[3.3]
When I originally saw this classic short film nearly ten years ago, I was so disenchanted that I gave up on Chris Marker, avoiding his films until just this past year (avoiding his films was also quite easy, as besides LA JETÉE, only SANS SOLEIL is widely known and available). And while I have grown to love Marker’s unique, poet take on documentaries, my recent screening of LA JETÉE confirmed (if less harshly) my dislike for this sci-fi fiction created almost entirely with still photos (except for one, jarringly effective shot done at 24fps). It’s not hard to distinguish that the words are Marker’s: direct, but peppered with elusive and emotional descriptions about life, love, and memory. Marker perfects the kind of poetic language that Malick can only attempt, but in LA JETÉE, it still feels as if he hasn’t reached the height of his linguistic powers. The sentiments are there, and his words are filled with dramatic beauty, but lack the marvelous clarity of vision as seen in SANS SOLEIL or GRIN WITHOUT A CAT (perhaps because of the limitations in crafting a fictional narrative as opposed to riffing on real events that he expects the audience to already have background knowledge of). The story of a man subjected to harsh experiments, being forced backwards and forewords in time in order to find some salvation for his post-apocalyptic world, is quite fascinating and filled with potential. Marker’s choice to use still photographs is daring, but it pays off in disjointing the action, just as the main character’s mind and memories are disjointed. He focuses on a single image from his past (a woman on the platform of Orly Airport), but it is not until the final frame that we discover the true significance of this moment. The tension that Marker creates with just simple sound effects is impressive, and the gritty, seemingly low-quality photographs give Marker’s visuals the sort of edge they need to convey a ruined future. Still, there is something cold about this story, and a distancing to true emotions that almost seems cynical. The plot feels lacking, and the emotions seem strained. Marker attempts to evoke the haunting conundrums of time and memory with his reference to VERTIGO (counting the rings of a tree), but he goes on to do this to greater effect in the far superior SANS SOLEIL. I can see why many people are drawn to this unusual science fiction short, but for me, it pales in comparison to Marker’s later, greater films.
burning retina 