rating:
(out of
4 stars)France, Italy; 1967
Directed by Luis Buñuel; produced by Henri Baum, Raymond Hakim, Robert Hakim; written by Luis Buñuel, Jean-Claude Carrière
Starring Catherine Deneuve, Jean Sorel, Michel Piccoli, Geneviève Page, Pierre Clémenti, Françoise Fabian
Below you will find a temporary review for this film. The real (better, more complete) review will be online very soon.
Great director Luis Buñuel delivers with 'Belle de Jour' probably his best
known feature film, probably because it is more accessible than a lot of his
others. I like Buñuel's films on the technical aspect, but for some reason
they do not really engage to me. My first experience with him as a director
was 'Un Chien Andalou' which I loved, but the next Buñuel I saw was
'Viridiana', a symbolic film that has its moments but does not even come
close to entertainment. What I appreciate in his work is that he is not
willing to compromise, simply showing us what he wants us to see. In
'Viridiana', banned in Spain for blasphemy, he showed a nun almost being
raped by her uncle, a man who hangs himself with a child's skipping rope,
and beggars making fun of Da Vinci's "The Last Supper" in one of the most
terrific and memorable single shots I have seen.
In short 'Belle de Jour' tells about Séverine (Catherine Deneuve), a married
woman with sexual fantasies in which she is tortured, humiliated;
masochistic fantasies. Since she is not satisfied within the frames of her
marriage she becomes a "belle de jour", basically a prostitute for the rich.
She also continues with her married life. The story on itself is quite
simple on the surface. It is about personal wishes and desires and the film
shows that over and over again. It does not explain why Séverine likes what
she likes. The most famous single scenes deals with this as well.
A client shows a box with something in it. We never learn what is in the
box, but what does it matter? It represents a desire, something important
for the client, we do not need to know what the actual object is. This is
one of those scenes you will remember, like the scene I mentioned from
'Viridiana', together with the fantasies. They must have been quite shocking
in 1967 and I must admit they still have an impact today. In an opening
sequence we see how her husband (Jean Sorel) orders two servants to assault
Séverine and later we see how she is tied while men throw mud on her.
'Belle de Jour' did not bore me once, like some of Buñuel's other films. I
am intrigued by what Buñuel shows and tells us, I like Deneuve's performance
and I think the film is very well-made. That said I always think 'Belle de
Jour' is not really entertainment. I am glad I have seen it and probably
will want to see it again, but not because I was entertained. In the end
'Belle de Jour' is a film where you can see the greatness but at the same
time it is easy to understand why a lot of people will not like it.