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Pola X Actors: Guillaume Depardieu, Yekaterina Golubeva, Catherine Deneuve Director: Leos Carax Number of Items: 1 Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen Format: Color, Widescreen, Dolby Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Running Time: 134 minutes Studio: Fox Lorber Region Code: 1 Product Group: DVD Release Date: 2001-04-10 Buy from Amazon |
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From Description Based on Herman Melville's 1852 novel Pierre: or the Ambiguities, filmmaker LeosCarax (Lovers On The Bridge, Mauvais Sang) presents an ambitious tale of one man's search for the truth in a vague world. A young, successful author (Depardieu) is haunted by a recurring dream of a woman obscured in darkness. After discovering the identity of this mysterious figure, he finds his life spiraling downward into a world of lies, ambiguities and masquerades. |
 "Test your Stamina!"It is rumored that Herman Melville lost his mind while writing PIERRE OU LES AMGIGUITES. Generations of young readers who were crazy about his cult-book MOBY DICK could not warm to the pondering-pessimistic effusions in his late work. Director Leos Carax and his star Guillaume Depardieu must have hoped without doubt that the screen version of POLA, script nr. 10 would be an "event". Alas, the product of their efforts is just a little dog that crawls on all fours before its audience. Depardieu, like captain Ahab, aspires to delve into the real meaning of things. It does not satisfy him to live in a chateau with sprinklers on his lawn and swans in his pond. He does not take an interest in the preparations for his wedding ceremony with a fiancee who is "not too bad" in bed because she is "like a child". His relation to Catherine Deneuve (who does an excellent tightrope act between allurement and unattainability) is - ambiguous: They call each other "brother" and "sister" and she does not mind that he sees her topless in the tub. Later he becomes tired of her admonitions, breaks a door and realizes that "Mama, there's nothing in there!". He is unwise enough to tell his fiancee that he is dreaming of another girl (his white whale), and then he is surprised that she is jealous instead of extolling his veracity. The girl of his dreams materializes (Katerina Gulobeva) and tells him: "I'm your sister". They agree upon telling everybody that she is his wife... Whoever wrote the dialogue must be hailed as the most bombastic equivocator on earth. Gulobeva's monologues, in particular, are likely to send even the most exacting masochist into raptures: a seemingly endless monotonous elocution. After 80 minutes lechers will be rewarded for their patience: Depardieu jr. and Gulobeva's body double (an Australian swimmer) present a candid bed-scene. It could not have been easy to surpass papa Depardieu's antics in LA DERNIERE FEMME (1976) but the honor of the family was at stake... Public-spirited viewers will welcome the film's socio-critical commitment. A taxi-driver who refuses to transport Gulobeva and her friends is attacked with pepper-spray and beaten up by the police. But Depardieu, who knows no prejudices, takes the refugees to the zoo. Later a little gypsy-girl is killed by a passer-by. A McGuffin of sorts crystallizes after an hour or so. Depardieu (Melville's alter ego) wants to uncover the hidden for his book and therefore has to lead a hidden life. But his publisher bursts his soap-bubble: "One cannot be angry at his time without being punished. You want to shock the world and accept its admiration. But you don't believe in it anyway". He moves into a run-down factory building inhabited by dogs, poultry and rock musicians from the former East Block and mimics the poor poet in his attic. There's a long way to go before the long-desired ending comes; Sticking this film out may prove a sitzkrieg between you and the screen, but this moment of heartfelt relief when you realize that the film is really really over makes your exertion worthwhile...  "Gloomy, pretentious tripe."When the French film "Pola X" begins, Pierre (Guillaume Depardieu) is a very fortunate young man. He's wealthy (lives in a gorgeous French chateau), successful (writes best-selling novels), and is engaged to the beautiful Lucie. Pierre begins to have dreams involving an unkempt, dark-haired young woman. The dreams trouble him and begin to intrude into his waking life. Pierre cannot concentrate on his work or his love life, and Pierre's mother, Marie (Catherine Deneuve) becomes alarmed by his strange behaviour. Pierre spots the dark-haired woman of his dreams spying on him. He tries to follow her, but she eludes him. One evening, however, when motorcycling in the dark countryside, Pierre sees the woman on the side of the road. He crashes his bike, and plunges in the dark wood after the girl. The girl reveals that she is Pierre's sister, Isabelle, and she tells her story in a droning monologue of broken French. Where to start... Pierre and his mother are supposed to be 'close.' In fact, they are so close he calls her 'my sister' and she calls him 'my