Gen’s Film Review #1
I’m Genevieve, a writer and filmmaker based in Naarm. The greatest source of escapism I’ve found over the past two years has been in watching films that not many others have seen. To reprieve my friends from my endless lists of recommendations, I write reviews of the obscure (and admittedly not so obscure) films I think you should watch
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Le Bonheur, dir. Agnes Varda 1965
If the moon represents woman, then the sun certainly represents man. It is no coincidence that the opening image of Agnes Varda’s Le Bonheur is of a sunflower.
Believed to be the sole feminist in the boy’s club of the French New Wave, Agnes Varda brought a neglected story to the cinema screen in 1960s France. Although the subject of the film can certainly be described as feminine, the sunflower motif carries throughout, reminding us of the everlasting presence of the masculine.
Le Bonheur follows Francoise, a satisfied husband to Therese, and father to two young children. It seems impossible that any character in Le Bonheur could be discontent. Every frame bursts with tricolour palettes of red, yellow, and blue. Francoise and his family live in a bucolic splendour – plucking daisies in the fields, spending hot afternoons with family and neighbours… Every kiss shared between characters tenderly unfolds like a flower. The first half of the film draws you in like a Monet painting, wraps you in its warm arms and beckons you to stay and join in on this perfect happiness. Francoise is content in his nuclear life, but that does not prevent his interest in Emilie, the young and attractive postal worker he soon falls in love with.
Varda fantastically convinces the audience that Francoise can pursue both loves in his life without consequence. When we spend time with the women in his life, Varda creates a dissonance and separation that blurs our understanding of their thoughts and feelings through all of this. When Emilie expresses her pain in being second to Therese, Francoise is too quick to shut down her feelings. Similarly, although Therese is none the wiser about his affair for majority of the film, she is only ever seen as Francoise sees her - the happy housewife and mother, placid, beautiful and soft. We feel her heartbreak when she tenderly asks him before the end of the film: “Do you still love me?” It is the only hint we witness of her pain.
The film cultivates toward a chilling ending that will leave you stunned by the time the credits roll. Though it began as a romance, Le Bonheur ends in a tone akin to horror. It reminds us of the silent reality of female suffering.
If you loved this film as much as I did, I recommend three others that exist in the same vein. For beautiful colourisation and set design like this, pair Le Bonheur with The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. Quite the perfect accompaniment, as Umbrellas was directed by Varda’s husband, Jacques Demy!
If you’re looking for another sexy French film about love affairs, I recommend Eric Rohmer’s Love in the Afternoon. This is like the Parisian, wintery version of Le Bonheur, in my opinion.
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These films (and more!) can be found on the brand new Demure Letterboxd, where I will be updating my film recommendations alongside every review! You can follow the Demure Letterbox here.