A photographer looks on in dismay - an expression likely mirrored on the faces of many audience members.
It’s harsh, but more or less accurate – Guetta is, at best, an amateur. So, what are we to make of a similar effort by one of the most revered directors in the world?
Film Socialisme, the latest film from Nouvelle Vague pioneer Jean-Luc Godard, is, to say the least, a bit of a mess. It has all the hallmarks of a bad student film: self-indulgence, sledgehammer metaphors, gimmicky aural and visual techniques, and atrocious dialogue. If it has a coherent message, it’s well-hidden.
This is not to say that art must always strive for accessibility. Many great films continue to reveal new complexities after repeated viewings, and tend to be better for it. It is a mistake, however, to confuse obtuseness and complexity. In the case of Film Socialisme, there doesn’t appear to be much underneath the slogans, ambiguous political commentary and occasionally gorgeous cinematography.
There are grains of ideas, at least: a multicultural cruise ship carries overtones of the decline of Western affluence in a globalised world; likewise, the diverse range of materials that the footage is filmed on, along with depictions of various types of electronic equipment, speak of the cacophonous technological age we find ourselves in. These are interesting topics, but it is unclear if Godard actually has much, if anything, to say about them. In any case, they’re quickly sidelined by superficial self-indulgence.
One might argue that Film Socialisme cannot be fully appreciated after only one viewing. It’s possible, but it must be said that very few viewers will have any incentive to revisit what is, frankly, a tedious film.
Godard deserves some credit, at least, for doing something different. In comparison to standard festival arthouse fare, Film Socialisme is like an unexpected plunge into an ice bath. Unfortunately, it’s also unbearably pretentious, a quality that has become more and more the defining aspect of his output. That he continues to receive unmitigated praise from some quarters despite this tendency is testament alone to the dangers of adherence to Auteur Theory.
Exit Through the Gift Shop made this point so well. Substitute the crowd of self-important art aficianados lining up to see the “Mr. Brainwash” exhibition with a legion of Godard fanboys, and the result is more or less the same. Jean-Luc Godard was a brilliant, ground-breaking director who, it seems, ran out of interesting things to say a long time ago. Only the delusions and rampant pretentiousness of the art world enable lesser works like this to be treated with anything in the way of reverence.
Directed by Jean-Luc Godard
Starring Élisabeth Vitali, Eye Haidara, Catherine Tanvier
RATING:
★ ½
