Emmanuelle Béart in "Histoire de Marie et Julien" [2003 France, Italy]

Jacques Rivette is definitely one of the influential directors of the Nouvelle Vague, even if he's probably lesser known than the likes of Godard and Chabrol outside of France. His style is telling a story through observation - you get to know the characters through a series of vignettes performing seemingly mundane and sometimes repetitive tasks. Consequently his films tend to be long, sometimes stretching into several hours, and demands a greater attention span from its audience. Dreams and visions are one of his frequently explored themes. I wouldn't call his style experimental, but one can say with certainty that he will spare little time for those less informed.

But he is also a fine example of how great directors themselves draw inspiration from others, in his case from all over the world including Hollywood greats such as Otto Preminger and Alfred Hitchcock. Like Rohmer and Roeg, he didn't start making feature films until after many years in the industry, and had worked under legends like Renoir and Becker before venturing out on his own.

I'll start Rivette's filmography here with one of his later films, the fantasy drama "Histoire de Marie et Julien" [Eng. Title: The Story of Marie and Julien], one that was also in gestation for close to three decades. In an insightful interview among the DVD extras, he describes the extent to which his lead actors influenced not only the screenplay, but the script as well - his original plan had Leslie Caron and Albert Finney play the lead roles, but took on a different shape when Emmanuelle Béart and Jerzy Radziwilowicz were finally cast for the production. Ms. Béart too explains her input into the characterisation. While it is a fine film that rewards one with patience, this isn't actually my favourite Rivette. This is also one for Emmanuelle Béart completists. But if you're a die-hard Rivette enthusiast, the film is Highly Recommended Viewing..!




Recommended Amazon DVD Link
This was taken from my Artificial Eye "French Collection" box-set 4, focussing on Emmanuelle Béart. While it also includes Rivette and Béart's previous collaboration "La Belle Noiseuse", you must bear in mind that it is the abridged version - half the length of its original four hour run-time, but also the version I most enjoyed.




Storyline:
If revenants speaking in Gaelic are your thing, this is pretty much up your alley. Julien, a middle aged clocksmith keeps dreaming about a woman he met a while ago, Marie - she was with a boyfriend at the time. But Marie has died since and suddenly reappears to embark on a sensual relationship with Julien. For all intents and purposes, she's real, save the tiny detail that she can't or won't shed a tear nor bleed when cut, even if she could obtain physical orgasm in full flow. An ideal scenario, a man might think - an attractive woman who doesn't complain (cry) nor need taking care of (cottonwoolled), but one readily available for sexual pleasure. Until this pesky little thing called 'love' creeps in. And when Julien learns the fate of the 'real' Marie, one or the other has to crossover to the other side to stay together. Who will it be - Julien, or Marie? Only time will tell...




Compilation: Emmanuelle Béart



Scene Guide:

• Marie is always the one with the initiative, and Julien the willing participant. Marie is played by an intense Emmanuelle Béart.
• There's not much nudity here - just a long conversation piece where they describe together a sensual dream. So I left the subtitles on for this scene to save time describing.
• More sensual dream-sharing between Marie and Julien, seemingly somewhere from the Celtic period.

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Sandra Hüller in "Über uns das All" [2011, Germany]

Young German director Jan Schomburg's mystery drama, "Über uns das All" [Eng. title: Above us Only Sky] is a surprisingly delightful piece of cinema. Surprising because I've never heard of the director - I picked it up only because it was well received at the Berlin International Film Festival last year. This is definitely one of the better films I've seen released lately - and I see a whole lot more than I bother to write about here.

Storyline:
I won't throw you spoilers, but here's the gist. The film starts with a tantalising reference to Shakespeare's ageless sonnet about love and marriage (Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds) as Martha conducts an English lesson for her class. She has a husband, and is in love. But her whole world, carefully constructed over years comes crashing down after his unexpected death. Who was he? Why was he feigning a life that's not his? Martha tries to piece together various clues to come to terms with her loss, so that she could start bereaving for the person she was in love with. During the course of her search, she will meet a professor who will enlighten elements of the same sonnet she'd been teaching her pupils...

