Tag Archives: Auteur
Les Biches (The Does)
Claude Chabrol’s take on sexual ambiguity in 1968 is mischievous. Stéphane Audran plays the resplendent Frédérique, nouvelle vague’s colonialist of female lust and control. She’s the wealthy dominatrix who wants power over those she desires, and she pursues them with … Continue reading
Sauve Qui Peut (La Vie) Every Man for Himself
Godard’s charm is particular: his ability to hold us close to his characters, shake us for a reaction, and then pull us back to the position of voyeur. Sometimes we are with them, and sometimes we aren’t. Depression and solemn … Continue reading
Conte de Printemps (A Tale of Springtime)
Conversation in Eric Rohmer’s Conte de Printemps is as free as bugs buzzing in tall meadow grasses: a waking-up to truth, and the falling away of wintertime misunderstandings. First in the series Contes des Quatre Saisons (Tales of Four Seasons), … Continue reading
Vincent, François, Paul et les Autres (the Others)
Mid-life unease is worn as light as a 1970s sports jacket in Claude Sautet’s expose of friendship and floundering between three men. Energetic entrepreneur, Vincent (Yves Montand), the uptight doctor, François (Michel Piccoli) and disillusioned writer, Paul (Serge Reggiani) all … Continue reading
Conte d’Hiver (A Winter’s Tale)
Eric Rohmer reinvents fairytale with grey cold, charming chattering and the hopes of an ordinary woman. Neither Grimm nor Disney, greedy witch or shallow promise, Rohmer’s magic rests in the day-to-day and a heart’s steadfast belief that something, contrary to … Continue reading
César et Rosalie
Male adoration and infatuation takes two forms in Claude Sautet’s love-triangle serenade, starring Romy Schneider as the woman unable to choose between a passionate entrepreneur and an aloof artist. Both are obsessed with her, but show their interest in different … Continue reading
Le Boucher (The Butcher)
A disturbed butcher falling for a small-town schoolteacher forms the blood and bones of Claude Chabrol’s classic 1970 thriller. Set in the heart of the Dordogne close to one of the region’s prehistoric caves, Popaul (Jean Yanne) is a needy … Continue reading
Paris Nous Appartient (Paris Belongs to Us)
Wide spaces and open ideas connect with paranoia and penned-in desire in Jacques Rivette’s first feature, the title of which is inspired by Charles Péguy’s reflection that Paris belongs to those who spend the summer there preparing for the winter … Continue reading
Un Plus Une
Claude Lelouch flings opens the doors, shows us heightened-colours of India, and lets love happen Continue reading
Nelly et Monsieur Arnaud (Nelly and Mr Arnaud)
Nelly (Emmanuelle Béart) is the muse and Mr Arnaud (Michel Serrault) is the man who loves from afar. Desire undeclared, is thus the soft wind that passes through the corridors and large rooms of Mr Arnaud’s smart Parisian apartment. Mr … Continue reading
