The Pier
1962 ‘La jetée’ Directed by Chris Marker
Synopsis
La Jetée is a masterpiece from French director Chris Marker from 1962. A post apocalyptic science fiction short film in the form of a photo collage. The film inspired the film ’12 Monkeys.’
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Stunning.
Beautiful.
Mesmerizing.
Important.
A slide show with an I.Q. of 180 and the heart of a blue whale.
Required viewing for anyone interested in film and storytelling.
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Two things stuck when I finally sat down to the exceptional La jetée:
First, the method of telling this story is ingenious (besides being admirably efficient). The use of still frames juxtaposed with fluid audio accentuates the jerkiness of the visuals. I found it delightfully clever that a film about time-travel is essentially forcing us to internalize the passage of time with the virtual jump-cuts separating each still and the freezing of time while we soak in the information presented (much the same as we do with family photo albums).
Secondly, what a fantastic story. Of course, I love 12 Monkeys, the most well-known adaptation of this short film, but it wasn't until now that it occurred to me another…
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It may be more appropriate to label this as a photographed novel than a film. It's very good, I like it, but have never quite been able include it in my absolute favorites. I'm just gonna go out and say it - I like Twelve Monkeys more. Now kill me, Adam Cook. ;)
The extras on the Criterion edition of La Jetée / Sans soleil reveals quite a bit about Marker's fascination with Vertigo, Alfred Hitchcock's acclaimed masterpiece. For me, that was perhaps equally as fascinating as watching the two films, those who pointed out the connection surely are on to something.
In Sans soleil, Marker tells us straight out that he has watched Vertigo 19 times and also has…
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This time he is close to her, he speaks to her. She welcomes him without surprise.
La jetée is a very unique film in that it completely breaks conventions and rather than a moving picture it is a series of still images set to a narration. What sounds boring on paper becomes absolutely wonderful through the hands of Chris Marker in an engaging blend of romance and sci-fi, a clash of one man's beautiful memories and the devastating reality of his present. Set after WWIII in Paris La jetée creates a disturbing vision of a world ridden with disease, death and slavery. The evocative imagery intensifies the stark difference in mood between the memories/past and the present and the way…
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I have no idea if any other film has since tried to copy the technique used in this film, but I'd be surprised if no one had even tried. It's essentially the greatest montage of all time. Stunning images that captivate you way more than you think they would. The music is what really takes this film to another level, with one of the best scores I think I've heard outside of Morricone. Also had one genuinely shocking moment that I shan't reveal here but was definitely unexpected.
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Chris Marker's immortal La jetee might be the most important experimental short film ever made. La Jetee is a short film that relies on sound to help tell its story against all the still visuals. With this, Marker proves that sound is just as essential to cinema in creating the mold and scope of a story as the visuals are.
Even better than this, not only does Marker experiment with the medium, he also uses it to tell a brilliant story that is interesting, haunting, and strangely beautiful.
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Brevity lends itself greatly to the film's success.
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inesperada y no carente de belleza reivindicación de las presentaciones en powerpoint.
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The stripped-down nature of French arthouse is very refreshing after watching a lot of Hollywood movies. Many arthouse films would do better as a series of photographs than a film. But I have to admit, I didn't find La Jetée nearly as compelling as Twelve Monkeys (which is based on it).
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A remarkable short film. A grand concept converted into a taut tale through still images (mostly). Takes an old paradox and turns it on it's head. I loved it.
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A peculiar, brilliant science fiction short story about a post-nuclear experiment into time travel, told through a montage of black and white stills, which became the influence for Terry Gilliam’s Twelve Monkeys.
Marker appears to have a preoccupation with time and space, and this explores that interestingly, as well as being formally remarkable, generating tension and controlling pacing despite the lack of movement. The still images are animated through the use of music and variation of the speed of transition from image to image.
Like, Sans Soleil, this uses narration, but it is less verbose and more narrative. The photography is good, and the editing inventive, and despite having no movement, it does feel cinematic.
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La Jetee is a remarkable film about time-travel, love and life after the Third World War.
Written and directed by Chris Marks, who also wrote that other seminal time-travel movie 12 Monkeys, La Jetee is set in Paris in the 1960s and it's story unfolds entirely by still photographs and narration.
La Jetee tells of a man, essentially a slave, sent back and forth through time, to find a solution to the world's fate. To replenish its decreasing stocks of food, medicine and energies. As he is sent back and forth across time he has a memory of a lone female, life, death and past events that are recreated on an airports jetée.
It's only 28 minutes long
It's on YouTube
Go watch it now
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"La Jetee" es un cortometraje de 28 minutos que consta de una serie de imagenes estaticas y que le sirvió de inspiración a Terry Gilliam para su "12 Monkeys".
La historia involucra una Francia post-apocaliptica y los experimentos de unos cientificos para hacer viajes en el tiempo. Un hombre narra sus viajes involucrando a una mujer y ese momento en el muelle donde explota una tercera guerra mundial.
"La Jetee" es una fascinante obra de ciencia ficcion que no necesita de artificios para involucrarnos. Es una joya. -
La Jetee is an AMAZING work of art and a terrific time-travel story.
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This short film should be required viewing for anyone making a film. What the movie does with still images and one brief and magical segment of film is a testament to the art form. Think your film needs narration? Watch this to understand why it doesn't. Think your film needs exposition by way of character dialogue? See La Jetee. Think you need 2 and 1/2 hours to tell an emotional, complex story? La Jetee is 28 minutes. Think a couple need a climactic dialogue heavy scene to finally fall in love? See the still photograph in La Jetee where The Woman holds her hair up and The Man stares longingly at her neck. Amazing.