPM' Takes Six Awards Including Best Film". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 April 2019.

## External links

[edit]

* Faces Places at IMDb
* Faces Places at Metacritic
* Visages, villages at Rotten Tomatoes

Awards for Faces Places

* v
* t
* e

Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary Feature

* Dark Days (2000)
* Dogtown and Z-Boys (2001)
* Bowling for Columbine (2002)
* The Fog of War (2003)
* Metallica: Some Kind of Monster (2004)
* Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005)
* The Road to Guantánamo (2006)
* Crazy Love (2007)
* Man on Wire (2008)
* Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2009)
* Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010)
* The Interrupters (2011)
* The Invisible War (2012)
* 20 Feet from Stardom (2013)
* Citizenfour (2014)
* The Look of Silence (2015)
* O.J.: Made in America (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018)
* American Factory (2019)
* Crip Camp (2020)
* Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
* All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022)
* Four Daughters (2023)
* No Other Land (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Documentary Film

* Hotel Terminus: The Life and Times of Klaus Barbie (1988)
* Roger & Me (1989)
* Paris Is Burning (1990)
* American Dream (1991)
* Black Harvest (1992)
* It's All True: Based on an Unfinished Film by Orson Welles (1993)
* Hoop Dreams (1994)
* Crumb (1995)
* When We Were Kings (1996)
* Riding the Rails (1997)
* The Farm: Angola, USA (1998)
* Buena Vista Social Club (1999)
* Dark Days (2000)
* The Gleaners and I (2001)
* The Cockettes (2002)
* The Fog of War (2003)
* Born into Brothels (2004)
* Grizzly Man (2005)
* An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
* No End in Sight (2007)
* Man on Wire (2008)
* The Beaches of Agnès / The Cove (2009)
* Last Train Home (2010)
* Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2011)
* The Gatekeepers (2012)
* Stories We Tell (2013)
* Citizenfour (2014)
* Amy (2015)
* I Am Not Your Negro (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Shirkers (2018)
* American Factory (2019)
* Time (2020)
* Summer of Soul (2021)
* All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022)
* Menus-Plaisirs – Les Troisgros (2023)
* No Other Land (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Lumière Award for Best Documentary

* The Pearl Button / The Missing Picture (2016)
* My Journey Through French Cinema (2017)
* Faces Places (2018)
* Samouni Road (2019)
* M (2020)
* The Monopoly of Violence (2021)
* The Velvet Queen (2022)
* We (2023)
* Four Daughters (2024)
* Dahomey (2025)

* v
* t
* e

National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Non-Fiction Film

* Stop Making Sense (1984)
* Shoah (1985)
* Marlene (1986)
* No Award (1987)
* The Thin Blue Line (1988)
* Roger & Me (1989)
* Berkeley in the Sixties (1990)
* Paris Is Burning (1991)
* American Dream (1992)
* Visions of Light (1993)
* Hoop Dreams (1994)
* Crumb (1995)
* When We Were Kings (1996)
* Fast, Cheap & Out of Control (1997)
* The Farm: Angola, USA (1998)
* Buena Vista Social Club (1999)
* The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg (2000)
* The Gleaners and I (2001)
* Standing in the Shadows of Motown (2002)
* To Be and to Have (2003)
* Tarnation (2004)
* Grizzly Man (2005)
* An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
* No End in Sight (2007)
* Man on Wire (2008)
* The Beaches of Agnès (2009)
* Inside Job (2010)
* Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2011)
* The Gatekeepers (2012)
* The Act of Killing / At Berkeley (2013)
* Citizenfour (2014)
* Amy (2015)
* O.J.: Made in America (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Minding the Gap (2018)
* Honeyland (2019)
* Time (2020)
* Flee (2021)
* All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022)
* Menus-Plaisirs – Les Troisgros (2023)
* No Other Land (2024)

* v
* t
* e

New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Non-Fiction Film

Best Documentary
1980–1997|

* Best Boy (1980)
* No Award (1981–1983)
* The Times of Harvey Milk (1984)
* Shoah (1985)
* Marlene (1986)
* No Award (1987)
* The Thin Blue Line (1988)
* Roger & Me (1989)
* No Award (1990)
* Paris Is Burning (1991)
* Brother's Keeper (1992)
* Visions of Light (1993)
* Hoop Dreams (1994)
* Crumb (1995)
* When We Were Kings (1996)
* Fast, Cheap & Out of Control (1997)

