DUELLE [Duel] (Une Quarantaine) (1976) Jacques Rivette!
1894DVD
Although
a Genuine Masterpiece from One of Europe's Great Directors,
this Film Remains Unknown for Most Cinema Fans
director: Jacques Rivette
starring: Juliet Berto · Bulle Ogier · Jean Babilee ·
Hermine Karagheuz · Nicole Garcia · Elisabeth Wiener
Filmmaker
Jacques Rivette is generally considered one of cinema's greatest directors,
responsible (according to Fancois Truffaut) for the advent of
New Wave Cinema. This accolade is mostly result of response to
his classic arthouse motion picture Celine and Jullie Go Boating
(1974). That film catapulted the International film world into heated
discussions and broad declarations about its philosophy and depth. Unfortunately,
DUELLE was the next project and it turned out to be nothing like
Celine and Julie. Now, here is something infinitely much more
difficult to embrace. Perhaps, even more difficult to understand.
Essentially,
this movie tells the story of the Queen of the Night who battles the
Queen of the Sun over a magical diamond that will allow the winner to
remain on Earth. Despite the fantasy overtones, it takes place in modern
day Paris. Director Rivette pays homage to popular films of the forties
[e.g., the work of Jacques Tourneur who was known for creating
the maximum suspense and fear with minimum means]. This slight, ghostly
tale of two goddesses at war with each other was on the opposite end
of the Celine and Julie scale. However, there does exist a strange,
ethereal quality that quite definitely will remind the audience of the
ambiguity and hidden menace of Tourneur's Cat People (1944).
A French
film with English subtitles; widescreen format (16:9), fully uncut version
(120 min.), DVD encoded for ALL REGION NTSC, playable on any American
machine. Extras include trailers.
![DUELLE [Duel] (Une Quarantaine) (1976) Jacques Rivette!](Images/vd1894_1.jpg "DUELLE [Duel] (Une Quarantaine) (1976) Jacques Rivette!")
