Resnais’ tonally-jarring ‘musical-drama’ that intercuts across three timelines feels too artificially-constructed and incoherent to make any meaningful sense.
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Life Is a Bed of Roses (1983)
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Tag / France
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My American Uncle (1980)
An unexpected critical success, Resnais’ sly, mosaic-like film about behavioural psychology as explored through the personal stories of a trio of interconnecting characters is a masterclass in associative editing, and one of his finest pictures.
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Divines (2016)
Electrifying filmmaking at times, this Cannes Camera d’Or-winning feature debut depicts a rebellious minority female teen from a French suburb who is suffering from social disenfranchisement as she seeks to make a better life for herself.
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Antigone (1992)
Straub and Huillet take ancient Sophocles’ famous Greek tragedy, as interpreted by Brecht, and give it an austere ‘filmed theatre’ treatment that is minimalist, esoteric and occasionally forceful.
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Fedora (1978)
A late career triumph by Billy Wilder that works effectively as a spiritual sequel to his legendary ‘Sunset Boulevard’, as he looked back at the glamour of Hollywood with sad ‘European’ eyes.
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Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
Tati’s international breakthrough is his most optimistic film in what is a purely-conceived characterisation of the inimitable Mr. Hulot.
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Other Side of the Wind, The (2018)
Superbly-edited and exuding a sense of ‘new wave’ energy, Welles’ previously incomplete film before his death is now complete (or not?) in this strange, kaleidoscopic but rather uncompelling work.
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Persecution (2009)
A strong performance by Romain Duris can’t quite lift Patrice Chereau’s faltering final film about the incommunicability and anxiety of human relationships.
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Nocturama (2016)
Bonello’s work about French homegrown terrorism is quite sensational in its thematic provocations and play with cinematic language.
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State of Siege (1972)
Costa-Gavras sets his sights on Latin America in this superbly-constructed political-thriller that raises questions about the United States’ complicit involvement in counterinsurgency, torture and violence.
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Eternality Tan 