It is refreshing to see this topic discussed during these days of convenient marriages, prenuptial agreements, and express divorces. While the film isn't remotely preachy or moralistic, it certainly tries to define what is true love. The characterisation required to generate the required drama is spot on, and aided by competent screenplay, we're kept glued till the end. The cinematography is exquisite, and the performance of Sandra Hüller who plays Martha certainly lifts the film to a higher level, in a very German way. Composed, precise, and detailed, this is as German as films come, and for that reason, Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon.de DVD Link




Compilation: Sandra Hüller



Scene Guide:

• Sweet nothings between husband and wife Martha as they make plans to move to the south of France. Martha is played by an engagingly charismatic Sandra Hüller.
• Martha comes looking for her sleepless husband - she wonders why he's so perplexed - he'll after all be alone in Marseilles only for a week before she joins him.
• After her husband's death, Martha meets Alex, a History professor, and on a whim, invites him home. But her forthrightness puts Alex off - he suggests they don't have sex that night, having sensed she's not happy, and possibly even drunk. A peeved Martha gestures him to leave.
• They meet again on a more formal date, and everybody is happy..!
• A brief scene I decided to include in the end which I think is beautifully done.

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Blanca Lewin in "Bombal" [2012 Chile]

Chilean director Marcelo Ferrari made his recent drama "Bombal" based on the love life of acclaimed feminist author María Luisa Bombal. I cannot verify how much of the film is based on real events, but what it does manage to recreate is the extreme state of depression she was in even while writing successful books at the time, most of which delve into eroticism from a feminine point of view. Her works were well received all over Latin America, but was frowned upon within some circles in native Chile. Most of the film is told through flash-backs from Bombal's point of view.

Storyline:
The film is set sometime during the nineteen forties when María Luisa Bombal moved back to Chile with husband Jorge Larco. They have an open relationship - while he is gay, she is having an affair with a divorced Eulogio Sánchez. Hopelessly in love with Eulogio, Bombal descends into a state of depression when her feelings go in-reciprocated. After a failed suicide attempt, she goes as far as publicly shooting Eulogio who is now engaged to another woman. He survives, but at least it brings some kind of closure to that chapter in her history.

While the film has an interesting story to tell, the script/screenplay doesn't do it enough justice. The characterisation, particularly of the male characters is uni-dimensional and could have been developed further, and it isn't helped by the actors' pedestrian performances either. Blanca Lewin however is the exception as she brings her professionalism to fore, more or less compensating for the other main characters. The sound track is fine, but the scope of the cinematography and editing seems to have been restricted perhaps due to budgetary constraints. It had the potential to be as powerful a drama as Bellocchio's "Vincere", but as it stands, remains just about an above average film. The bare-bones DVD is available through the below link.

Bazuca DVD Link




Compilation: Blanca Lewin



Scene Guide:

• A flash-back as Bombal reminisces happier times with lover Eulogio. The titular role is played by the beautiful as ever Blanca Lewin. In this scene, she wants them to be openly lovers rather than continue their secret rendezvous. He tells her this isn't the right time as he still has some unfinished business from a recently ended marriage.
• At a party attended with husband Larco, Bombal watches him having sex with a younger man (uncredited), and vents her frustration by calling at Eulogio's for the night.
• Larco asks Bombal to pose for him. He advices her to stop seeing Eulogio as it is obvious he doesn't love her as much as she does. She tells her husband that Eulogio had already left her to be with another woman, and that she misses him terribly.
• A drunk Bombal picks up a younger man at a bar for a one night stand.

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Barbara Brylska & Krystyna Mikolajewska in "Faraon" [1966 Poland]

Jerzy Kawalerowicz's Oscar-nominated epic "Faraon" [Eng. title: Pharaoh] is a rare and also interesting interpretation of ancient history and politics from communist Poland. It has the grandeur of a Cecile B. DeMille film, but rather than merely glossing over history, it is far more ambitious in its scope by turning into an allegorical study.

