Left Field Cinema

The Young Girls of Rochefort was Jacques Demy most ambitious production, released in 1967 it stars Catherine Denevure and Gene Kelly and it the complete amalgam of his style, whimsy, writing and vision, in my opinion towers over The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and stands as my favourite 60’s musical and is arguably the best European musical. This assemble piece is based in the French port-city of Rochefort, where twin sisters Delphine & Solange teach music, the fair has come to town for the weekend bringing along seemingly the two male suitors, Etienne & Bill. Twins mother Yvonne owns a city-centre-café where the four frequently visit; there we’re introduced to sailor Maxence whose search for the ideal girl he once painted, now for sale at Guillaume’s art gallery, which resembles his girl-of-the-day Delphine.

Solange on the other hand visits a music-store owned by Yvonne’s former fiancé Simon, the real father of the twins, he promises to introduce Solange to American composer Andy, whom arrive today in Rochefort and misplaces the composition Solange picks up after they bump into each other on the wonderful, colorful streets on Rochefort.

This is one of many slap-happy meetings between characters and or near misses. Gene Kelly, playing Andy, choreographed this masterfully display of atmosphere, nostalgia and wondrous search for love, he’s singing and dancing is overwhelming but all the acting is cheerful, every actor fully realizes their character and the first day (Friday) is the ultimate musical-hyperlink style of storytelling, coincidence and whimsy. Denevure & Jacques Perrin are the other standouts in a film which flows so well that Rochefort is the most musical of all of its aspects, extras frequently pass dancing, you may fell like getting out the atlas, I did. I didn’t see into any flaws, two songs are repeated for the benefit of the characters and all the tunes n lyrics are strong enough to hold together the slight lag the story takes on Sunday, maybe the one part of the film that couldn’t go into Black Orpheus territory cause of the more deliberately plotted love strings and crosses. The events of ‘Monday’ play brilliantly, Demy chooses a largely subtle, quiet ending to fade.

Demy chooses a camera style that won’t suit all musical-coinsurers, he keeps a wide frame not moving the camera as to the movement of the dancers like Fosse does, with longer takes he’s more head-pleasy than Luhrmann. Cherbourg vs Rochefort is a heady battle, they’re really just happy twins but given that Cherbourg has always had more praise as a musical masterpiece its worth noting that it contains no actually dancing, its style of singing-dialogue however is fun and I’m yet to have encountered it in any other medium.

They’re both in the top ten of 60’s musicals and unlike others of the decade come in under the two hour mark. Given his sheer talent, Demy films are the default choice for top Euro-musical, many cite Dancer in the Dark as a unique musical, unique for me as unlike any other musical it has no laughs and is Lars the Clown’s most pretentious work, when the film isn’t performing a post modern lobotomy on itself it delves you into a Circus Du Solei-esce video-scenes, unlike Du Solei these are horrendously staged and stink of Danish-cheese. Lars goes out of his way to make Bjork & Catherine Deneuve be totally repugnant like Emily Watson before. That’s a rant I have to express, I think the overriding brilliance of Jacques Demy is his visual splendor, just watch Model Shop, Donkey Skin or Lola. A Slightly Pregnant Man is maybe his only lesser film.

Darcy S. McCallum