Jacques Rivette

[cinemartin]

I didn't see Spectre yet, but seeing as though the only thoughts we're hearing is from people who saw Spectre first, I thought I would throw a few cents. I would wait until the original Out 1. I didn't have any trouble in keeping track of characters or following storylines. Although there are a lot of characters, I don't think it's the kind of picture to be worrying about who's who (again, I had no trouble keeping up). I think it is like the theater exercises that populate the film; a cinema for the moment.

[fred]

Neither version of Out 1 screens so frequently that anyone with any interest in seeing them should pass up any opportunity to do so. Both versions are well worth your time.

On another note, are the shorter versions of his films worth seeing once you've seen the longer versions? That's a vague statement, and of course they are probably worth seeing, but should they be a high priority?

Yes, where Rivette is responsible for both versions. As a rule, the longer versions are better, but when it comes to Out 1 both versions are so great--and so different--that the question is sort of beside the point.

I guess you're right. Criterion would have lept at the opportunity to release one of his films had there been quality prints available -- regardless of whether or not it would sell.

I'm not so sure about this. The most obvious candidates for release are all unfortunately controlled by New Yorker, even where they lack circulating prints. After that they get more obscure and difficult. I doubt Criterion is chomping at the bit waiting to put out my dream release of Le Pont du Nord (with Paris s'en va as a bonus) just because there's a restored 35mm print (there is).

But of course, I guess quality prints don't exist if there's no demand for them. Though surely with this influx of Rivette festivals across the continent (and I'm guessing this doesn't happen too often), one can no longer say there is a commercial disinterest.

This is totally unprecedented. But it's not commercial interest as such, though it could provoke some. We shall see.

[justeleblanc]

Maybe I will look into Spectre afterall. I assume it's a better alternate cut than say Divertimento, which I still haven't seen but I've only heard that it's Rivette-lite.

I pre-ordered Satantango over a month ago (a failed Christmas gift for an old teacher) and it still hasn't shipped. I'm not sure whether this has to do with (surprisingly) high demand for the film or low stock levels, but either "seems" to say that Satantango was a higher seller than expected. Which is even more surprising when you take into account that the audience for Satantango would -- just out of reputation alone -- not want to buy the Facets version knowing there is a R2 version also available. (My teacher only has an R1 DVD player that I know of).

Aren't there many similarities between the Tarr and Rivette retrospectives, and wouldn't higher than expected DVD sales for Satantango be a good sign for possible Rivette DVD releases? I might be reading into things too much.

I'm not so sure about this. The most obvious candidates for release are all unfortunately controlled by New Yorker, even where they lack circulating prints. After that they get more obscure and difficult. I doubt Criterion is chomping at the bit waiting to put out my dream release of Le Pont du Nord (with Paris s'en va as a bonus) just because there's a restored 35mm print (there is).

In terms of Criterion's releases, I was thinking more along the lines of L'Amour fou and Out 1, and I don't think New Yorker owns either of these. Similarly, isn't Paris Belongs to Us & Fool's Mate rumored to be in the hands of Janus?

And on a completely unrelated note: what is Paris s'en va?

[fred]

And on a completely unrelated note: what is Paris s'en va?

In 1980, Rivette embarked upon a remake of Out 1 but with much of the original cast unavailable, it became Pont du Nord, (The Northern Bridge, 1982), an adventure story improvised by Bulle Ogier, her actress daughter Pascale, and Rivette's screenwriting partner Suzanne Schiffman. Before shooting began, they made a thirty-minute short, Paris s'en va (Paris Goes Away).

It was shot on 16mm, other sources say it's actually 40 minutes long, and it consists of location-scout shots and a commentary written by Rivette and read by the Ogiers. The locations of Le Pont du Nord all have "hidden" historical resonances, so any further insight into this would undoubtedly be fascinating. Now that I've seen both versions of Out 1, this and the integral version of Jean Renoir, le patron have become my Rivette grails.

