Isabelle Huppert in "La dentellière" [1977 France, Switzerland]

Sometimes, it requires a painter to appreciate beauty, says Swiss director Claude Goretta, and writer Pascal Lainé, upon whose novel the film, "La dentellière" [Eng. Title: The Lacemaker] is based. Even the title alludes to Johannes Vermeer's famous painting.

Beatrice aka Pomme (Isabelle Huppert) is eighteen, lives with her mum, and works as an apprentice at a Parisian hair salon. She is pretty, but also too modest to flaunt her good looks. She's kind, and keen to help others, unlike her older colleague at work, the attention-seeking Marylène (Florence Giorgetti). Pomme and Marylène go on a vacation to a seaside town in Normandy, and that's when Pomme, having been momentarily abandoned by Marylène, meets François (Yves Beneyton), a philosophy student from a rich family, also on vacation.

François is fascinated by Pomme's simplicity, her looks, but particularly her virtue (he even asks her on one occasion if she was a virgin, a fact she acknowledges), and after initiating her to sex, believes he loves her, and invites her to live with him in his Paris. Pretty soon however, he notices that there's very little in common between them - intellect or interests, and begins to resent her sweet (compliant, and devoid of opinion) nature, and becomes increasingly embarrassed about having her as his girlfriend. He suggests they go their separate ways, and a heartbroken Pomme neither resists nor tries to reason with him - she meekly accepts his decision and moves out.

But depression will take its toll on Pomme's health, which will see her end up in a sanatorium. When he hears about her mental illness, François visits her with trepidation and also a sense of guilt, but during their conversation, Pomme startles him by claiming that she's actually quite happy these days, and that she also travels on holiday to Greek islands, often having flings with various men. The closing shot is of Pomme casting an enigmatic gaze towards the camera, like one of Vermeer's famous paintings.

The events described above are mostly from François' perspective. Pomme's view, on the other hand, could indeed be different - Pomme may not be as dull as François thinks she is - in fact she comes across as far more observant, having 'lived' life, unlike François, merely reading about it from a sheltered environment. She doesn't argue or raise an opinion, not to withdraw herself from engaging with François and his friends, but perhaps because her accumulated wisdom had taught her that there might after all never be a single truth to pursue with conviction. Who then, is the more enlightened of the two.

The film is not just a melodrama resting on the incompatibility of different social classes, but also about people's preconceptions, and limited tolerance, or willingness to look beyond the surface. Pomme's viewpoint as opined above, isn't something that I conjured up - it is Ms. Huppert's own interpretation of her character, explained in an interview to a magazine after the film's initial release. Small wonder that her performance was so widely hailed that it also earned her a BAFTA award. I'm convinced that it is Isabelle Huppert's individual performance that makes this film as good as it is. Needless to say, it is Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon.de DVD Link [PAL]
English Subtitles

 

The Nudity: Florence Giorgetti and Isabelle Huppert
Claude Goretta isn't particularly known for using nudity in his films, but this one is a pleasant exception, and Ms. Huppert in particular, is at her youthful best.



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Nudity in "Abel" [1986 Netherlands]

Alex van Warmerdam wrote, starred, and also made his directorial film début in what many consider to be a modern Dutch classic, "Abel". It is also one of the most hilarious comedies I've seen from Holland - slapstick at times, and totally deadpan on other occasions, but absurd and funny all the same. I'd been following his more recent works with interest even before I got to watch this film, and as it turns out, this is now one of my favourite Warmerdem films.

The storyline revolves around Abel (Alex van Warmerdam), a thirty one year old agoraphobic still living with his parents - he hasn't ventured outside the house in over ten years. His father Victor (Henri Garcin) is ashamed of him, while his mother Duif (Olga Zuiderhoek) over-compensates with her henpecking. After a psychologist tells them that the problem is not their son but their own attitude towards him, Victor decides it would be a good idea to get him to socialise with women, and brings home a female colleague (Loes Luca) from the amateur theatre he's involved in. It turns into a disaster, and after Victor finds out that Abel and mum had secretly bought a TV - hitherto banned in the household, he blows his lid off and chucks Abel out of the house. Enter Zus (Annet Malherbe), a stripper with a heart of gold, who pities and falls in love with penniless Abel and takes him with her. Further hysterics ensue when Zus ends her affair with Victor, and he finds out that his love rival none other than his own son...