Best Non-Fiction Film
1998–present|

* The Farm: Angola, USA (1998)
* Buena Vista Social Club (1999)
* The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg (2000)
* The Gleaners and I (2001)
* Standing in the Shadows of Motown (2002)
* Capturing the Friedmans (2003)
* Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)
* Grizzly Man / The White Diamond (2005)
* Deliver Us from Evil (2006)
* No End in Sight (2007)
* Man on Wire (2008)
* Of Time and the City (2009)
* Inside Job (2010)
* Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2011)
* The Central Park Five (2012)
* Stories We Tell (2013)
* Citizenfour (2014)
* In Jackson Heights (2015)
* O.J.: Made in America (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Minding the Gap (2018)
* Honeyland (2019)
* Time (2020)
* Flee (2021)
* All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022)
* Menus-Plaisirs – Les Troisgros (2023)
* No Other Land (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Documentary Film

* 4 Little Girls (1997)
* The Big One (1998)
* Buena Vista Social Club (1999)
* The Filth and the Fury (2000)
* Startup.com (2001)
* Bowling for Columbine (2002)
* Capturing the Friedmans (2003)
* Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)
* Grizzly Man (2005)
* An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
* The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (2007)
* Man on Wire (2008)
* Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2009)
* Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010)
* Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2011)
* This Is Not a Film (2012)
* The Act of Killing (2013)
* Life Itself (2014)
* The Look of Silence (2015)
* O.J.: Made in America (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018)
* Apollo 11 (2019)
* Dick Johnson Is Dead (2020)
* Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
* Fire of Love (2022)
* 20 Days in Mariupol (2023)
* Dahomey (2024)

* v
* t
* e

San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle Award for Best Documentary Film

* Rivers and Tides (2002)
* Capturing the Friedmans (2003)
* Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)
* Grizzly Man (2005)
* An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
* No End in Sight (2007)
* My Winnipeg (2008)
* Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2009)
* The Tillman Story (2010)
* Tabloid (2011)
* The Waiting Room (2012)
* The Act of Killing (2013)
* Citizenfour (2014)
* Listen to Me Marlon (2015)
* I Am Not Your Negro (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018)
* Apollo 11 (2019)
* Collective (2020)
* Summer of Soul (2021)
* All That Breathes (2022)
* 20 Days in Mariupol (2023)
* Sugarcane (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Seattle Film Critics Society Award for Best Documentary Feature

* O.J.: Made in America (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Free Solo (2018)
* Apollo 11 (2019)
* The History of the Seattle Mariners: Supercut Edition (2020)
* Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
* Fire of Love (2022)
* 20 Days in Mariupol (2023)
* No Other Land (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Documentary Film

* Bowling for Columbine (2002)
* Capturing the Friedmans (2003)
* The Fog of War (2004)
* Grizzly Man (2005)
* Manufactured Landscapes (2006)
* No End in Sight (2007)
* Man on Wire (2008)
* The Cove (2009)
* Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010)
* Nostalgia for the Light (2011)
* Stories We Tell (2012)
* The Act of Killing (2013)
* The Overnighters (2014)
* The Look of Silence (2015)
* Cameraperson (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018)
* American Factory (2019)
* Collective (2020)
* Summer of Soul (2021)
* All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022)
* 20 Days in Mariupol (2023)
* Dahomey (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award: Documentaries

* The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls (2009)
* Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie (2010)
* The Island President (2011)
* Artifact (2012)
* The Square (Al-Midan) (2013)
* Beats of the Antonov (2014)
* Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom (2015)
* I Am Not Your Negro (2016)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Free Solo (2018)
* The Cave (2019)
* Inconvenient Indian (2020)
* The Rescue (2021)
* Black Ice (2022)
* Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe (2023)
* The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Agnès Varda

Fiction films|

* La Pointe Courte (1955)
* Cléo from 5 to 7 (1962)
* Le Bonheur (1965)
* Les Créatures (1966)
* Lions Love (1969)
* One Sings, the Other Doesn't (1977)
* Documenteur (1981)
* Vagabond (1985)
* Le Petit Amour (1988)
* Jane B. for Agnes V. (1988)
* Jacquot de Nantes (1991)
* One Hundred and One Nights (1995)

Documentaries|

* Far from Vietnam (1967)
* Daguerréotypes (1976)
* Mur Murs (1981)
* The Young Girls Turn 25 (1993)
* The World of Jacques Demy (1995)
* The Gleaners and I (2000)
* The Gleaners and I: Two Years Later (2002)
* Cinévardaphoto (2004)
* Some Widows of Noirmoutier (2006)
* The Beaches of Agnès (2008)
* Faces Places (2017)
* Varda by Agnès (2019)

Short films|

* Diary of a Pregnant Woman (1958)
* Salut les cubains (1963)
* Elsa la rose (1965)
* Uncle Yanco (1967)
* Black Panthers (1968)

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