Wednesday 19 January 2011

I believe cinema to be an art form, reasonably modern and an incredibly popular atmosphere to watch moving image, or ‘film’. It has developed into a very mainstream business, with films constantly being churned out to the masses, however there are opportunities to watch some of the old greats that have been released; ‘Une Femme Est Une Femme’ is one of them.

Directed by Jean-Luc Godard, and filmed in Paris, France, it is a highly successful Comedy/Drama, and, despite there being no songs throughout the film, it is also regarded as a Musical. Coming in at just under 90 minutes long, starlet of the film ‘Angela’ seduces and engages us; ‘Angela’ is a Parisian stripper who wants a baby immediately, however her boyfriend ‘Émile’ isn’t quite so keen on the idea. Throughout all the bickering, Angela decides if she’s not going to get this baby from Émile, then she’ll have to try his best friend Alfred Lubitsch instead.

The characters put before us become very loveable one by one; Angela being our favourite purely for her beauty and the way she dances before us. She charms the entire audience, looking deeply into the lens, winking and letting out a cheeky smile upon every opportunity. Émile and Alfred are both admired more-so for their convincing friendship, providing us with incredibly humorous jokes and looks to the camera. This being said, as Humans we are all exceptionally open to voyeurism; watching people go about their daily lives and their interactions with other people comes as immensely interesting to us, so just overlooking the characters relationships keeps us absolutely engrossed.

Godard has also done an exceptional job at directing these characters. The positioning, the setting, the costumes, and the exact moments chosen in which the characters interact with the camera have all been thought-out and all blend together to form a perfect, and for it’s time, modern piece of film. The actual filming itself also contains some cinematic techniques, such as wide camera pans from side to side, varieties of shot/musical edit, and ofcourse that voyeuristic touch to make the film that little bit more of a personal insight into the characters lives. ‘Une Femme Est Une Femme’ is Godards first colour film, and contains that inspirational quality to make you want to go out and begin making films too.

I, as a young artist, look to this movie for inspiration and ideas; I now want to especially focus on my orientation of images, and how I could position some of my drawings or paintings in an eye-catching format. It’s also made me realize how much I love the 60s Parisian culture; it’s incredibly free-spirited and 'ideal'.
           
‘Une Femme Est Une Femme’ is a beautiful piece of cinema, and leaves you with a feelings of exploration, intrepidness and happiness; it lifts all negativity, despite longing to live a life like that of Angela, which sadly I don’t think is as possible or atleast as easy these days. 

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