Stroheim creates depth in Foolish Wives in various ways. To do so with the image, he places his camera in a range of positions to develop the sense of space within his lush sets. The background is always bustling, and the relationships in the foreground are in flux, as the framing pushes or pulls the characters physically in the direction they are moving emotionally. The narrative structure gains a similar depth through Stroheim's proclivity for cross cutting; if there is…
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Hovering Over the Water 1986
A large part of what makes A Flor do Mar feel so special is the unique realm in which it establishes itself as a film. Spatially, the tight feeling of the house, with its huge gates and walls and rooms shot often from one angle, contrasts with the wide open sea. Further, you have the loneliness and sense of isolation that comes with the main characters interrupted often, by new people coming in and even the characters going on excursions…
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Lancelot of the Lake 1974
Lancelot du Lac is measured and cool in its execution. But beyond that, it is a powerful portrait of companionship and individuality. Within each individual, there are bits of greed and arrogance waging a painful war against love and faithfulness. The look into each man's psyche reveals varying levels of self-aggrandizement and susceptibleness to the pleasures of pride. There is no romanticism here; there is pride to be taken in loyalty to others and there is pride to be taken…
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We Won't Grow Old Together 1972
Some seem unable to grasp why anyone would stick around with a guy like Jean. It’s perhaps possible that Jean's father was right in saying "deep down he is not bad", and that his sporadic love was true enough to deserve some in return. However, rather than dissect Jean’s character and confront the very subjective relationship each viewer will develop with him, I will turn instead to the way Pialat reinforces visually and structurally the inevitable perpetuation of the troubled…
