C'est Gradiva qui vous appelle (Alain Robbe-Grillet, 2006)

[Alain3000]

Alain Robbe-Grillet will be directing his first film in a while.

[Barmy]

He needs to get his stuff out on DVD!

[Alain3000]

Review of film translated from Italian site.

Its wefts often are modeled on those of myths and serve simply in order to hold united the perceptions of for himself disintegrated in one particular multitude. And it more and more seems that the game piaccia to the old istrionico director.
Still virtuosismi therefore for ultraottantenne the Robbe-Grillet (classe'22), writer scripteriter and French director of international reputation let alone maximum exponent of the Ecole du Regard
A film not easy that one introduced in the “special events horizonsâ€

[Barmy]

Sinopsis:
John Locke es un historiador del arte que se encuentra en Marruecos estudiando los trabajos de Eugene Delacroix. Mientras investiga sobre su obra en tierras africanas, se cruza por su camino varias veces una figura etérea, que le hace perderse entre las calles antes de desvanecerse. Tras una de esas apariciones Locke conoce a un anticuario y su grupo de amigas/cortesanas, con quien comienza a tener cada vez más relación pese a los consejos de su criada y amante Belkis, que le pide que se mantenga lejos de ellos.

Comentario:
Alain Robbe-Grillet es el máximo exponente de la "nueva novela" francesa, una corriente literaria y cinematográfica de los 50-60, que rehusa de estructura narrativa convencional. Eso se nota en sus novelas y en su cine. C'Est Gradiva... (Es Gradiva quien te Llama) no es una excepción. Confusa y atípica, nos mueve por escenarios marroquíes, alternando belleza y crueldad, fantasía y realidad, en un trabajo visualmente estimulante, pero que peca de pedante y aburrido. Los actores están bien (teniendo en cuenta el poco aprecio que siente Robbe-Grillet en desarrollarlos), y el erotismo es una parte importante de la película, al igual que en trabajos anteriores (el último de ellos realizado 11 años antes de el que nos ocupa). Algún miembro del reparto nos confesaba en la intimidad que también pensaba que la película era soberanamente aburrida, pero que no podía rechazar el papel por tratarse de alguien con el prestigio del director.

[tavernier]

It's no surprise that this film was NOT chosen for the Film Society of Lincoln Center's "Rendez-vous with French Cinema" series that starts Feb. 28.

[David Ehrenstein]

Really? Why?

Robbe-Grillet's work as a fimmaker is highly underrated. I love Glissement progressif du plaisir and L'eden et apres. Neither has anything on common with Marienbad.

[tavernier]

Because it's too outre for the Film Society...

[David Ehrenstein]

So much the worse for them.

[Numéro 2]

Or maybe because it's actually not a very good film. Being a great Robbe-Grillet fan and having seen and enjoyed basically everything he's done, this was one of the films I going to Venice to see last year. And the film was very disapointing - at least to me. It stil has the dreamlike, erotic fantasy narrative (and he even cut's in scenes from Eden et après - which works well) but somehow it didn't work nearly as well as his earlier films.

[Barmy]

Thanks Numero. My expectations are not that high. I like all of his films but, face it, the last great ones were 30 or more years ago. He's probably a little rusty.

[fred]

Because it's too outre for the Film Society...

I believe the selection in this series comes from Unifrance, not the Film Society.

[tavernier]

You believe wrongly....I know that Pena's involved in the selections, for one.

And even if the new Robbe-Grillet film sucks, so what? Lots of crappy films are picked for these series; at least that's one I'd like to get a chance to see.

[Barmy]

If it doesn't feature middle-aged bourgeoisies getting all angsty, a film stands less of a chance of being selected for the Film Society French series. Outre for them is that Breillat bitch.

[Barmy]

Thanks. I wish Alain would focus on getting his old stuff out on DVD. This looks pretty dodgy.

[kinjitsu]

Topic already exists.