This is one delightfully twisted and absurd comedy with exaggerated characterisation and situations. The cinematography also has a nostalgic appeal. It is aided by fine performances, notably by Henri Garci who plays Victor, the direction, and in no small measure by the gorgeously voluptuous Annet Malherbe who plays the sexy temptress Zus - little surprise that she's also director Warmerdem's partner in real-life. This memorable and ridiculously funny film is Highly Recommended Viewing..!

DVD Box-Set [PAL]
This is a good value box-set that include no less than 9 films - all classics, from Alex van Warmerdem - my Recommended choice.



The Nudity: Annet Malherbe
The sensual and beautiful Annet Malherbe appears teasingly nude in a few scenes, mostly while performing her come-hither routine at a peep-show booth where she works. There is also some unintentional nudity in a scene when her character tries to elicit a sexual response from Abel.



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Catherine Spaak & Florinda Bolkan in "Una ragazza piuttosto complicata" [1969 Italy]

Damiano Damiani was one of the most prominent and prolific Italian directors during the 60's and 70's, and his early crime and political dramas were, if not revolutionary, certainly ground-breaking for its time. His erotic/psychological thriller "Una ragazza piuttosto complicata" [Eng. Title: A Rather Complicated Girl] was made during the height of his powers with major stars of the time - Jean Sorel, and Catherine Spaak, and was also Florinda Bolkan's second feature film.

Storyline:
The film starts with Alberto (Jean Sorel) inadvertently overhearing an erotic conversation over the telephone between two women - Claudia, and Greta. Fascinated, he imagines Claudia - the one describing her breasts and doing most of the talking, in several different ways, until he manages to track her down, to reveal to us the real Claudia (Catherine Spaak), a flirtatious brunette and mod, complete with Vespa. Claudia and Alberto hit it off from the word-go, but it's all platonic until he begins to fall in love, and later obsess over her. As it happens, Claudia already has a boyfriend - Pietro (Gigi Proietti), but maintains her right to see anyone else if she so desires. The woman on the other end of the overheard conversation - Greta, turns out to be Claudia's stepmother (Florinda Bolkan). They were lovers once, and Claudia feels rejected now after Greta ends their affair and decides to get married again. But is all what it seems, or is this a vicious game by Claudia, sending subliminal signals to entrap Alberto as part of an elaborate plot..?

While this is by no means Damiani's finest work, it is a decently-executed thriller, and more than anything else, will be remembered for its kitsch 1960's décor, groovy soundtrack, and the fashion of its time. I nevertheless bought this DVD specifically for the elegant and classy Florinda Bolkan, and while she only appears during the later half of the film, there is plenty of teasing eye-candy to keep us interested until then, from the lovely Catherine Spaak. Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon.it DVD Link [PAL]



The Nudity: Catherine Spaak, Florinda Bolkan, and others
Most of the nudity is from unknown actresses, with brief, and very brief nudity from the lovely French-born cutie - Catherine Spaak, and an elegant Florinda Bolkan respectively. The first scene, with anonymous actresses, is the longest in terms of nudity, followed by brief instances, including an outdoor location, from Catherine Spaak. Florinda Bolkan's nude scene, if anything, is tantalisingly fleeting.



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Hani Furstenberg in "The Loneliest planet" [2011 USA, Germany]

No too often do you find a single moment defining a film's purpose. And when that happens, the filmmaker better make sure that he/she got the timing right, lest the message is lost on the audience. American director Julia Loktev's second feature film "The Loneliest Planet" uses less than two seconds to justify its 108-minute run-time - blink, and you might just miss it. But she pulls it off very well through the carefully calibrated rhythm and nuance of her thrilling drama.

