Synopsis
An adaptation of Jean Cocteau's play of a woman lecturing her indifferent lover.
Le Bel Indifférent
1957 Directed by Jacques Demy
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Popular reviews
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Jaques Demy turning a one-act play into a short film, with a woman who is desperate for attention from her lover, pleading while he ignores her to the point you don't even know this is real or a mirage or some sort of ghost situation 👻😱
It's filled with a desperation yet beautiful colors and Demy's usual whimsy makes this a fun watch
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9th Jacques Demy (after The Pied Piper, Lady Oscar, Donkey Skin, Model Shop, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Parking, The Young Girls of Rochefort and Turning Table)
New month, new films! I know that this is a tragedy about a woman being ignored by her lover in the classic Cocteau mode (think La Voix Humaine), but I couldn't help finding it wryly funny. Because at one point or another in our lives, haven't we all gotten wrapped up in our emotions to the point where they become an internal monologue? Where it becomes less about others and more your own sense of agony at a situation? And considering Cocteau is an artist always interested in luxuriating that painful sense of longing,…
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Jacques Demy's sumptuous short 28 minute film, based on Jean Cocteau's one-act play, starts with a curtain rising but it is far more than a filmed theatre play.
It features a monologue from Jeanne Allard as a woman driven to distraction by her lover Emile (Angelo Bellini) treating her as if she didn't exist and going with other women.
It's all set in one hotel room and, while he is there, Emile doesn't say a word and ignores the woman - he just reads the paper and keeps turning away from her.
As usual with Demy the set is gorgeous, using vivid, strong reds and subtle greens. It reminded me of the hotel room scenes in 'Vertigo' with the flashing… -
Ok.. like what am I supposed to say? It’s boring as fuck.. I don’t think I’m the biggest fan of Jacques Demy tbh. The colors are nice and it looks like it’s from the mid 1970s. It’s short atleast, I hated the score for some reason it felt so out of place. Otherwise pretty good use of sound... I’m pretty sure Jean Cocteau did a better job.
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I'm amazed by how much this short film pulled up in such limited time and space. An outstanding performance filled with desperation and jealousy. Dynamic camerawork despite the claustrophobic setting. Emotions as intense as the red paint on the wall. Of all the Demy shorts currently available on Mubi, this is by far my favorite.
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Really fantastic use of colour in the production design, and the cinematography was very relaxed and clever. Due to being a play adaptation there was a heavy use of one-takes as well, which just show off the performance and dialogue brilliantly. The sound design also stood out to be quite a bit.
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I've recently been fascinated by theatrical writing. If you asked me what I meant by "theatrical writing", or what the nature of my fascination was, I'm not sure I could tell you; I suspect that if I ever pin down the particular vibe that's obsessing me, it'll lose all interest. For now, let's just say that there is something about the grand dames of 20th century cinema that, to me, has an epic quality that even the best modern film roles for women cannot quite match. If I had to venture a possible explanation, though, I would note that a lot of the ones I find most magnetic are written by gay or bisexual men - whether that's Coward, Lorca,…
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I'm not sure most people feel this way, but there are dialogues that would feel out of place in most languages, but in french they just feel natural. Perhaps it's my romantic idea of the language.
Jacques Demy adaptation of Jean Cocteau's work is a great example of cinema creeping into theater. It does not hide the fact this is a play, we start with the curtain being lifted and then actors appear. A man and a woman, they're lovers or they used to be. Their relationship doesn't seem that close anymore. It was probably at some point of time as she knows his sister and knows small things about him, but now he does not even respond. He is…
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It is nice to see Demy use colour, the red backgrounds are truly sumptuous. However, this feels hollow and stagey, to the point of artifice. It is an overt critique of patriarchal norms: how women are treated with a forced indifference and cruel absenteeism by men. This cultivates a pernicious sense of reliance on male attention, and can culminate in what is patriarchally labelled hysteria (as opposed to a legitimised emotional response to persistent cruelty).
This all adds up, and is displayed. It is displayed very perfunctorily, though, bringing little insight and not gleaning anything from its characters. The contrived setup blunts the messaging, it has a strawman feel due to its shallow evocations.
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Red engulfs this monologue piece of a woman’s confrontation of her silent lover. Red is the colour of intensity; of anger, of passion. She is angry. She is upset. And he has acted on his passions, but shows none towards her. He refuses to acknowledge her existence. All she feels, all she expresses is red, but he shows nothing - no colour, no warmth, just blank, bored emotion as she pours her heart out to him.