Un long dimanche de fiançailles

IMDB

After watching the director's commentary which's equally long as the film itself, I learnt even simple looking shots contain great difficulties. A dog's appearance is hard to control and needs post sound edits. The aesthetically stimulating shots (for example the wind blown crop fields, bird's eye view of the lighthouse, alfafa etc.) pay homage to a bunch of classical films. The influence is numerous and Jean-Pierre's a perfectionist when it comes to camera. The movements are fluid and constant, foreground to a close-up, 360 degree circles and zooming in, ground level wide screen - to name a few of his favorites.

The crew is reassembled from Amelie (and partly from Delicatessen). Jodie Foster's appearance is surprising to me and she speaks perfect French.Jérôme Kircher who plays Bastoche reminds me of Colin Firth. All in all the film bears the big label 'Made in France' from tip to toe, as patriotic as the soldiers who charge on the no man's land for the sake of their country.

A minor complaint I have is the montage plot (as a trademark of Jean-Pierre) with pieces of information from various characters thrown in along a discontinuous timeline makes comprehension challenging. Especially when I was eating at the same time... had to share my vision between the subtitles and plates of cabbage... Suppose that doesn't happen in a darkened cinema (popcorn replacing cabbage), I doubt the state of confusion would be cleared.

So here are the director's tricks up his sleeve:
> Little superstitions (all the bets Mathilde made with herself)
> Superpositions (telephones, correspondence, flashbacks)
> Frequent use of filter (the golden glow)
> Voice-overs
> The central motif of 'quest for love': His characters are searching for something, which eventually leads to their true love. The journey starts with a tin box full of letters and faded photographs to be deciphered. Sounds familiar?
> You also have an indulgence of dark war humor: the switching of German boots, the bomb and hydrogen float in the hospital, all types of self-mutilations.

Those are the elements that make Jean-Pierre an interesting story teller. What's his next film?


我一直在想Gaspard Ulliel笑起来像谁，后来终于想起来了。。。龙泽秀明。同意的举手，不同意的站边去。

Dust to Dust, Ashes to Ashes,Dust to Dust, Ashes to Ashes,Dust to Dust, Ashes to Ashes,Dust to Dust, Ashes to Ashes。
那个夏天，Jady淘到DVD后很兴奋的给我看这个片断，现在还印象深刻。
(Notes from imdb forum: There was a thread on what she was really saying here once and the conclusion was she was actually repeating a phrase French children sometimes say referring to those who have died. It is a phrase with two meanings which make what she was saying so much sadder: "My parents are late, my parents are late, my parents are late..."

Meaning one: They were supposed to be here already but they are late.
Meaning two: Her parents are late as in dead. i.e. "The late President Kenedy." )

最喜欢的镜头是Mathilde一瘸一拐的奔跑，心里赌着如果能在车子转弯前赶到。。。那么多的如果最终还是实现了，百感交集。