Summer

Rating:
Summary: "I'm not normal, like you."
Review: "Summer" from French director Eric Rohmer's "Comedies and Proverbs" series is basically a 'boy meets girl story'. The plot is centered on Delphine (Marie Riviere), a Parisian woman who finds herself alone for her annual holiday. Delphine attempts to salvage her holiday by solitary sorties to several locations. In Biarritz, she meets a Swedish woman whose confidence and predatory behavior serves only to undermine Delphine's confidence even further.

"Summer" is a character study of a single woman's voyage through urban loneliness, and in true Rohmer tradition, the action is dialogue driven. Many of Rohmer's films include some reference to the Parisian annual holiday, but in this film, the plot never strays from the idea of the annual exodus from Paris. Herein lies Delphine's dilemma--she doesn't want to be alone, but she doesn't exactly glow when she's around other people. When surrounded by others who attempt to make Delphine feel comfortable, her behaviour alienates them and ultimately isolates her. She's idealistic, and that makes her interesting, and she clearly doesn't fit in with the more social groups she constantly mingles with. However, Delphine's tendency to whininess and constant crying detracts from the film. Rohmer films often concern an admirable character who is troubled in some way. In "Summer", Delphine as a central character is too weak to bolster the entire film. There are psychological depths to her behaviour that are unexplored, and the film remains less substantial than many other Rohmer films--displacedhuman


Rating:
Summary: A French Version of the Italian Neo-Realist
Review: Anyone who thinks De Sica ("The Bicycle Thief") and Fellini ("La Strada," "8 1/2") have a corner on the neo-realist market obviously has not seen Eric Rohmer's brilliant and perceptive film, "Summer," starring the very talented Marie Riviere. Even though Rohmer does not believe in hand-held cameras, I enjoyed how he filmed common people on the streets of Paris, in the backyard of a French country home, at a beach in Biarritz, etc. In one scene he has a guy following Rivere in a Parisian park; in another scene he has Rivere bump into an old friend at a sidewalk cafe in Paris; in yet another scene he has Riviere meet a topless Swedish girl at a Biarritz beach. These may sound like ordinary scenes but they were very well drawn. What I liked about this film was how perceptive it was on the human condition. The Rivere character is very particular of people yet she doesn't like being alone. Friends try to help her but have a difficult time understanding who she is and how she interracts with other people. She is the type of person who does not like to be in the center of attention and would prefer to sit in the back of a train station than in the front where everyone can see her--including guys who might hit on her. You can tell she feels very uncomfortable with guys who she does not know unlike her friends who hit on guys as if it's second nature for them. Another thing I liked about this film is just how natural everything seemed--the actors seemed natural, the dialogue seemed natural, the pacing of the film seemed natural, and especially the ending seemed natural. The "naturalness" of this film is what makes it a superior film in its own right amongst the greatest Italian Neo-realist filmmakers.

Rating:
Summary: A French Version of the Italian Neo-Realist
Review: Anyone who thinks De Sica ("The Bicycle Thief") and Fellini ("La Strada," "8 1/2") have a corner on the neo-realist market obviously has not seen Eric Rohmer's brilliant and perceptive film, "Summer," starring the very talented Marie Riviere. Even though Rohmer does not believe in hand-held cameras, I enjoyed how he filmed common people on the streets of Paris, in the backyard of a French country home, at a beach in Biarritz, etc. In one scene he has a guy following Rivere in a Parisian park; in another scene he has Rivere bump into an old friend at a sidewalk cafe in Paris; in yet another scene he has Riviere meet a topless Swedish girl at a Biarritz beach. These may sound like ordinary scenes but they were very well drawn. What I liked about this film was how perceptive it was on the human condition. The Rivere character is very particular of people yet she doesn't like being alone. Friends try to help her but have a difficult time understanding who she is and how she interracts with other people. She is the type of person who does not like to be in the center of attention and would prefer to sit in the back of a train station than in the front where everyone can see her--including guys who might hit on her. You can tell she feels very uncomfortable with guys who she does not know unlike her friends who hit on guys as if it's second nature for them. Another thing I liked about this film is just how natural everything seemed--the actors seemed natural, the dialogue seemed natural, the pacing of the film seemed natural, and especially the ending seemed natural. The "naturalness" of this film is what makes it a superior film in its own right amongst the greatest Italian Neo-realist filmmakers.

Rating:
Summary: CRYING IN THE SUN
Review: French director Eric Rohmer's SUMMER is one of the last comedies and proverbs this master has produced in the eighties. And it's one of his best movies. Anyway, how not to be amazed by the global quality of his production during more than 40 years ? With Eric Rohmer, you can really say that this director is leaving an artistic work to the posterity like Dickens or Picasso.

SUMMER is a comedy ; not a comedy in the Disneyish sense of the word but rather a comedy reminding the pieces of the romantic French theatre of the XIXth century. One doesn't laugh during the vision of SUMMER, one smiles.

Delphine, played by the Rohmerian Marie Rivière, is desperate. Two weeks before her summer holiday, her best friend, Catherine, has found a new boy-friend and plans to spend the summer in his arms rather than in the company of Delphine, even if it means adios to a trip into the greek islands. What to do in Paris, alone, in august ? For a girl like Delphine, a secretary dreaming all year long of her next holiday, it's a drama. So we follow, day after day, her quest for happiness. At this point, the comedy becomes tragedy as we find out that Delphine is the archetype of the solitary ; refusing the occasions to make new acquaintances, developing her differences to the extreme. You have to watch this scene involving a vegetarian Delphine trying to explain to her guests, average French steak-eaters, why it is not fair to eat meat !