[David Ehrenstein]

The "hidden historical resonance" has to to with the fact that the various locales Ogier visits in Le Pont du Nord are connected to some municipal scandal or other, well known to Parisians at the time the film was made.

[justeleblanc]

Out 1 & L'Amour fou for sale

[Antoine Doinel]

From the International Herald Tribune:

Jacques Rivette: Mysterious ways of a master filmmaker
By Joan Dupont
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
PARIS: Jacques Rivette's movies, like the legendary 12- hour "Out 1" (1971), have heroes who seem to belong to secret societies, characters as enigmatic as their quests: they skate out of control and bump each other in play, or treachery.

Rivette is a masterful troublemaker who creates extra-long and short versions of the same movie, and sometimes spins original historical and political thrillers out of classics. "La Religieuse" (1965), his adaptation of Diderot's novel on the abuses of an innocent nun, starring Anna Karina, was banned by the Catholic Church. His latest film, "Ne touchez pas la hache," (Don't Touch the Axe), which was in competition at the Berlin Film Festival, starts and ends in a convent.

His adaptation of Balzac's "La Duchesse de Langeais" crackles with menace. The story, set during the Restoration period, when Napoleon's generals roamed Parisian drawing rooms and duchesses wore those fetching empire dresses, stars Jeanne Balibar and Guillaume Depardieu.

By some magical transformation, the actors inhabit this other world. "It's as if Balzac wrote the story for them," the director said.

The film — a mere two hours and 15 minutes — takes place mostly in Parisian drawing rooms of the Saint-Germain neighborhood. General de Montriveau (Depardieu), a hero of Napoleon's wars, meets the duchess (Balibar) in one such salon.

She tempts the brooding general with her dazzling scarlet gown and brio, invites him to call on her, and then rejects him. She manages to repeat this maddening dance of seduction.

"The duchess shows one side when she refuses him, and another when she wants him," the director said. "But we never know what she thinks of him secretly, and perhaps, she herself doesn't know. Whereas, the general is a pretty straightforward character — once he judges her, that's that."

Rivette, who can turn a salon into a battlefield, turns this pas de deux into a ferocious duel. "Well, you have Balzac to thank," he said.

"With my writing partners, Christine [Laurent] and Pascal [Bonitzer], we were as true to him as possible. We tried to recreate the closed world of royalists and extremists as it was then, in that small pocket of Paris."

The story of the elusive duchess makes up the second book of Balzac's "Histoire des Treize" trilogy — between "Ferragus" and "La Fille aux yeux d'or" — about a secret society, a gang of 13 conspirators. This theme has always appealed to the director of the tantalizing "Bande des quatre" (Gang of Four, 1988).

At 78, the filmmaker looks much like a mischievous, somewhat rumpled, elf. His short film, "Le Coup du berger" (Fool's Mate, 1956), is considered to be the first film of the New Wave. "We don't see much of each other any more," he says of his old accomplices Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol and Eric Rohmer.

Yet, he is true to many New Wave ways, shooting on a shoestring, faithful to his actors. "I like working with the same team — writers, actors, editors — it's almost a necessity. It's all about trust, even more than friendship."

His team has seen him through thick and thin. He has changed pace and era, from a venture such as the historic and dramatic "Jeanne la Pucelle I et II" (Joan of Arc, 1994) to the contemporary comedy "Haut bas fragile" (Up, Down, Fragile, 1995).

He recalls that it was Rohmer who told him that he must read Balzac. "This was in the 1950s, even before the New Wave. Rohmer said, 'If you are interested in cinema and in dialogue, you must read Balzac and Dostoevsky.' I started reading Balzac and have been reading him ever since," Rivette said.

In 1991, Rivette transposed Balzac to the screen with "La Belle Noiseuse" (The Beautiful Troublemaker) starring Michel Piccoli as a painter and Emmanuelle Béart as his model. It was Piccoli at his most intense, Béart at her most nude, a seductive film on an artist's obsessive search that captivated audiences at Cannes (Jury Prize).

