La maman et la putain (1973)
(The Mother and the Whore)
Country: FR
Technical: bw 219m
Director: Jean Eustache
Cast: Bernadette Lafont, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Françoise Lebrun
Synopsis:
In post-May 68 Paris, Alexandre lives with an older woman so he won't have to pay rent, but embarks distractedly on an affair with a nurse whose promiscuity excites him.
Review:
Cahiers critic Eustache's key work would have been a masterpiece of the Nouvelle Vague, except that it arrived ten years too late. Arguably, however, it was a call to arms, reminding film-makers how far French cinema had abandoned the freshness that movement represented, and harnessing the unique screen presence of Léaud, very much the face of the New Wave thanks to Les 400 coups. He does in fact deliver his best screen performance here, all but free of the stiffness that can characterise his acting, and the two actresses are intriguingly cast against type. The film is a marathon of protracted scenes of dialogue in cafés, apartments and vehicles (though not the metro, as all the action seems to be centred around the Boulevard Raspail/Vavin district). Eustache himself said that he wanted to include all the 'non-action' detail of an individual's life, all the innocuous badinage as well as the important, irresponsible acts and gestures. The fact that he does so through pages of dialogue that nevertheless contrive to hold one's attention is no mean feat, and there is much to enjoy between the lines, too. From our perspective, these pampered people (it's a mystery how Alexandre has any money - he never does any work) have gaily embraced sexual freedoms, professing that the act has no significance, that it is love that counts, and yet bring themselves close to madness since this is plainly not the case.
(The Mother and the Whore)
Country: FR
Technical: bw 219m
Director: Jean Eustache
Cast: Bernadette Lafont, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Françoise Lebrun
Synopsis:
In post-May 68 Paris, Alexandre lives with an older woman so he won't have to pay rent, but embarks distractedly on an affair with a nurse whose promiscuity excites him.
Review:
Cahiers critic Eustache's key work would have been a masterpiece of the Nouvelle Vague, except that it arrived ten years too late. Arguably, however, it was a call to arms, reminding film-makers how far French cinema had abandoned the freshness that movement represented, and harnessing the unique screen presence of Léaud, very much the face of the New Wave thanks to Les 400 coups. He does in fact deliver his best screen performance here, all but free of the stiffness that can characterise his acting, and the two actresses are intriguingly cast against type. The film is a marathon of protracted scenes of dialogue in cafés, apartments and vehicles (though not the metro, as all the action seems to be centred around the Boulevard Raspail/Vavin district). Eustache himself said that he wanted to include all the 'non-action' detail of an individual's life, all the innocuous badinage as well as the important, irresponsible acts and gestures. The fact that he does so through pages of dialogue that nevertheless contrive to hold one's attention is no mean feat, and there is much to enjoy between the lines, too. From our perspective, these pampered people (it's a mystery how Alexandre has any money - he never does any work) have gaily embraced sexual freedoms, professing that the act has no significance, that it is love that counts, and yet bring themselves close to madness since this is plainly not the case.
(The Mother and the Whore)
Country: FR
Technical: bw 219m
Director: Jean Eustache
Cast: Bernadette Lafont, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Françoise Lebrun
Synopsis:
In post-May 68 Paris, Alexandre lives with an older woman so he won't have to pay rent, but embarks distractedly on an affair with a nurse whose promiscuity excites him.
Review:
Cahiers critic Eustache's key work would have been a masterpiece of the Nouvelle Vague, except that it arrived ten years too late. Arguably, however, it was a call to arms, reminding film-makers how far French cinema had abandoned the freshness that movement represented, and harnessing the unique screen presence of Léaud, very much the face of the New Wave thanks to Les 400 coups. He does in fact deliver his best screen performance here, all but free of the stiffness that can characterise his acting, and the two actresses are intriguingly cast against type. The film is a marathon of protracted scenes of dialogue in cafés, apartments and vehicles (though not the metro, as all the action seems to be centred around the Boulevard Raspail/Vavin district). Eustache himself said that he wanted to include all the 'non-action' detail of an individual's life, all the innocuous badinage as well as the important, irresponsible acts and gestures. The fact that he does so through pages of dialogue that nevertheless contrive to hold one's attention is no mean feat, and there is much to enjoy between the lines, too. From our perspective, these pampered people (it's a mystery how Alexandre has any money - he never does any work) have gaily embraced sexual freedoms, professing that the act has no significance, that it is love that counts, and yet bring themselves close to madness since this is plainly not the case.