This is the ‘lost’ film Jean-Luc Godard made during his early run (BREATHLESS/’60 thru WEEKEND/’67), before he started to mistrust not the medium, as some would have it, but the cinematic gifts that came too easily to him. The release year is misleading as this was made as the emulsion was still drying on BREATHLESS, then put on hold as a political hot potato while the French/Algerian War wound down. By the time it came out, many topical issues were moot and few cared about the content. Worse, few seemed to care about Godard’s Nouveau Vague stylistics. Remembered now largely as being the film where Anna Karina met Jean-Luc (they soon married), she’s the mysterious beauty involved in Algerian political struggles who falls into bed with Michel Subor’s French deserter, living illegally in Geneva and trying to remove his stain by working to assassinate an anti-French operative. Or is he a counter-spy? Terrorist or counter-terrorist? Or only dong this to get himself (and new love Karina) out of Europe and off to Rio? Lack of clarity/motivation troublesome. So too Godard’s ‘whip pan’ editing, torture sequences and copious car chases, all proving no substitute for the film's real problem, lack of the BREATHLESS Cool. The rule breaking already coming off as merely reflexive. And toward the end, when Subor directly address us thru the lens, Godard seems to have lost the film before the public did.
ATTENTION MUST BE PAID: The best gag shot in the pic makes it briefly look as if Hitler is handling the assassination. Indeed, THE RELUCTANT ASSASSIN or THE INCOMPETENT ASSASSIN might have made a better title.
WATCH THIS, NOT THAT/LINK: Looking for unknown, but top-draw Godard? Check out his stunning little segment in the portmanteau pic THE WORLD’S MOST BEAUTIFUL SWINDLERS/’64. https://maksquibs.blogspot.com/2018/10/les-plus-belles-escroqueries-du-monde.html
No comments:
Post a Comment