The other day I was looking to play some music
and came across the soundtrack to this film. It is a favorite - melodic mellow
electronica pushed through the prism of 1960's French pop with a dash of
Bond. Hadn't played it in years but it still sounded good and made me want
to re-watch the film. Which is basically a homage or parody of films that
felt like they were a homage or parody. Modesty Blaise, The Tenth Victim,
Barbarella and Danger: Diabolik in particular come to mind and in fact John
Phillip Law who starred in those last two films shows up here in a small
role. Outside of that the film also appears to poke fun at the Euro-Italian
genre film industry of the time - and a little at self-obsessed film directors
of the New Wave - Godard perhaps? Throw in a small scene that felt like La
Dolce Vita and you basically have Roman Coppola indulging in his first film
about the European films of the 60's. There seems to be little affection
out there for this film but I like it for what it is. It is like a cumulus
cloud slowly passing overhead. Fluffy, light and charming with some adorable
visuals. And an actress who reminded me of Monica Vitti in all her chiseled
beauty.
I had either forgotten or didn't know that Francis Ford Coppola had another
director offspring beside Sofia. Roman seems to have primarily made shorts
before and after this - but it is nice having a father who made American
Zoetrope available to you. The film looks great - many seem to question if
it is anything other than visually sleek and pop and a Valentine to the films
Coppola loves. Maybe but I like those films too - empty of emotion but very
cool to watch.
Paul (Jeremy Davies) is a young American filmmaker in Paris editing a film
being directed by Andrezej (Gerard Depardieu). The year is 1969 and the film
is a pop colored dream sci-fi call to revolution. The Italian producer (Giancarlo
Giannini) hates the end product. There are two kinds of films he says - ones
with great endings and ones that don't. I want a fabulous ending and you
don't have one. Andrezej quits in a huff and Paul becomes the director who
has to come up with a good ending. At home he has a lovely girlfriend (Élodie
Bouchez) but he can only talk to her through his camera and turns it on himself
in a search for truth.
The actress in the other film is Angela Lindvall who is much to my surprise
American because she feels so European here and when they make her up to
play the spy Dragonfly she is spectacular. The film is hard to define - it
kind of breezes by in a bouquet of flowers - but the end is neither spectacular
nor terrible but somehow fitting. I mean the end of this film - not the film
within a film - nor the film that Paul is shooting on his own. If you get
my meaning.
