Cinematheque Ontario - Recent Nouvelle Vague

NOUVELLE VAGUE CONTINUES…

Cinematheque Ontario Nouvelle Vague series continues this week with more recent entries (3 made in 2007).  These are rare screenings never seen before in Toronto except at the Toronto International Film Festival.

For more information on screening times, schedules and ticket pricing, check the Cinematheque website at:
http://www.cinemathequeontario.ca

Capsule film reviews for selected films:

LES AMOURS D’ASTREE ET DE CELADON (Fr/It/Sp 2007) **
Directed by Eric Rohmer

LES AMOURS returns nouvelle vague director Eric Rohmer to his stagey period costume pieces of PERCIVAL LE GALLOIS and THE LADY AND THE DUKE.  But in spirit and narrative, LES AMOURS is more similar to his talky tales of the four seasons (TALE OF WINTER, TALE OF AUTUMN) series, in which young lovers Celadon (Andy Gillet) and Astrée (Stéphanie Crayencour) quarrel, argue and talk in and out of relationships.  LES AMOURS is a story centred on shepherds that plays like Shakespeare’s romantic comedies involving switched identities like TAMING OF THE SHREW and MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING.  Celadon pretends to go with another girl to please his parents during a party.  Astree notices them making out beneath a tree and jealousy leads Celadon to drown himself.  This is all romantic melodrama – 16th century-style.  But Rohmer seems to be in auto-pilot mode here.  Though the story is interesting and the actors spew out prose with ease, LES AMOURS feels laboured and weighed down.  The problem here is that the actors look uncomfortable in their costumes and heavy uttering the older French prose.  It is difficult enough for older audiences to identify with teens and hardly still to identify with teens in the 16th century.

(Screening at the Cinematheque on Aug 14th, 8.45 pm Friday)

LA FILLE COUPEE EN DEUX (France 2007) ****
Directed by Claude Chabrol

THE GIRL CUT IN TWO contains classic Chabrol characters – the suave super efficient attorney, the over-protective wealthy mother, the rejected spoilt son, flirting sisters and the innocent heroine caught in between.  Set in the countryside around Lyon, a pretty young fille, Gabrielle (Ludivine Sagnier) falls for a much older lover, the famous writer, Charles Saint-Denis (Francois Berléand) who happens to be married.  Though a flirt, Charles ditches Gabrielle to return to his wife (Valeria Cavalli).  Gabrielle ends up marrying a rich spoilt brat, Paul Geudens (Benoît Magimel from L’ENNEMI INTIME).  Jealousy leading to murder (Chabrol is best at this) ultimately follows.  LA FILLE is shot with all the elegant stylishness of Chabrol’s best works and is reminiscent mostly of LE CRI DE HIBOU and the CHAMPAGNE MURDERS.  Wickedly entertaining!

(Screening at the Cinematheque on Aug 7th, 9pm Friday.)

NE TOUCHEZ PAS LA HACHE (France 2007) ***
Directed by Jacques Rivette

Novelle Vague director Jacques Rivette’s NE TOCHEZ PAS LA HACHE (or Don’t touch the Axe), based on the Balzac short story LA DUCHESSE DE LANGEAIS is a subtle romance, part comedy part tragedy kept in its original form.  The story evolves around the pair, the Duchess, Antoinette (Jeanne Balibar) and General Armand de Montriveau (Guillaume Depardieu) set in 1820’s Paris.  Antoinette seduces the general in a series of mind games.  When Montriveau finally seeks revenge, Antoinette relents, but it might be too late.  Rivette’s film is solid on period details from the props, costumes and music.  Though the film looks a bit dated in its setting, the game of love is still as relevant then as it is today.  LA HACHE takes a while before getting a solid footing – it feels at times that Rivette is trying too hard to keep to Balzac’s original text - but the wait is well worth it.  Rivette’s staple Michel Piccoli has a respectable cameo as Antoinette’s uncle who gives her advice.

(Screening at the Cinematheque on Aug 9th, 7pm. Sunday)