Paris Belongs to Us (1961)

 Jacques Rivette's "Paris Belongs to Us"

I watched Jacques Rivette's 1961 film "Paris Belongs to Us" on the Criterion Channel. Had I watched it in the theater, it would be a rare instance in which I walked out. In this case, I simply stopped watching with 40 minutes left. It is very unlike me to completely give up on a film, so this particular instance was very strange and fascinating to me.

I read all the time about people "walking out of theaters" for films that they do not like. I've always thought that was a foreign concept. I never understood the reasoning for not staying until the end. Was the film that bad? You simply couldn't stand it any longer? Well, for me and "Paris Belongs to Us," the answer was yes. 

The film revolves around a character named Anne, who spends the entire film trying to uncover the mysterious death of Juan, an unintroduced character that everyone around Anne seems to know. She ventures through the Parisian social scene, introducing herself to characters who knew Juan. Through their paranoia, they fear a mysterious uncertainty of unknown machinations afoot.

To me, the problem I had with the film wasn't necessarily its plot. The intrigue of how Juan died and who these supporting characters are remains somewhat interesting. In fact, their collective paranoia and uncertainty could point to greater thematic driving points about modern social anxiety. However, there was something incredibly frustrating to me about the pacing and the lack of cohesive momentum. I felt utterly disconnected from everything I was seeing. I couldn't tether any emotional contact to any sense of purpose.

For a whole two and a half hours of film, not being able to emotionally or mentally connect felt very tedious to me. I almost felt as if the film was intentionally wasting my time. In some instances, I would very much enjoy that notion, and feel as though it served a greater point. However, I did not feel that this was the case with this film. For instance, Antonioni's frustrating meanderings in his films creates a larger thematic resonance that I can understand and connect to. "Paris Belongs to Us," to me, simply does not seem to support its own intended weight.