713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
- fdm
- Joined: Fri Apr 21, 2006 1:25 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
"Trois places pour le 26"/"Three Tickets for the 26th" (1988)
- knives
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Thanks, though unfortunately it seems to not be one of the few not on Hulu.
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Finally got around to my two unseen Demys in this box, and I enjoyed them in exactly the opposite direction I thought I would. Donkey Skin is just confusing coming after Rochefort, as there is no imagination in the blocking or musical numbers, the songs are awful, and other than some great costuming, there's nothing here to set it apart from any Saturday afternoon at your local public library. A genuine disappointment. However, I thought Une chambre en ville was a much better return to the modern operetta of Umbrellas (and I even may like it a bit more), with a nicely fatalistic ending befitting the melodrama of the stylistic inspiration, and as always it's nice to see Demy's familiar faces pop up
- jorencain
- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:45 am
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
I'm completely in the same boat. "Donkey Skin" was one I wanted to see for a very long time, and it was my least favorite in the set, for the reasons you mentioned. Now that my expectations have been lowered, I should go back and give it another shot.
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- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:11 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
I bought the French DVD years ago. Tried to watch it but could not get into it.domino harvey wrote: Donkey Skin is just confusing coming after Rochefort, as there is no imagination in the blocking or musical numbers, the songs are awful, and other than some great costuming, there's nothing here to set it apart from any Saturday afternoon at your local public library. A genuine disappointment.
- Michael Kerpan
- Spelling Bee Champeen
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Which do you like less --Donkey Skin or Pied Piper? (though flawed and rather weird -- I think I prefer Pied Piper -- which looks pretty good on Hulu).
- knives
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
I agree with the consensus that Donkey Skin isn't on the level of the other musicals in the set, but even then I thought it was several breaths above Bay of Angels. At least DS has some decent use of colour, that music, and a generalized kookiness going for it. Bay of Angels struck me as a very anonymous work lamely playing to the idea of the new wave without providing any of Demy's strengths.
- tenia
- Ask Me About My Bassoon
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
I watched it after watching Rochefort & Cherbourg, and god, was it WTF. I don't think the songs were awful, there's some earworms (like the baking song) but they're very cheesy. But then, there's all this incestuous stuff going on while green dwarves are running around under the rain, and other weird stuff like this.domino harvey wrote:Donkey Skin is just confusing coming after Rochefort, as there is no imagination in the blocking or musical numbers, the songs are awful, and other than some great costuming, there's nothing here to set it apart from any Saturday afternoon at your local public library.
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
The King couldn't have been that great of a leader if it took him the whole length of the movie to remember the first rule of real estate
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A-B-Sey: Always Be-trothing Seyrig
- Murdoch
- Joined: Sun Apr 20, 2008 11:59 pm
- Location: Upstate NY
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
And here I am at the opposite end of the spectrum - Donkey Skin was the only Demy I liked, largely for the weirdness of its fairy tale and the I don't think it would hold up very well on a rewatch but at the time it was a fun way to spend ~90 minutes.
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non-sequitur helicopter at the end.
- tenia
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Oh, it was sure fun, but it was very weird and I certainly wasn't expecting something like this. I thought it would be more straight-forward rather than weirdly campy and at times anachronistic.
I haven't watched the whole set, but I liked a lot Rochefort. I didn't like so much Cherbourg : I think it's beautifully sad, but I didn't like at all the fact they were singing absolutely everything, and sometimes in a very dumb way, even "Paaaaassss meeeeeeee... THE SAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLT !!!!"
I haven't watched the whole set, but I liked a lot Rochefort. I didn't like so much Cherbourg : I think it's beautifully sad, but I didn't like at all the fact they were singing absolutely everything, and sometimes in a very dumb way, even "Paaaaassss meeeeeeee... THE SAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLT !!!!"
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- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:11 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
My exploration of Demy's work stopped at (or should I say "was stopped by") Donkey Skin (which I could not manage to finish watching). The disappointment convinced me that the reward of further exploration was not worth the cost and time spent.Michael Kerpan wrote:Which do you like less --Donkey Skin or Pied Piper? (though flawed and rather weird -- I think I prefer Pied Piper -- which looks pretty good on Hulu).