Alex (Gael García Bernal) and Nica (Hani Furstenberg) - engaged to be married, are trekking through the Caucasus mountains in Georgia - it is apparent that they're very much in love, and are seasoned travellers to remote parts of the world, getting by with fewer creature comforts. Leading the couple is local mountain guide Dato (Bidzina Gujabidze - a mountain guide in real life too), an engaging personality who informs and entertains them along the way. This pretty much summarises the film, and whatever else we experience are a result of the director positioning her characters in relation to themselves and the landscape. Little is spoken amongst the three, but enough is conveyed, through long takes reminiscent of Angelopoulos' The Travelling Players, and the keen - almost voyeuristic observation of the camera.

The slow pace of the film is disturbed momentarily, almost exactly halfway, through a swift, almost instinctive gesture from one of the characters that'll contrast the mood and subtext of the two halves. If I have to be pedantic, there's 3-4 minutes of excess film used immediately after this point - time Ms. Loktev uses to underscore the pivotal moment, possibly to help viewers unaccustomed to the film's tempo and subtlety. Otherwise, this is a magnificent film with everything going for it - the screenplay, the performances, the cinematography, and certainly Ms. Loktev's direction, which lends it authenticity by being almost subversively honest, while mentioning the unmentionable aspects of human nature and relationships. Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon.de DVD Link [PAL]



The Nudity: Hani Furstenberg
Hani Furstenberg appears nude on two occasions - first, while trying to keep warm in the bathroom while waiting for Bernal to fetch some hot water, and later when Bernal accompanies her outside the tent at night.



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Olga Ponizova in "Grekh. Istoriya Strasti" [1993 Russia]

Viktor Sergeyev's melodrama "Grekh. Istoriya Strasti" [Eng. Title: Sin. A Story of Passion] is about a love affair between a monk and a young carefree woman.

Storyline:
The film is told in flashback, after a German TV crew descend upon a Russian women-only convent, to investigate a sensational murder in Hamburg involving an ex-monk and a prostitute. We'll learn that the prostitute, Nina (Olga Ponizova), lives in the convent after being acquitted for the murder of Seryozha (Aleksandr Abdulov), the son of a wealthy family, and who until recently was a monk of the Russian orthodox church.

Nina, a carefree and earthy girl, first met Seryozha at a bus station in the middle of the night, and after seeing a group of thugs beat him up, comes to his rescue. She also madly falls in love with Seryozha, to the extent that she would even offer sex to a passing motorist in return for a lift back home with the wounded Seryozha. But Seryozha has a dark past - he'd been a bad boy, having also ratted on friends after an incident with a girl. His friends are out to get him, and his father had tucked him away at a convent to keep him away from danger. When the father learns about Nina, he sends Seryozha off to Jerusalem to keep him away from her. Nina follows him there too, after 'selling' herself at an auction for some travel money. They become lovers and travel to Hamburg, and when they run out of money, Nina takes to prostitution. Seryozha resents this, but nevertheless makes no effort of his own to change matters. Things get to head one evening and Seryozha shoots Nina, upon which she takes his gun and kills him in return...

It's an interesting premise - exploring moral values from a physical and spiritual perspective. But unfortunately, this isn't a serious study, and everything is played out in a simplistic manner. Life isn't like that, and there are several shades between the black and white morality that this film tries to represent. What it lacks in characterisation, it has tried to make up for in creating a foreboding atmosphere, but never quite succeeds. While the cinematography is well done, the soundtrack is clichéd, bordering on the cheesy. The locations have an appeal, but the only thing that keeps us vaguely engaged through the 108 minutes is the expressive face of Olga Ponizova - too bad nothing much comes out of it either. But I might sit to watch this drama only for her - there are other serious films for a more challenging discourse on the subject of morality.



The Nudity: Olga Ponizova
There are several instances of partial and frontal nudity from pretty Olga Ponizova, the most memorable of which is a seaside love scene that runs for over three minutes.



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