Swimming Pool
Now that’s a damn fine picture. I’m a little embarassed to admit that this is the first Ozon film I’ve seen, but I hereby pledge to binge-view his other films, stat. It’s amazing what he manages to express visually, with a minimum of dialogue. At first, I wondered where the thrills were in this so-called thriller, but because of the nonstop nature of Ludivine Sagnier’s nakedness I was willing to look the other way. Then, it really picked up and it ends fabulously (although that seems to be a point of debate). I’m glad to see Hitchcock is alive and well and living in French cinema.
(affecting George Plimpton accent): I would put forward the notion that any Hitchcockian motifs (with respect to both narrational strategies and pure stylisticism) in this film might very well be seen as transmuted through a distinctly Chabrolian lens and are thus at least 2 degrees removed.
No but seriously guy, Ozon’s pretty great; he makes a strong argument for the legitimacy of overt pastiche in film. A lot of other people are making the same argument but he’s more persuasive because he’s more restrained, not like all proverbially waving his hands and having spittle collect in the sides of his mouth while he makes this argument about the legitimacy of pastiche in cinema. Sitcom and the Antonioni-ish one (Under the Sand I think) are both key, I think.
I just have this feeling that the French are the only ones who really appreciate Hitch. Of course, besides the hot Truffaut action, there’s a fascinating thing going on between Hitch and Clouzot – i.e. when Diaboliques came out all the press was about how the French had out-Hitchcocked Hitchcock, and Hitch decided he had to change his shit up, and the result was Psycho.
I’m going to try and watch Under the Sand this wknd, if it’s in at Queen Video, which nothing ever is.