I first saw Cherbourg (on the first U.S. DVD years ago) and loved it. I've seen it at least a dozen times over the years. I still love it and return to it from time to time.
Then I saw Lola (on the first U.S. DVD) and liked it very much. I've seen it at least half a dozen times over the years. I still like it very much and still return to it occasionally.
Then I saw Rocheford (on the first U.S. DVD). I liked it, but not as much as Lola or Cherbourg. I've seen it twice.
Then I bought the French DVD of Donkey Skin. I didnt' watch it right away. I waited until I thought was the right time to watch it. And when I finally watched it, I couldn't finish it.
- Minkin
- Joined: Thu Aug 06, 2009 11:13 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Sheesh, so much Donkey Skin hatred on this forum.
Its actually my favorite of all of Demy's films, so this consensus seems strange!
You guys do realize that the film is based off of a 17th century French fairytale? Sure, the incestuous element to the story is odd (certainly by modern standards), but I blame the French + fairytales in general being odd (and a story built around teaching people not to fall in love with their parents / children is of course going to be divisive). I suppose you could fault the fairytale for being far too similar to Cinderella (even though Donkeyskin predates the Grimms by over a century, but both are based off the Italian work), but the moral is certainly different!
As for the music - you guys didn't enjoy any of the songs? I suppose each to their own. What about Rêves secrets d'un prince et d'une princesse? Or the lovely Amour Amour (I do like the parrot). What about Les insultes? I mean, you can't go too wrong with Michel Legrand.
I find it to be Demy's best film since its the least restrained, most fun, and interesting of his work. Simple things like the Cocteau inspired designs or the constant surreal atmosphere (like Jean Marais' giant cat throne). I think the stranger elements work to the film's advantage here. I suppose you could argue that he's really hammering in the fantasy aspects, but I instead believe Demy is being more playful within this world (I couldn't fault him for being imaginative). Perhaps this is his most self-indulgent film, but that only works to the strengths of the fairytale.
If you compare this to his next fairytale inspired film - Pied Piper, you can see how depressing and unimaginative the latter film is (I still like it, but mostly for Donovan, Donald Pleasence and Jack Wild). Other than it "being weird," most of the faults brought up by you guys can just as equally apply to most of Demy's films.
Its actually my favorite of all of Demy's films, so this consensus seems strange!
You guys do realize that the film is based off of a 17th century French fairytale? Sure, the incestuous element to the story is odd (certainly by modern standards), but I blame the French + fairytales in general being odd (and a story built around teaching people not to fall in love with their parents / children is of course going to be divisive). I suppose you could fault the fairytale for being far too similar to Cinderella (even though Donkeyskin predates the Grimms by over a century, but both are based off the Italian work), but the moral is certainly different!
As for the music - you guys didn't enjoy any of the songs? I suppose each to their own. What about Rêves secrets d'un prince et d'une princesse? Or the lovely Amour Amour (I do like the parrot). What about Les insultes? I mean, you can't go too wrong with Michel Legrand.
I find it to be Demy's best film since its the least restrained, most fun, and interesting of his work. Simple things like the Cocteau inspired designs or the constant surreal atmosphere (like Jean Marais' giant cat throne). I think the stranger elements work to the film's advantage here. I suppose you could argue that he's really hammering in the fantasy aspects, but I instead believe Demy is being more playful within this world (I couldn't fault him for being imaginative). Perhaps this is his most self-indulgent film, but that only works to the strengths of the fairytale.
If you compare this to his next fairytale inspired film - Pied Piper, you can see how depressing and unimaginative the latter film is (I still like it, but mostly for Donovan, Donald Pleasence and Jack Wild). Other than it "being weird," most of the faults brought up by you guys can just as equally apply to most of Demy's films.
- knives
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Honestly I find it not weird enough. It's awfully mundane for, as you say, it being a musical adaptation of a French fairy tale. Occasionally that lived in nonchalant quality works really well (that's honestly the only way to pull off that very silly ending for instance), but it also doesn't make for a very exciting place to be almost the opposite of A Room in Town which I found to be a truly lovely film despite the deep surface level stuff.