Piccoli has a small part in "Don't Touch the Axe," alongside Bulle Ogier. Ogier, a genuine Rivette star, has made seven movies with him. In "Pont du Nord" (1981), she played alongside her daughter Pascale, who made a brilliant debut, and died in 1984.

Rivette had worked with Balibar before, but not with Depardieu. "We had a project, a movie with both Jeanne and Guillaume, called 'Paris l'année prochaine.' It was the sort of abracadabra tall tale that I like, but it fell through — nobody wanted it. Then, I realized how good those two would be together. So we had to find another script fast."

He reread Balzac and found just what he wanted in the "La Duchesse" — enigmatic characters, sharp dialogue, human comedy with storm warnings. "It shows Balzac's violent feelings about the royalists, his disdain for the milieu."

The very literary and imaginative Rivette — he is also a fan of Henry James — says that he was never really tempted to become a writer. He found his vocation when he came across Jean Cocteau's diary. "It was a diary he kept during filming 'La Belle et La Bête' (Beauty and the Beast). It was fascinating. You could see that when you make a movie, you are not alone, you have a team, and it became clear to me that's what I wanted to do."

Over the years, the filmmaker's works have survived ups and downs. Every time he makes a short version of a film, it comes out as a fresh, almost separate creation. Rivette has his own, mysterious way with time, and each movie has its own secret tempo.

Last year, "Out 1" was shown at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York to warm response. Both the short version of "Out 1" (Spectre) and "Céline et Julie vont en bateau" (Celine and Julie Go Boating) were shown in the early days of the Lincoln Center Film Festival. "It was a great era for film. We live in another world now," Rivette said. The last time he was in New York, it was to show "Va Savoir" (Who Knows). "It was right after Sept. 11," he said. "I stayed only two days."

Starting March 21, the Pompidou Center plans a Rivette retrospective, with short and long versions of his films, timed to the release of "Don't Touch the Axe." Paris is the scene for his greatest puzzles, and dashing heroines, played by Balibar, Béart, Ogier (mother and daughter); also, Juliet Berto, Sandrine Bonnaire, Jane Birkin and Nathalie Richard.

The prospect of the tribute doesn't seem to give him that much pleasure. His mind is on the new movie. "It may be difficult today for people to grasp that little world of royalists, living in a tiny pocket of the Faubourg Saint-Germain. It was a state of mind, which explains something of what goes on — and what goes amiss — between that lady and that general."

[tavernier]

As a reminder, the complete "Out 1" is having an encore showing at the Museum of the Moving Image March 3 and 4.

[Michael Kerpan]

As a reminder, the complete "Out 1" is having an encore showing at the Museum of the Moving Image March 3 and 4.

I finally completed my traversal of this (albeit with Italian -- not English -- subs).

Lots of fun.

[Anonymous]

J. Hoberman on Out 1:

Hoberman is at his best when he writes about movies that he obviously loves and lately he didn't have a chance to do so. But this piece shows me my favorite critic at top form.

[Barmy]

Yes, that Hobie review is right on the mark. Particularly:

The final episode is the richest in terms of action and revelation. Can this all-consuming spectacle really be ending? Rivette's last shot is an extraordinary throwaway that provoked spontaneous applause for being at once completely ordinary, totally unexpected, and positively diabolical in shifting the meaning of the entire previous 12 1/2 hours.

[kekid]

Is Out 1 possible Eclipse material?

[zedz]

Is Out 1 possible Eclipse material?

Surely not. Any DVD release of this film (which would ideally be accompanied by Spectre) would be a very big deal indeed and would deserve the full Criterion heft.

I suspect Criterion will be watching the performance of Berlin Alexanderplatz very carefully to determine the feasibility of other projects of comparable immensity.

[franco]

Just want to express my excitement for Vancouver's Rivette retrospective. This time I am going to ignore my homework, so hopefully I'll get to see most of the films. I have only watched Histoire de Marie et Julien to completion, and I absolutely adore it.