In fact, Egyptology had progressed so much since 1966 that we have little option but to look at events in the film from a fictional viewpoint. That however doesn't mean no effort had been made to make it look and feel authentic - far from it, a lot of detail had gone into the production design and watching the film is like browsing through the leaves of some lavish coffee table book. For instance they even rebuilt a royal river boat based on drawings from the fourth millennium BC, one that appears in just a single scene. Beyond the visual splendour though, there are passages of play where we see exquisite cinema as the director translates his vision into film, one that could not only relate to a modern world audience through their own historical experiences, but also Poland's own until recent turbulent history. The cinematography is sumptuous, the screenplay flawless, but the direction particularly raises its game during important passages of play. The costumes are of acceptable if not exceptional standard, although my opinion must've been made after Pasolini's "Medea" still fresh in mind. But this is a fine film nevertheless, and therefore Recommended Viewing.

Amazon.es DVD Link (comes with Spanish and Polish audio)
English Subtitles

Storyline:
The film charts the demise of a ruling dynasty in ancient Egypt - one that Ramesses XIII inherits. By this time, the kingdom effectively is run by priests overseeing the various ministries, with the Pharaoh more of a ceremonial figurehead than someone who could wield real power. The kingdom's coffers are empty and all the wealth are controlled by priests. With a restive population, a rebellious mercenary army, and the ever-powerful Assyrians breathing down their neck, an ambitious but immature Ramesses tries to wrest control over his kingdom's assets and wage war on Assyria instead of finding a peaceful alternative. His actions, paved with good intentions as it might be, is nevertheless misguided. It creates more adversaries than allies, not least with the overbearing priesthood. Any attempt to change the status quo is futile, Ramesses will soon learn.




Compilation: Krystyna Mikolajewska and Barbara Brylska
There's only brief nudity in the film - it is too conservative a film for that, but parts of it are also positively sensual, the reason for my post.



Scene Guide:

• No nudity save a nipple-slip in the scene where Ramesses first notices young and beautiful Sara, and instantly decides to take her with him despite knowing she's Jewish. Sara is played by a pretty Krystyna Mikolajewska.
• Ramesses is persuaded to visit a temple by people willing to finance his planned campaign against Assyria, one overseen by Phoenician priestess Kama. Despite having to remain pure and virginal, she'd been instructed to seduce the future Pharaoh - all in the name of her fellow countrymen who are about to be invaded by Assyria. If this is how priestesses were clothed, how could one possibly expect men to look at them with faith in their eyes I wonder. I'm not surprised their religion is dead..! :)
• Sara, now mother of Ramesses' child, pleads him to get rid of Kama (she's aware of his new mistress) in view of her ulterior motives. But Ramesses is just too proud to even worry about it.
• When he visits Kama the next time, she rejects his gift and persuades him instead to throw Sara out because she'd given his son a Jewish first name, and therefore can't be a future Pharaoh. Kama by the way is played by a young and sensual Barbara Brylska.
• I see Egyptians also invented the thong, worn rather fetchingly by Kama the priestess. Having seen off her adversary Sara, we're now made aware of her secret affair with Lycon, a Greek immigrant who looks a spitting image of Ramesses. This is followed by an orgy scene where Kama dances and entertains copulating guests.
• Things don't go her way forever though - she soon finds herself caged by an all-knowing ministerial priesthood.

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Blanca Lewin & Gonzalo Valenzuela in "En la Cama" [2005 Chile]

Talented young director Matías Bize impressed audience with his debut full-length feature ("Sábado, una Película en Tiempo Real" - I'll write about it in a separate post, only hinting for the moment that the entire film was done with a single take). He cast the same lead actress (Blanca Lewin) in his 2005 drama, "En la Cama" [Eng. Title: In Bed], setting out to prove another point - that a full length film can be made (unlike a Andy Warhol), engagingly and illuminatingly from within the confines of one room. Okay, there is an additional scene in the film shot with a different set, but most of the happenings are in the one room, between two characters in a bed. The best part of it all is - it doesn't look remotely experimental. The subject is as mainstream as it gets, just as the characters. What makes the film tick is its excellent script and screenplay.

