Vittorio De Sica, 1948.
Viewed at Cinematheque, July 2009, w/ LN.
A nice film, better then I remembered. It’s a bit thin; the plot is very simple – perhaps too simple. A story of poor people, like ‘La Terra Trema’, but not as sophisticated in it’s development. The acting and general production are all good, but not quite remarkable; in a sense, the ’solid, but not remarkable’ tenor carries remarakably consistently through all aspects of the film (the camera work, the writting, the production, the acting). It’s like a supurbe amateur film, without any pretension.
The film’s fame on the cinemaphile circuit is unjustified, but that is not the fault of the film. It is a good film. It is very clever in one way, in that the title tells you what is going to happen, but after that does happen, you discover in the end it,, or the title, meant something different then what you had expected. I would (and you would need to know more then I am willing to say here to properly understand this) not agree with the titling as “Bicycle Thieves”. I can’t translate from Italian, but it should be, without question, ‘The Bicycle Thief’.
La boulangère de Monceau. 1962, Rohmer, first of the 6 moral tales. Cinematheque, July 2009, at the the end of sign of Leo – a short.
Nice little film. The moral issue is a bit tough to figure out. He claims to be true to himself, in being unfair to another. It’s French, I’d say; an Englishman would put the societal norm first, and find pride in doing it the right way, right down the line. But the Frenchman is more cavalier; his pride is in defying the norm, even if it means being brusque, to prove (or make) the right of their own independent judgment.
So it’s clever. Makes you think, if you want, and of course is very nice to watch. Little romance. Paris, and cookies.
1959. Rohmer. An Early one, with less polish, and not very light. Very sad. Saw by myself, July 2009, Cinematheque.
It was so sad that it was hard to watch. A saxophonist has great hopes – not for merit, but for luck, but he is still a likable fellow. But they are dashed, and he falls into real, full-on poverty. It’s aweful to watch. Rohmer really takes us down.
Right at the low point, our financially devistated protagonist becomes ridiculous – opera for money with another bum – and it really is funny. And then the ending, surprise, pulls your right up. And after being taken down so low, so that you almost just wanted to leave and go home, it’s a memorable experience. 5/5. Why be stingy.
A short film at the end of Breathless screening. 20 minutes or so. Cinematheque, July 2009. With Lisa N.1961. Done with Truffaut
We were a little weary after the first film, but this little short is very nice to watch, so we were happy to stay. It’s a little romance, amid Paris in a flood. Liek Winnipeg, but a bit nicer. 4/5. Godard narrates.
1960. Premier film. Viewed July 2009 (again), Cinematheque, with Lisa N. She was a good one to take.
Good to see, dispite later inconsistent films, that this one is as good as I remembered. The Girl from the New York Herald Tribune is Jean Seberg.
Cinematheque, July 2009, on my own.
Godard thinks he’s very clever with this one. And he also appears to know that Breathless was really very good. And he misses it. So there are series of tounge-in-cheek references to films and film-makers, and double-talk dialogue that leads nowhere. People in the audience laugh, but it is uncomfortable rather then funny, and arbitrary rather than clever. So it’s a painful film. It’s the one that follows Breathless, chronologically. Thank goodness he did the good one first. He is inconsistent. 2 stars.
