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FOREIGN AFFAIRS II: LA BELLE NOISEUSE, THE DOUBLE LIFE OF VERONIQUE, RHAPSODY IN AUGUST

© Sean Gallagher

One of the good and bad aspects of Hollywood is the prevailing attitude of "What have you done for me lately?" The good part, which doesn't really get discussed enough, is that it's a way of kicking people in the butt, to make them try and produce a good movie all the time. The bad part goes hand-in-hand with its obsession with youth - wisdom from your elders isn't appreciated enough, and your career is considered in your twilight once you reach a certain age. This isn't always true here - John Huston's last two films, PRIZZI'S HONOR and THE DEAD, were also two of his best - but directors share the same fate. In other countries, however, directors are often able to turn out work even in their 80's. Jacques Rivette (63), Krzysztof Kieslowski (50), and Akira Kurosawa (81) were able to turn out LA BELLE NOISEUSE, THE DOUBLE LIFE OF VERONIQUE, and RHAPSODY IN AUGUST, respectively, and while only the first one is a great film, all of them are worthy of attention.

Many people who are turned off by foreign-language films that aren't genre films will describe them as the equivalent of watching paint dry. They won't likely flock to LA BELLE NOISEUSE (adapted by Rivette, Pascal Bonitzer, and Christine Laurent from a novella by Balzac called "The Unfinished Masterpiece"), which is a 4 hour movie that's pretty much about watching paint dry (Rivette recut the same version for a 2-hour movie, retitled DIVERTIMENTO). But those not put off by the subject or the running time will find a fascinating and captivating movie.

The title - which apparently is literally translated as "the beautiful dumb woman" - refers to a long-abandoned painting by Frenhofer (Michel Piccoli), an artist who had intended it to be the climax of his career as an artist, using his now wife Liz (Jane Birkin) as inspiration. However, as often with painters and their paintings, he felt unable to finish it, and put it aside. Since then, he's only painted self-portraits, which he seems to accept - for now. That summer, he and Liz (who live in the French countryside) are visited by Nicholas (David Burzstein), a young painter, and his girlfriend Marianne (Emmanuelle Beart). David is a great admirer of Frenhofer, and at first Frenhofer tolerates debating the big questions with him. But seeing Marianne inspires him to more than just debate; he decides to take "La Belle Noiseuse" out of the closet and finish it. His solution is to start from scratch and use Marianne as his model instead.

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