Midsummer Night's Dream machinations (with a little Anthony and Cleopatra mixed in for good measure) between any two of Cathy and Heathcliff, Laon andMidsummer Night's Dream machinations (with a little Anthony and Cleopatra mixed in for good measure) between any two of Cathy and Heathcliff, Laon and Cythna, (oh why not throw in a few of the Greek Pantheon as well - although they did more than just mess with each other's minds and really, who cared back then anyway) shot in very sexy black and white and accompanied by a stunning selection from Vivaldi and Bach. Not long on ambiguity, plenty of nods to Freudian concocteauns, marvelous narration from Jean himself. Adair's commentary is a wonderful recording of his voice....more
The definitive and brilliant visual representation of the several facets of the nouveau roman occupying Robbe-Grillet. Preliminary reading of La JalouThe definitive and brilliant visual representation of the several facets of the nouveau roman occupying Robbe-Grillet. Preliminary reading of La Jalousie and In The Labyrinth provide essential keys to unlocking "meaning" from the film and its final ambiguous denouement. Robbe-Grillet was concerned with exploding narrative and demolishing the presence of an omnipotent author - the film closely follows R-G's script with only minor alterations, Resnais and Robbe-Grillet having worked independently on its realisation: visually appealing, stylised and stylish, mocking the facades which are so reverently presented; the use of mirrors, gardens, linearity and repetition producing the same surreality and disorientation as found in Robbe-Grillet's oeuvre (particularly as depicted in La Jalousie and Dans le Labyrinthe); the personalities displayed as marionettes jerking to and validating the constraining strings of social convention. A unique and landmark production, the only jarring note being the dreadful, funereal organ; if the intent here was to continually grate upon the watcher's nerve, the score succeeded too well, at times destroying both the narrator's voice over and the dialogue as well as the immersion in the complexities of the film. Not so much lacking in layers of meaning as lavish in proffering....more
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