Too bad Le Pont du Nord is missing.

[David Ehrenstein]

Histire de Marie et Julien absorbed Rivette's consciousness for over twenty years. It was roginally suppsoed to be part of the Scenes de la vie parallele tetrology: first in number but to be shot after Duelle and Noroit. But three days into shooting Rivette had a nervous breakdown and the entire series was halted. Albert Finney and Leslie Caron were the stars of those fateful few days. That he took it up so many years later with Jerzy Radzilowitz and Emmanuelle Beart indicates what had altered for him about it. The compeleted film is sexual in a way that the first attempt could not have been. Instead of Goddesses of the Sun and Moon vying for a magical diamond we have ghosts dealing in information in some sort of bizarre blackmail scheme.

[franco]

I admit I am somewhat glad that Rivette postponed this project, so we could see Emmanuelle Béart in one of her most adorable roles. Nevertheless, I can hardly place the whole blackmail thing into context. So the story initially involved Goddesses of suns and moons? (Mr. Ehrenstein I read your post on the first page but I appreciate your reiteration).

It's a shame that we still can't get to see the full-length version of Va Savoir.

[Barmy]

It wouldn't surprise me if "Out 1" is never released on DVD with subtitles. "Berlin Alexanderplatz" is not a valid comparison--Fassbinder is a far more popular director. And one of "Out 1's" "problems" as a DVD is it lacks repeatability for all but the most committed Rivettophiles--and even they have to admit that X number of hours are a tough slog.

Unfortunately, at the March 3/4 encore screening at MMI of the only extant print, it was apparent that the soundtrack is severely damaged in spots. I do not remember this from the December screening. So I don't think this print has much life left in it.

[justeleblanc]

Unfortunately, at the March 3/4 encore screening at MMI of the only extant print, it was apparent that the soundtrack is severely damaged in spots. I do not remember this from the December screening. So I don't think this print has much life left in it.

Yes, the strange snapping noises that came during the reel changes were most disturbing. The only scene that it really interfered with was the conversation between Colin and Sarah, which was soft to begin with, and I feel like the subtitle person may have missed a few lines because of snapping.

And can anyone answer the question of available prints. The print that I just saw this weekend is the only print made available to the public, is that correct? And it's the same print that was discovered in 1989? What about other copies of the film, or a negative that a new copy could be printed from? Surely Rivette has a copy, and this version itself (which is slowly dying) can not be THE ONLY surviving copy of the film. Am I wrong?

[Barmy]

I'm not sure the snapping was connected to reel changes. I have a high tolerance for flawed film projection but the snapping was awful.

In the Colin/Sarah scene, some of Sarah's dialogue (and one of Colin's lines) is run backwards (one of the coolest moments in the film). That's why those lines weren't translated.

[justeleblanc]

I'm not sure the snapping was connected to reel changes. I have a high tolerance for flawed film projection but the snapping was awful.

In the Colin/Sarah scene, some of Sarah's dialogue (and one of Colin's lines) is run backwards (one of the coolest moments in the film). That's why those lines weren't translated.

I THOUGHT SO!!! By the way, where did you sit? And did anyone else in the forum attend this weekend?

[Barmy]

The backward dialogue bit is done really well, because it IS hard to detect (for non-French speakers, at any rate), and Colin just responds normally to what Sarah says. I was in the third row.

[Barmy]

And a report on Rivette's latest:

From flirtation to catastrophe: Jacques Rivette's "Don't Touch the Axe" (Competition)

Behind "Don't Touch the Axe," hides a film destined never to be shot. The title of this film is – or would have been – "Next Year in Paris." But Jacques Rivette and his producer weren't able to find funding for the film, in which Jeanne Balibar and Guillaume Depardieu were to play the leads. It's hard to believe, but true: in film-land France, the almost octogenarian Jacques Rivette, veteran of the Nouvelle Vague and one of the greatest living filmmakers, can't raise money for an ambitious project that would have followed up on his major works from the 1970s.

