Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot (Le corbeau, Quai des Orfèvres, Le salaire de la peur, Les diaboliques).
Written by Henri-Georges Clouzot scenario, adaptation and dialogue, and Monique Lange and Marcel Moussy for scenario collaboration. Cinematography by Andréas Winding (Rider on the Rain). Cinematography was by Andréas Winding (Rider On The Rain).
The film stars Laurent Terzieff (The Big Night) as Stanislas - Stan, a photographer and an art gallery owner, Élisabeth Wiener as Jossé, Gilbert's girlfriend / partner, Bernard Fresson (Z, The Tennent, Germinal) as Gilbert, an avant-garde artist, Dany Carrel (Piège pour Cendrillon, Why Woman Sin) as Maguy, Stanislas' model, Claude Piéplu as José's father, Noëlle Adam as José's mother, Darío Moreno as Sala, Stanislas' butler and driver, Michel Piccoli as a guest at the gallery, Charles Vanel as a guest at the gallery, Joanna Shimkus as a guest at the gallery, Jackie Sardou as the cashier.
Story
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We are introduced to Stanislas aka Stan, in a quite creepy bizarre sequence where he's playing with naked and half dressed dolls of women. He has a tray filled with them. Is it a homage to The Strangler (1964) with Victor Bueno or just a coincidence?
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Some of the figures are rigid others are quite pliant. The rigid figures he places in subservient poses, with the pliant ones he creates life like shimmies, undulations, and come on poses.
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We cut back and forth between the figures and extreme closeups of Stan. He picks up a dressed brunette doll and with his thumb, pulls down the top of her dress exposing her breasts. He's obviously a kinky weirdo.
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We cut to Lagny-sur-Marne a Paris suburb and it's about 20 miles west to Île de la Cité, For us in the USA, think Midtown Manhattan to say White Plains or Hicksville, or downtown L.A. to Santa Monica, California.
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We meet Josée in bed with her boyfriend Gilbert. I didn't get the impression that they are married, more like they are shacking up.. Gilbert is a modern artist who creates interactive kinetic sculptures. They consist of various carved or painted cubes the are attached to each other in their centers by rotatable flanges. They resemble a string, a string of adjustable cubes. Josée is an editor for a TV production company.
We watch a bit of their morning routine, they awaken and both respectively get ready for work.
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Josée is an editor for a TV production company. Gilbert goes first to the attached studio where he gives his assistant some instructions. Josée pops in to tell Gilbert to hurry. She doesn't want to be late for work
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Gilbert and Josée then drive two klicks in his 1962 Citroën 2CV to the Thorigny-sur-Marne, Station to hop a commuter train for the 38 minute ride into Gare de l'Est, Paris. There is going to be a gallery show opening that night and Gilbert is carrying his latest piece.
Josée's commute to Paris
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| 1962 Citroën 2CV |
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We get a nice montage of commuters at the station.
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On the train Gilbert can't sit still, while for Josée is her daily commute and she seems to nod off.
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Gilbert's like a kid again, he sticks his head out the commuter train's window. With the wind blowing his hair wildly about we get another nice montage sequence of the things that inspire Gilbert' artistic nature. The shots juxtapose between a sort of a visual "railroadiana" and his reactions to it.
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Josée gets a bit annoyed at his antics, but Gilbert is like a kid in a candy store, an inspiration candy store.
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In Paris they run from the station hop into Josée's 1967 Renault 4 Parisienne, and she drives him to the gallery on Rue du Bac, and drops him off nearly running down Stanislas who had just stepped forwards into the street after judging his window display.
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| 1967 Renault 4 Parisienne |
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Stanislas makes a joking remake about commuters and reminds Josée that the show starts at eight. We follow Gilbert into the chaos of setting up a gallery opening.
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We cut to a TV Studio, then to Josée in the editing room, bending over a Moviola where she's working on a piece about masochistic women and the men they love.
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Josée remakes that she is in love with her abuser. A coworker replies that they are all like that. Josée replies "disgusting."
We cut to the gallery opening.
Art lovers and critics are greeted by Stanislas. Artists are explaining their works to various patrons. These vignettes are juxtaposed with shots of various pieces of modern art. We watch as Josée wanders the gallery looking about for Gilbert.
Gallery Show
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One of the artists she knows tells her that Gilbert is in The Labrinth, a sort of mirror lined cave with kinetic sculptures.
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| The Labyrinth |
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When Josée finally spots Gilbert he's smooching with a woman at one end of a kaleidoscopic tunnel.
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Gilbert goes looking for Josée but she spots him first. Josée tells him if he wants to screw some a tart why did you invite me. Gilbert tells Josée that she is Justine Godard a very important art critic and that he's got to warm her up. Josée tells him to warm her up in a bar, or sarcastically, just take her home. Gilbert reminds her that his car is at Lagny. She gives him the keys to her Parisienne. Gilbert gives her a thankyou kiss and goes to hunt down Justine.
Josée watches him go. Dumped just like that. Their relationship we realize is more friends with benefits than anything serious.
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Josée watches him go. Dumped just like that. Their relationship we realize is more friends with benefits than anything serious.
