Could the French ever make a movie that is not about adultery?
Added 11/16/2009
I'm wary of complaining about what a movie could have been about; however when Truffaut writes a story about France in the Second World War, I guess I expected something about the grittiness and moral complexities of living with the Nazi occupation. The movie touches on resistance and collaboration but Truffaut's delicacy, sensitivity and humanity rarely scratch below the surface. More energy went into getting the stars decked out in immaculate fashion statements than taking a hard look at how the French managed Fascism.
And of course, that old French movie standby, adultery; the pain, the exquisite pain of loving the wrong person.
Yawn.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Exquisite
Added 6/26/2009
I saw this film years ago in an art theater here in Saint Louis and it captivated me. Gerard Depardieu and Catherine Deneuve play stage actors who meet during the turmoil of World War II's Nazi occupation of France. The screen chemistry between Depardieu and Deneuve is compelling. The awards and accolades this film has received are clearly understandable. The most memorable scene in the film for me was the scene within the play where Depardieu, in character, professes his love for Deneuve's character and it is clear to the viewer that these feelings have transcended the play.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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As understated and overacted as good acting can get
Added 6/25/2009
Directing the making of a play as though it were a play!
She can melt you with a look. Miss her nuance, lose the plot.
He can jump back into props with a single bound. Acting, not cutting, deepens the emoting.
Both do what is required of a great actor when required.
Only at the end does the camera pull back to show the audience has been fooled.
Buy this movie that brings home a post war French view of a tragic and historic time within the frames of French love, French comedy and universal DRAMA.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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late period Truffaut is better than any period Godard
Added 6/20/2009
Any movie released by Criterion is worth owning: even if you're not familiar with the film or it's not a favorite, they're sure to include so many valuable extras that you'll get your money's worth and appreciate the film's significance as time passes on. When it comes to Truffaut vs. Godard, I'm definitely in the Truffaut camp. Long after Godard had given up delivering anything but the most self-absorbed, tiresome movies, Truffaut was celebrating the power of telling stories with the late period effort The Last Metro ($39.95 for regular OR BluRay; Criterion), which tells of a French theater troupe trying to mount a show while France is occupied by the Nazis. Catherine Deneuve stars with Gerard Depardieu. I haven't seen the BluRay but the regular DVD looks marvelous and comes with extras like two audio commentaries (one with Depardieu), old TV interviews, new video interviews with cast and crew, an interview with cinematographer Nestor Almendros and a short film made in 1958 by Truffaut and Godard before Godard became insufferable. Visit me at michaelgiltz dot com.
1 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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A great WWII story of occupied France
Added 3/29/2009
This review is for the Criterio Collection DVD edition of the film.
The Last Metro, known in France as Le Dernier Métro, is a 1980 film by internationally acclaimed director François Truffaut. The film's title is based on the midnight curfew imposed by the Nazis and getting home before the last metro train which left the start of the line at 11 PM It also co-stars a pre-international fame Gérard Depardieu.
The film depicts a theater in occupied Paris during World War II. The owner of the theater is Jewish and hides in the basement to avoid capture by the Nazis. He is able to listen to the plays that are performed through a hole made in an air duct.
I thought the film was well made and what I'd expect from such a fine director whom was living in France at the time of the Nazi occupation.
The Criterion version is a 2 disc set and contains the following special features.
Disc one contains the film with two audio commentaries. The first is by Annette Insdorf, a biographer of Truffaut and his personal translator. The second commentary is with Gérard Depardieu, and historian Jean-Pierre Azéma, and is moderated by Truffaut biographer Serge Toubiana. This second commentary is in French with English subtitles
Disc two contains the theatrical trailer, an untranslated deleted scene, archival interviews with Andréa Ferréol, Sabine Haudepin, and Paulette Dubost, assistant director Alain Tasma, and camera assistants Florent Bazin and Tessa Racine, a new interview with Truffaut's colleague, Nestor Almendros, and "Une histoire d'eau" a 1958 short film, co-directed by Truffaut and Jean-Luc Goddard.
This is a fine release and long awaited in such a fully loaded version.
1 out of 2 people found this helpful.
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Could the French ever make a movie that is not about adultery?
Added 11/16/2009
I'm wary of complaining about what a movie could have been about; however when Truffaut writes a story about France in the Second World War, I guess I expected something about the grittiness and moral complexities of living with the Nazi occupation. The movie touches on resistance and collaboration but Truffaut's delicacy, sensitivity and humanity rarely scratch below the surface. More energy went into getting the stars decked out in immaculate fashion statements than taking a hard look at how the French managed Fascism.
And of course, that old French movie standby, adultery; the pain, the exquisite pain of loving the wrong person.
Yawn.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Exquisite
Added 6/26/2009
I saw this film years ago in an art theater here in Saint Louis and it captivated me. Gerard Depardieu and Catherine Deneuve play stage actors who meet during the turmoil of World War II's Nazi occupation of France. The screen chemistry between Depardieu and Deneuve is compelling. The awards and accolades this film has received are clearly understandable. The most memorable scene in the film for me was the scene within the play where Depardieu, in character, professes his love for Deneuve's character and it is clear to the viewer that these feelings have transcended the play.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
|
As understated and overacted as good acting can get
Added 6/25/2009
Directing the making of a play as though it were a play!
She can melt you with a look. Miss her nuance, lose the plot.
He can jump back into props with a single bound. Acting, not cutting, deepens the emoting.
Both do what is required of a great actor when required.
Only at the end does the camera pull back to show the audience has been fooled.
Buy this movie that brings home a post war French view of a tragic and historic time within the frames of French love, French comedy and universal DRAMA.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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