- Murdoch
- Joined: Sun Apr 20, 2008 11:59 pm
- Location: Upstate NY
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Well I for one thought it's weirdness was an attribute, not a detriment. The songs I found forgettable but the set design and costumes were lovely. And who couldn't enjoy such a delightfully strange image as this concoction?
- Dylan
- Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 9:28 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
I love the songs and score for Donkey Skin, and the music was certainly the best part about the film (which I like, but don't love). I'm surprised many here who have praised Cherbourg and Rochefort for their songs and score didn't find the music in Donkey Skin to be to their liking, as it's as unmistakably prime Michel Legrand to my ears (which means - at least in my opinion - that it's better than most music out there), though I would agree that the music is not as extraordinary or memorable as Cherbourg.As for the music - you guys didn't enjoy any of the songs? I suppose each to their own. What about Rêves secrets d'un prince et d'une princesse? Or the lovely Amour Amour (I do like the parrot). What about Les insultes? I mean, you can't go too wrong with Michel Legrand.
- Michael Kerpan
- Spelling Bee Champeen
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Watched Lola (finally). Loved Lola. Really not a single thing I didn't like about the film. Not having any visual comparison point (perhaps luckily), the Criterion looked fine to me.
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- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 9:11 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
I'm glad you loved Lola, Michael. Now that you've seen Lola, it's a good idea to revisit Cherbourg. Both are great films on their own. Viewed together, they are even greater. And I love the fact that Lola was made in black and white and Cherbourg in colors.
- Michael Kerpan
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Liked Cherbourg -- but loved Rochefort even more.
I assume Lola was shot in Nantes -- but looking at photos of Nantes, my wife and I couldn't figure out where some of the steep-ish streets/alleys might have been -- in photos, Nantes looks _really_ flat.
I assume Lola was shot in Nantes -- but looking at photos of Nantes, my wife and I couldn't figure out where some of the steep-ish streets/alleys might have been -- in photos, Nantes looks _really_ flat.
- NABOB OF NOWHERE
- Joined: Thu Sep 01, 2005 12:30 pm
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Michael You might like to check out Agnes Varda's Agnes de-ci de-la which looks at the shooting of Lola as well as taking in a visit chez Chris Marker and a charming little interlude with Manoel de Oliveira
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Rochefort's easily the better film to me too, but I assume Cherbourg was recommended to you above because it's a sequel to Lola, which is not necessary to recognize if you hadn't seen Lola first but it offers a nice little bonus level of enjoyment to you nowMichael Kerpan wrote:Liked Cherbourg -- but loved Rochefort even more.
- Michael Kerpan
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Thought Agnes (from here to there) Varda was lots of fun, I remember the Marker and de Oliveira bits -- and the section on boat jousting (and the local people involved with this). I have less memory of the Lola part....NABOB OF NOWHERE wrote:Michael You might like to check out Agnes Varda's Agnes de-ci de-la which looks at the shooting of Lola as well as taking in a visit chez Chris Marker and a charming little interlude with Manoel de Oliveira
Domino: Only link between the two films is Roland, right? No young Cecilie grown a little older...
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Domino' assumption is correct.
The scenes at the train station (as the train pulls away) and the gas station at the end (as the camera pulls away) in Cherbourg always make me feel lumpy throat.
And I love Lola looking a little rough and unpolished (and in black and white) and Cherbourg looking more polished and in colors which make them go very well with the stories.
The scenes at the train station (as the train pulls away) and the gas station at the end (as the camera pulls away) in Cherbourg always make me feel lumpy throat.
And I love Lola looking a little rough and unpolished (and in black and white) and Cherbourg looking more polished and in colors which make them go very well with the stories.
- jindianajonz
- Jindiana Jonz Abrams
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
Didn't Rochefort reference Lola as well, with the character whoMichael Kerpan wrote:Domino: Only link between the two films is Roland, right? No young Cecilie grown a little older...
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is arrested for murder? It's been a while since I've watched the Demy films, but for some reason I recall the victim being a character from Lola, or perhaps even Lola herself.
- Michael Kerpan
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Re: 713-719 The Essential Jacques Demy
I can't say I recall that link between Lola and Demoiselles, but possibly I missed it.