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Here we get some of Clouzot's satirical subtext, long erect tumescent tubes and Justine putting her hand upon a giant turning screw...
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| Justine fondling a Big Screw |
Back in the main gallery Stan notices Gilbert leave with Justine. Then Josée walks out of the Labyrinth and comes into view, She stops and watches Stan's interview with a TV reporter. They make eye contact.
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After the interview, Stan goes over to Josée and remarks that he saw Gilbert leave with Justine, he asks Josée if she wants to come up to his place for a drink, afterwards he can have his butler drive her back to Lagny-sur-Marne.
Josée and we viewers get another round of modern art when we arrive in Stan's apartment.
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They have a drink. Eventually Stan shows Josée his slide show collection of various autographs that he's been studying. However mixed in among his slides is a photo of a kneeling woman in chains. Josée is startled, Stan asks if he's shocked her and apologizes.
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He explains he's also a photographer and the photo was of one of his models. This plants a seed in Josée especially since she was already exploring and intrigued by the world of submission.
Stan has Josée driven home.
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Gilbert is still out schmoozing the critic. While Josée is undressing she removes her gold chain necklace and wraps it around her hands while looking in a mirror, the seed has sparked something sexual in Josée.
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The next morning while making coffee, she questions Gilbert about his night. He tells her that he was drunk and Justine is one of those girls who stay up all night.
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Josée replies that she had a drink with Stan at his place. Gilbert asks if Stan showed her his handwriting slides. Josée is surprised that Gilbert even knew about this. Josée tells Gilbert that Stan also does nudes, peculiar ones. Gilbert replies that Stan is completely nuts. While Gilbert is telling her this Josée is wrapping a cord around her hand and shaking her head.
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The next day, Josée gets a newspaper paper and reads the story that Justine wrote. When she gets back to her and Gilbert's apartment she reads the article aloud. When she quotes Gilbert's remarques about Stan, aka "the mystery man with no friends and no wife," and also about his production style of supermarket art for the masses, Gilbert gets pissed. He now really doesn't want to face Stan, so he decides to send Josée with his latest cube pieces to the gallery.
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Cut to Stan out in the Rue du Bac, trying to flag down a taxi in rush hour. When he spots Josée dropping off Gilbert's pieces he asks her for a ride.
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He needs to get home for an appointment and hops in Josée's Parisienne. While driving, "Business?" Questions Josée. No a pastime, a hobby Stan replies.
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Its his S&M photography fetish schtick. From all of Josée ensuing questions to Stan, he deduces that Josée is intrigued and repelled, but just curious enough. When she asks if she can come up and watch Stan at first says no, but then relents.
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Back up in Stan's apartment he gets a phone call from his model telling him that she'll be late so Stan asks Josée if she would stand in for her so that he can set up\his camera and adjust his lights.
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Nosey Josée also scopes out Stan's various props, Bracelets, manacles, etc., etc. while he is busy with his camera, lenses and lights.
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Stan has her pose against an African shield. He tells her to raise her arms, then tells her to cross them. He then instructs her to stand as high as she can on her tiptoes.
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Soon Maguy, Stan's latest model arrives. Stan tells Maguy that Josée wants to observe the session and interview her.
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This is all ok with Maguy. During the interview Maguy tells her that she is studying to be a beautician, and that she does these modeling jobs for extra money. She tells her and Stan that her last client had a real lion, then explains it was just a rug though, and he wanted her to lay on it. She adds that it was an old lion and scratchy.
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Maguy relates to Josée and Stan that her last client had a real lion, then explains it was just a rug though, and he wanted her to lay on it. She adds that it was an old lion and scratchy.
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Stan tells Maguy to first lift the hem of her dress, he furiously snaps shots, and then he orders her to take it off altogether. Josée observes it all.
Maguy's Session
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Both women watching each other are getting aroused. Stan throws Maguy a clear plastic wrap and tells her to put it on. The session continues.
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It gets to the point where Josée jumps up and tells Stan and Maguy that she has to leave. As soon as she departs Stan gives Maguy her two hundred Francs and tells her to get dressed.
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The next day after work, it starts going Noirsville when Josée enters Stan's gallery at closing time and tells Stan that she was sorry to leave the shoot yesterday. Now she tells him that she wants to pose with Maguy. Stan agrees but insists that she calls Maguy right then and there to ask her, and he also demands that she apologize to Maguy for leaving early.
Noirsville
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Henri-Georges Clouzot last film is a doozy. Its a Dark Story of Dominance and Submission set in the kaleidoscopic swinging 60s and lensed beautifully by Andréas Wilding. It's full of a Visual Style that fuses Noir Stylistics, Pop Art, Modern Art and Psychedelic Dreams.
You get the impression that the film is part experimental in the sense that Clouzot was playing with a new set of tools, i.e., combining color film with interesting visual & editing techniques, while tackling a bizarre subject that is not in most folks wheelhouse of experiences.
Élisabeth Wiener obviously shows the most range going from mild mannered TV editor to submissive freak.. Laurent Terzieff plays a convincing weirdo, and Bernard Fresson reacts naturally to circumstances beyond his control and understanding. Definitely worth a watch 7/10
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