Film Persona

  Jean-Pierre Melville's "Le Samourai" At the crossroads between the French Nouvelle Vague and the New Hollywood movements lies one particular film: 1967's " Le Samourai ." Of course, its eccentricities play in certain New Wave arena, but the film was far more influential overseas in America, where it was used for many templates of aesthetic for certain New Hollywood pictures. " Le Samourai " is a film that has been re-modeled and its visual style used time and time again, making it one of the more influential films to come out of an already potent decade. The film centers on a hitman named Jef Costello. He lives in a single-room Paris apartment and keeps only a small bird as any sort of engagement. After carrying out the contract killing of a nightclub owner, he is brought in by the police as a suspect. However, the alibi created by Jef is airtight, along with the added benefit of one of the witnesses claiming that it wasn't him. However, the ...

  Mike Nichols's "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" There are some films adapted from Broadway productions that far outshine their source. The 1966 film " Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" is perhaps one of those films. Not only did the film feature Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in the greatest performances of their career, it was iconic Hollywood director Mike Nichols's debut feature. The film was a major success and earned Academy Award nominations aplenty. It even had the distinguished accolade of being one of the films, along with Michelangelo Antonioni's " Blow-Up " of the same year to force the MPAA to adopt a film rating system due to their excessive profanity.  The film centers on a college professor, George, and his wife, Martha. George works as a history professor in a small New England college which is head by Martha's father. After a late night out, the two begrudgingly welcome the company of Nick and his wife Honey ...

  Arthur Penn's "Bonnie and Clyde" Many film scholars and historians consider Arthur Penn's 1967 film " Bonnie and Clyde " to be one of the first films of the New Hollywood era. It was one of the film that shed the more conservative traditions of Hollywood in favor of more rebellious and counterculture cinematic taboos. It use of criminal sympathy and upfront depictions of sex and violence promoted other films to do the same - ushering in the 1970s. The film takes place during the Great Depression, which seemingly justifies the attitudes of our protagonists' criminal spree. After Clyde meets Bonnie in a small Texas town, their attraction is immediate - and so is their unlawful behavior. After spending the majority of the film building their posse and robbing various banks, the pair of anti-heroes and facing imminent capture and possible death. " Bonnie and Clyde " set itself apart from standard Hollywood affairs for many reasons. One of those r...

  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...