Title: La Jetée (The Jetty)
Genre: Short film, Post-Apocalyptic Sci-fi (France)
Running Time: 28 mins.
Director: Chris Marker
Was it a must-see?
I guess this is a good a time as any to say that I won’t be following the movies in chronological order. There might be some benefits to that in terms of seeing the development of film-making through the years, how story-telling progresses or repeats itself, but again, this is not a movie review blog. If anything, this is really more aimed at educating myself (and perhaps others), developing a good taste in movies and discovering the extent (and failings) of man’s creativity. (whoa)
Anyhoo…
I thought it was perfect that I should start with a French film from somewhere between the 20s and 60s. I don’t know, there’s something about French films that feels sharp and original.
La Jetée was a good choice, I think. It was poignant, nostalgic with a good blend of romance and science fiction. If you’ve seen The Time Traveler’s Wife, this is that story in its most raw and untainted.
It’s also the first film I’ve ever seen that was told through still images. Black and white, all told by a narrator. I didn’t know, I didn’t think just having photos transition into one another could ever have more meaning than seeing the actors move. But here, it did.
It made me silent. And the images were so powerful that they alone make this movie a definite must-see. I’m happy I started with this.
Did I learn anything?
That stories revolve around time in a never-ending cycle but there’s no guarantee of recreating the emotions and thoughts that they originally intended to evoke. The story of La Jetée will show up again in our present and our future. Whether they make me feel like this again remains to be seen.
Best moment:
The girl in bed, covered in white sheets, still images of her sleeping fade in and out of the screen, one after another and then…her eyes opened, looking right at you and she was blinking and you realize you just witnessed the only part of the movie where filming the character and not photographing her made sense. It was sooooo…. *sigh*
Best line:
“Nothing distinguishes memories from ordinary moments. Only later do they become memorable by the scars they leave.”
Rien ne distingue les souvenirs de moments ordinaires. C’est seulement plus tard elles deviennent mémorable par les cicatrices qu’ils laissent.
The 1001 Movies Challenge 