L’année dernière à Marienbad
English title: Last Year at Marienbad
Genre: psychological drama (in black and white)
With: Delphine
Seyrig (the brunette), Giorgio Albertazzi (her pursuer), Sacha Pitoëff (the other man), Françoise Bertin (a hotel guest), Luce
Garcia-Ville (another hotel guest)
Director: Alain
Resnais
Screenplay:
Alain Robbe-Grillet
Release: 1961
Studio:
Cocinor, Terra Film, Cormoran Films et al.
Rating: -
MBiS score: 8.8/10
I Sure Hope You’re Right, Fella!
QuickView
Story-line: a woman staying at a posh European hotel is hounded by a man who claims to have met her somewhere before. Was it in Marienbad? Or is the guy plainly mistaken?
Pluses: self-conscious and stilted acting (at times
laughably so), amazing direction that delivers several highlights (notably the
opening 13-minute set-up and one intense dance scene at the 70-minute mark), a
disjointed, supremely cryptic screenplay that generates little action (except
on a psychological level) yet remains astonishing throughout, dialogues both
literary and impressionistic, aesthetically-minded cinematography, sumptuous
production values and an oddly used, expansive and omnipresent musical score
featuring romantic strings but mostly a thunderous, quasi-apocalyptic organ.
Minuses: this
dry and meditative movie is definitely not for everyone. Viewers will
need perseverance (or tight buttocks) during the last act. Generally speaking,
if you choose to watch this film, put aside everything you know about cinema.
Comments: yes… my review sounds like an oxymoron at times but it truly reflects what L’ANNÉE DERNIÈRE À MARIENBAD is all about. Alain Resnais’s work is so different, hermetic and daring that it can only be described as an anti-movie, in a vein similar to HIROSHIMA, MON AMOUR and Marguerite Duras’s INDIA SONG. It basically involves three characters – the woman, the pursuer and the woman’s husband – while extras stand around like wallflowers or wander about aimlessly. This abstract, arty and strangely mesmerizing oeuvre has garnered nominations at several festivals – winning the Golden Lion in Venice – and is universally considered a masterpiece. So, will the guy finally get the girl? I won’t tell… it’s the whole payoff!
MBiS
© 2024 – All rights reserved