brother.' If this doesn't strike you as odd, wait for the scene when Pierre strolls into the bathroom when his mother is taking a bath. Yes, there is obviously some rot at the heart of this kinky French family, and Pierre's tasteless relationship with his sister, Isabelle, takes it one step further. Isabelle, who looks like a failed cross between Grunge and Goth is annoyingly clingy and morose. Yet Pierre dumps his 'close' relationship with mummy, his castle, and his career, and abandons all to live with the gloomy Isabelle in squalor with a bunch of equally bizarre social refugees. Forget plot. Forget logic. Forget motivation. Just prepare yourself for one long self-indulgent vomfest of a film. The only thing worthy of mention in this exercise in pretentiousness is some beautiful photography--the scene in the wood (if someone would shut Isabelle up for a minute) is stunningly beautiful, and the scenes of the chateau are breathtaking. Unfortunately, one long camera shot of Isabelle's exposed naughty bits wiped out all of the other pleasant memories, and now, scarred for life, I have no choice to label this film one star--as there is no pile of excrement option--displacedhuman  "a masterwork"Carax's Melville is one of the great films of the last decade and certainly on a par with Claire Denis's Beau Travail, her version of Melville's Billy Budd. Pierre is Melville's most enigmatic work and Carax illuminates the mystery by placing it in our world, the dawn of the twenty-first century, where the spectator must enter--the viewer become a reader again--unriddling this Hamlet from the inside out. ""SPECTACULAR & VISUALLY STUNNING - A MUST SEE""Leos Carax's POLA X is truly one of the most engaging films that have come out in the past decade. Throughout the movie Carax (Lovers on the Bridge, Boy Meets Girl) creates a visual poetry which is both innovative & contemporary. The film may create a sombre mood throughout but it engages you to a limit that you start looking at things the way Carax wanted you to. I am inclined to write the review of this movie because of the various negative publicity & misleading reviews it has received over the years. True, this is not your usual run-on-the mill type even in the art house genre, but it is definitely worth a watch. POLA X( based on Herman Melville's "Pierre, or the Ambiguities") is actually an acronym of the French title of the movie "Pierre, Ou Les Ambiguities"[P-O-L-A]. The 'X' in POLA X derives from the shooting script being Carax's tenth draft of his screenplay. The protagonist Pierre(Guillaume Depardieu),a young novelist coming from a rich family & a prolific background, is writing his new novel but is falling short of new ideas. His otherwise mundane lifestyle turns upside down when he meets a disheveled dark haired girl, Isabelle (Golubeva), who resembles the girl he has been dreaming about for some time. She turns out to be his illegitimate sister, a secret he was kept in dark about for all these years. Pierre finds in her the inspiration for newer ideas & an opportunity to break out of his routine lifestyle. He breaks his engagement to his sweetheart Lucie (Delphine Chuillot) & embarks on a journey with Isabelle - to provide her with all the love, support & protection that the world has denied her & also to stimulate his own creative instincts. It is definitely disappointing to see that even after so many years of its release, a few minutes sex scene between Pierre & Isabelle seems to get all the attention. It's true that it is graphic but it is sensual - innovatively shot with the use of tricky camera shots, colour & use of light & shadow. Carax didn't want to make it look like one of those "Guide to Sex" videos. I find the pace of the movie quite appropriate that does justice to the unfolding of the story. The scene at the forest where Isabelle talks about her past seems tedious for a first viewing but it settles with you with successive viewings. Isabelle's anxiety, insecurity & pain, which she could not share with anyone for so long, could be shown in that manner only. Also who can forget the background score of Scott Walker which supports the sombre mood & haunts you throughout the movie? Superb Cinematography & clever use of light & shadow techniques makes it a visual treat - completely in sync with the script. In fact this is a film which tries to tell its story visually rather than using long dialogues. I see this film reaching a cult status, may be 25 years down the line, when those Criterion Collection guys will come out with its special edition. But for the time being I will strongly recommend it to those who want a unique cinematic experience & a BREAK from the usual hundred million budgeted HOLLYWOOD Blockbuster crap. "A beautiful what?"Some nice use of Scott Walker,mis-en-scen,star power,industrial pastiche music,long takes,short takes,and of course a non-faux love making scene between a good looking dude and well lets just an actress that is not.. Oh yeah and the Catherine Deneuve motor cycle crash was bad-*ss. Oh and I think I'm almost obliged by international law to describe all of this as a beautiful mess. |
