Just as Pepe Le Moko, Francois Truffaut’s Jules et Jim is a story about those desperately in love (menage-a-trois style!) on the fractured state of Europe between the World Wars. Both show a hint of poetic realism, with beautiful scenery contradicting the actual events of the movie. Interestingly enough, Jules et Jim is set before, during and after the Great war and a product of the French New Wave. The style is unique in that the film uses many different tightly composed shots (panning, wipes, newsreel footage), including freeze frame (most notable for me) for a dramatic tone. What really struck me was the musical score, which summed up the lives/feelings of the three characters. Jeanne Moreau sings the doomed love song in a sweet and innocent matter. The irony is amazingly articulated within the theme of the film and reinforces the film’s poetic realism. Catherine, herself, portrays an ironic free-spirited character both beautiful and intelligent, but also in control and dominant (unlike the women characters in Pepe Le Moko).
WORD: Viability
Noun
S: (n) viability ((of living things) capable of normal growth and development)
S: (n) viability (capable of being done in a practical and useful way)
Alex, This is a good start in analyzing this film. I think it makes sense to compare it to Pepe Le Moko and to consider the stylistic, narrative, and technological changes that occurred between the time that these two films were made.
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