Marie Rivière is outstanding in the role of Delphine and would have deserved an international award for her interpretation. The DVD in itself is deceiving as always with WinStar (ex-Fox Lorber). Grainy images with few contrasts.

A DVD for your library.

Rating:
Summary: A French Version of the Italian Neo-Realist
Review: I love this movie, so I was excited to get it on DVD. I was dissapointed. First, the image is full-screen, not matted, and it looked like I was watching a made-for-tv movie. Did Rohmer do this on film? I would assume so, but the image quality on this dvd is poor, grainy, and very faded. I would wait till the next DVD release, if there is one. The sound is okay, the subtitles are PERMANENT, so you can't remove them, and the scene access is a joke, there are only six scenes according to FoxLorber. But all in all, I think this ranks slightly above VHS (which is pathetic for a DVD), so if you want a better copy of this movie than your local video store get this!

Rating:
Summary: GOOD MOVIE..........BAD DVD
Review: I love this movie, so I was excited to get it on DVD. I was dissapointed. First, the image is full-screen, not matted, and it looked like I was watching a made-for-tv movie. Did Rohmer do this on film? I would assume so, but the image quality on this dvd is poor, grainy, and very faded. I would wait till the next DVD release, if there is one. The sound is okay, the subtitles are PERMANENT, so you can't remove them, and the scene access is a joke, there are only six scenes according to FoxLorber. But all in all, I think this ranks slightly above VHS (which is pathetic for a DVD), so if you want a better copy of this movie than your local video store get this!

Rating:
Summary: Rohmer's Ode to Joy
Review: The plot: Delphine, a nice enough girl who may or may not have a boyfriend living somewhere in Europe, spends her entire summer vacation alone at a seaside resort, having a bad time.

How can such a horrible premise make for such a wonderful film? Because Eric Rohmer has created a protagonist of such extraordinary depth. We easily put ourselves in Delphine's shoes. When she meets some shallow guy at a party, we want to tell him off. When her party-loving acquaintance picks up the cutest boy on the beach, we wonder why we can't do the same. When she is invited to a cookout where everyone mocks her vegetarian ways, we remember when we were outsiders and root for her to put them in their place.

But mostly, during the magical climax, we are transported to a special moment in our own lives when our dream really did come true.

The French title of Rohmer's masterpiece translates into "The Green Ray". Having seen this film a half dozen times, I can no longer watch the sunset without looking for the Green Ray. If you know what I mean, then you will surely love this film.

Admittedly, the Fox Lorber transfer is lousy. I managed to get a halfway decent picture by tweaking the settings on my TV (turn the sharpness way up!)

Rating:
Summary: Rohmer's Ode to Joy
Review: The plot: Delphine, a nice enough girl who may or may not have a boyfriend living somewhere in Europe, spends her entire summer vacation alone at a seaside resort, having a bad time.

How can such a horrible premise make for such a wonderful film? Because Eric Rohmer has created a protagonist of such extraordinary depth. We easily put ourselves in Delphine's shoes. When she meets some shallow guy at a party, we want to tell him off. When her party-loving acquaintance picks up the cutest boy on the beach, we wonder why we can't do the same. When she is invited to a cookout where everyone mocks her vegetarian ways, we remember when we were outsiders and root for her to put them in their place.

But mostly, during the magical climax, we are transported to a special moment in our own lives when our dream really did come true.

The French title of Rohmer's masterpiece translates into "The Green Ray". Having seen this film a half dozen times, I can no longer watch the sunset without looking for the Green Ray. If you know what I mean, then you will surely love this film.

Admittedly, the Fox Lorber transfer is lousy. I managed to get a halfway decent picture by tweaking the settings on my TV (turn the sharpness way up!)

Rating:
Summary: one of the best
Review: The subject of this film , on paper, sounds trivial or indulgent: a nervous young woman wanders around France and seemingly makes it as hard as possible for herself to find happiness - she won't play the games most people play to entertain themselves, she won't go sailing, she won't cut flowers or eat meat, she won't consider a guy who only wants to have fun. Some viewers might even find Delphine irritating or spoilt - why doesn't she just compromise with her impossibly high standards and settle for ordinary human happiness? As with other Rohmer films, but here even more subtly and beautifully, there is a deep spiritual theme speaking through the light comedy of the plot. Delphine's obstinacy is also her spiritual strength. In a world without God Delphine's awe in front of nature and her respect for the ideal of love are the next best thing to faith. Notice, for example the wonderful scene where she walks along the shore in Biaritz but doesn't dive in the waves like the others because she has a reverence for nature which they do not. Every detail counts in this film, even though the improvised dialogue and naturalistic camerawork disguise the artistry. The final ten minutes pack an emotional punch as great as anything in cinema. Delphine's faith in sheer existence pays off and Rohmer communicates to us the awe which we should all feel at being alive but which we lose through conventional ways of living.

Rating:
Summary: Title misleading; not "A Tale of Summer," is The Green Ray
Review: This is the charming story of how a young woman, overcome by self pity and negativity overcomes her ruined vacation plans by being captured by the story of the last ray of the sun, the green ray, and how her belief in that allows her to follow through on her attraction for a young man after a very sour series of experiences.