Beautifully conceived, it doesn't set out to say anything particularly profound, but reveals through dialogue the intricacies of relationships in an insightful manner. The storyline essentially is about a young man and woman, strangers, having a one-night stand after a party. Obviously sex was what in their mind, but one can't possibly keep doing it non-stop without having a break now and again. As wonderful though the sex scenes are to watch, it is during the interludes between removing and putting on condoms that the drama truly takes place. Two strangers attracted to each other in a motel room that's neither's territory, and a whole sleepless night to contend with - surely they have to talk to each other at some point. And they do, if awkwardly at first, about mundane little things like films, comic heroes etc., until they get comfortable enough to talk about their past experiences and relationships. And through the unfolding night, we see their histories unravel, we see them face up to each other naked, unprotected - as human nature intended. And theirs is not that much different to our own...

I'd reviewed this film years ago, but this is a reappraisal for the blog, and also to refresh my memory. This remarkable film is the result of a neat little concept which also didn't go unnoticed by a certain Julio Medem who acknowledged its inspiration for one of his own films. A film made with just two characters in a confined room - should work, just as your own relationship with a cherished one could within the privacy of a bedroom. It requires a fine script to pull it off, which this film does, ably assisted by some sleek cinematography and direction. The only two actors in the film - Blanca Lewin and Gonzalo Valenzuela give a fine performance and generate convincing chemistry between them on screen, although Blanca Lewin pretty much remains the star of the show. The editing may have been a touch overdone, but that's only me nit-picking - it is a fine film as it stands. Needless to say, for those who like to watch cerebral films that are also a visual treat, especially if it is from a magnetic Blanca Lewin, this is Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon DVD Link




About the DVD:
This DVD is from a different era. While it has some interesting extras and unseen (deleted) footage, it is also asking to be remastered. It is letterboxed widescreen, made with older TV sets in mind. I'm afraid we'll have to put up with it until technology catches up.




Compilation: Blanca Lewin and Gonzalo Valenzuela
The blog needs to evolve, and I too am breaking new ground here with this post - which is to highlight nudity from both female and male actors in the scenes featured. These are early days, and I hope I could do justice to both sexes. Except for the quality in this compilation - as hinted above, the DVD is not as good as it could be, and its heavy interlacing means there's really no point in me trying to enhance the scenes at all. But they're not entirely revolting either. The film by the way has many more scenes than I could possibly insert, and there are also blog theme-related deleted scenes that appear among the DVD extras, but can't be included here - it is already too long.



Scene Guide:

• A man and a woman take a room at a motel for a one-night stand, not even knowing their names. Daniela and Bruno won't know what to call each other until they've already had sex. They're played by a captivating Blanca Lewin and handsome Gonzalo Valenzuela respectively.
• One of several enjoyable bed-wrestling/pillow fight scenes from the film.
• They start talking about films and continue their conversation in the jacuzzi, Bruno encouraging Daniela to think up a story for her film. Followed by a steamy and realistic sex scene - Lewin and Valenzuela strike up a chemistry that's actually quite convincing. It is also beautifully shot.
• It's 4 AM - too late for this and too early for that, they need to think of something to do. Bruno is 'recharging his batteries', so Daniela offers to help - cue for a Bollywood-style song and dance routine courtesy of a radio - niceee..!
• As things stand, Bruno still needs time to recuperate, and they get chatting, about faking orgasms, and women's urge to shop (or their reason thereof)
• The uncomfortable silence after sharing each others' deep-held secrets leads to some much needed passionate lovemaking. Another virtue of this film is that each love scene is spontaneous and unique, perfectly tuned to the couple's perceived state of mind. You don't see the same thing shown repetitively. This time, Daniela's almost perfect orgasm is ruined when Bruno inadvertently calls out his ex-girlfriend's name during climax. :D

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