Film Persona

  Jean-Pierre Melville's "Le Deuxieme Souffle" By 1966, the 'gangster flick' was a nostalgic genre of film that wasn't too prevalent in the modern landscape. Particularly, the French gangster flick, which had its heyday fairly recently, as that style held prominence in the 1950s, before the explosion of New Wave cinema. So, when Jean-Pierre Melville released " Le Deuxieme Souffle ," a modern gangster film, it breathed life into the stagnant genre - while also exploring the possibility for the genre to go in the modern age. This exploration opened the door for late 60s political and crime films, and even created a new landscape in the 70s with the array of crime films that were to come - especially in the U.S. The film feature an ensemble of various characters, but mostly centers on Gu - a widely respected gangster in the French underworld. He is widely known for never giving the police any information on his accomplices, which is why he is in prison ...

  Satyajit Ray's "The Hero" With the post-modern films of the 1960s came another layer to the cinematic experience - the metatext of narrative. Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray, who perfected his visual aesthetic by this time, used his 1966 film " The Hero " to abed this specific kind of narrative. The film's lead actor, Uttam Kumar, known for his screen presence in Indian cinema as " The Great Hero ," essentially played himself in Ray's production. Arindam Mukherjee, a Bengali film star known for his 'heroic' roles, is taking a 24-hour long train ride to Delhi where he will receive an award. While on the train, he comes across a variety of people, including an editor for a woman's magazine, Aditi. Her attempts to interview Arindam opens him up to past memories - which psychological haunt the superstar actor. Of course, the title of " The Hero " gets interrogated in Ray's film. The idolic actor's pristine and mysterio...

  Koreyoshi Kurahara's "Thirst For Love" There are certain stories that center on a rich, lustful woman desirous of a lower-class fellow in which the themes illustrate economic divides. Koreyshoi Kurahara's adaptation of Yukio Mishima's 1950 novel " Thirst For Love " takes this concept to its extreme. 1966's " Thirst For Love " is a delirious and erotic film that captures the voluptuous turmoil of Mishima's novel while also standing out as a centerpiece of Kurahara's filmography.  The film centers on Yakichi, a young widow who becomes the mistress of her wealthy father-in-law. She begins to have sexual desires for their family gardener, Saburo. After Saburo gets into a relationship with the maid, Yakichi drives them towards a tragic breakup. Eventually, Yakichi's feelings erupts - causing tragic consequences.  Yakichi feels trapped by her father-in-law's grasps due to his economic means. Her lusting after the servant boy is ...

  Jiri Menzel's "Closely Watched Trains" Of all of the films to come out of the Czech New Wave movement, Jiri Menzel's 1966 film " Closely Watched Trains " is perhaps one of the most widely-known. It received widespread acclaim outside of Czechoslovak and even won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Based on Bohumil Hrabal's 1965 novella of the same name, " Closely Watched Trains " was director Menzel's debut feature and earned him respect for the rest of his long career. The film centers on a young boy named Milos, who becomes an apprentice train dispatcher during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia. Beyond the continued external circumstances of their occupation, young Milos's priorities lie with securing a sexual relationship with a woman. However, his inability to perform the act causes him great concern and drives the entire emotional structure of the story. The film is as quiet and unassuming as its young protago...

  Jacques Rivette's "The Nun" After watching Jacques Rivette's 1966 film " The Nun ," I am thoroughly convinced it is the greatest 'nun' film I've seen. The film stars Anna Karina as a young woman who is forced into becoming a nun against her wishes. While the specific subject matters centers on this religious specificity, the overall context could be broadened to view it as a criticism of society itself and its oppressive restrictiveness. Karina's Suzanne, is forced to enter a convent to prevent her sisters from missing out on their inheritance. After her vows, her kind mother superior is replaced with a crueler woman who reduces Suzanne's possessions, restricts her diet, and locks her away in a barren room. After getting the courts involved, Suzanne is transferred to another church, under the supervision of the more light-hearted Mme de Chelles. After rebuffing sexual advances from her, Suzanne escapes the convent back into society. Wha...

  Claude Lelouch's "A Man and a Woman" While the plot may be deceptively simple, Claude Lelouch's " A Man and a Woman " is decidedly unsimple in its execution of visual imagery. From gorgeous sequences of color, to black-and-white, a sepia-toned shots, every visual demands its own attention as a unique layout of its story. This, along with the artistically-minded edits, makes it a great addition to the French New Wave and a uniquely sublime romance story. The film centers on a man and a woman (obviously). Both are widowed, single parents who meet at their children's school. After spending the day together, they develop romantic feelings for one another and continue their tryst. However, memories of their late partners continue to ring in their minds. There is a certain 'slice of life' romantic quality the film possesses - one that reminds me of Richard Linklater's " The Before Trilogy ." However, with the added 1960s-style New Wave,...