Rivette can hardly conceal his disappointment as he tells this story at the press conference. Of course there's hardly anyone here, unlike just a few minutes ago when people flocked to hear Jennifer Lopez discuss her film "Bordertown". Every single question is an insult to the director. Depardieu is brazenly asked twice about his father, as if he owed his acting career to his father's success and influence.

Nothing could be further from the truth, as his fabulous acting in "Don't Touch the Axe" amply proves. When the financing for the larger project fell through, Rivette went looking for a smaller production for the same actors. The result was a chamber piece, based very closely on Honore de Balzac's "La Duchesse de Langeais." The story originally bore the title "Ne touchez pas la hache" before it was incorporated into Balzac's "La Comedie humaine." In it, Balzac tells the story of a love affair that passes rapidly from flirt to catastrophe."

Montriveau, a hero in Napoleon's army, (Depardieu) meets the Duchesse de Langeais (Balibar), who belongs to the cream of Parisian society. She is married, but her husband never appears. Montriveau comes back to Paris full of exotic stories of the desert, and seduces the duchess with his lore. They come closer, but what at first glance looks like a reasonably uncomplicated love affair soon turns into a game of love and passion that transgresses every rule known to Parisian society. Very quickly, however, society is left out of things altogether. Instead of a love affair, Montriveau and the duchess become caught up in a war: a battle for love. Sharp words clash like swords, siege is laid, the two dig trenches and lie in ambush, retreat and attack, they show no mercy and toss counsel to the wind. The battle is fought in boudoirs, hallways and sofas, in front of doors and inside salons. No blood flows, and yet no less than life and happiness are at stake.

The film is utterly concentrated on its main characters. Everything becomes a question of timing. Every gesture counts, every last glance has weight, the trembling of Balibar's upper lip is an expression of inner turmoil and Depardieu's brooding heralds untold disasters. Rivette's cameraman William Lubtschansky transforms words and movement into installations of light and darkness, which seem to freeze periodically like paintings. Fires crackle incessantly in the salons' fireplaces, yet their calming effect is misleading. The passing of time is shown with titles, and Balzac's words accompany the development of events. Rivette dramatises nothing, he observes Balibar and Depardieu using words that are sharper than foils and rapiers, and watches them – merciless as Balzac – as they hope and suffer, fear and fight.

There could be no greater a clash than between this exquisitely wrought tale and the film which preceded it, Gregory Nava's human rights pornography "Bordertown". Programming the one before the other is sheer barbarity, and yet standard festival fare. That's no reproach, after all it can hardly be avoided. But it must be said.

[Michael Kerpan]

The Italian TV broadcast of Out 1 looked and sounded reasonably good -- so there must be decent source materials out there -- somewhere.

[backstreetsbackalright]

And can anyone answer the question of available prints. The print that I just saw this weekend is the only print made available to the public, is that correct? And it's the same print that was discovered in 1989? What about other copies of the film, or a negative that a new copy could be printed from? Surely Rivette has a copy, and this version itself (which is slowly dying) can not be THE ONLY surviving copy of the film. Am I wrong?

At a screening in Seattle this weekend, we were told that we were watching the only available print of Out 1: Spectre. Though it ocured to me later that, since this print was subbed in English, this might refer to the only English-friendly print available. And in fact, Jonathan Rosenbaum mentions in Movies as Politics that there's only one English subtitled print of Spectre, "no longer complete," dating back to 1974.

[benm]

did the print at the NWfilmforum have subtitles projected onto the screen? When it was shown in Vancouver volunteers had to move the subtitles along like a slideshow through a projector. Apparently the BFI (or something like that) made the subtitles for their recent screening and then when Vancouver showed it we rented the subtitles from them. Unfortunately there were many times when no dialogue was translated and non-french speakers were left wondering what to make of these gaps in the 13 or so hours (our projector can't run at 25 frames per second so it took even longer than it should).