Thursday 3 August 2017

Oh yes, very undateable

Frances Ha (2012)
Chosen by Agathe technically as she supplied me the dvd but I'd been wanting to get around to it for ages. And I don't do the thing where people give introductions anymore. But she likes it and mentioned watching it every couple of months with a friend for a while.


Absolutely charming, even while you are being frustrated by the main character's nature.
That the frustration never hardens into resentment is down to a winning, personable performance from co-writer Greta Gerwig and the low key reality of all the little choices she makes to mess up her life (turning down a sensible job offer, putting a trip to Paris on a credit card).
Despite the film constantly throwing barriers both self inflicted and otherwise in front of Frances it's never a slog (indeed it's a brisk 80mins and change), never too dour and relentlessly upbeat. Finding a cool place to live for a short while may not be the most life changing event but it is rewarded with a delightful dance through the streets to Bowie's Modern Love.
It makes an interesting companion piece to the recently reviewed on these pages Jules et Jim in that it is a massive love letter to the nouvelle vague films. Filmed in black and white, using musical cues and references (though the Modern Love dance is riffing from a later French piece - 1986's Mauvais Sang) it is a film filled with character but little incident.
A delight.





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