For a long time, 'Jeanne Dielman' lingered in the lower regions of my 'must see'-film list. A classic, yes, praised by many, but to be honest, I wasn't really looking forward to the experience. A film about a housewife peeling potatoes and doing the dishes? Let's put it this way: there were always films that needed to be seen more urgently.
But the news that Sight & Sound considers this to be the best film ever, meant that I couldn't postpone seeing 'Jeanne Dielman' any longer. I felt the need to see it for myself. Is it the masterpiece so many critics think it is, or rather a pretentious, joyless arthouse experiment?
Now that I've seen it, I think it is neither. It is, above all, very special. Many viewers may find this film too slow. Yes, it is extremely slow. This is not slow cinema, this is snail's pace cinema. But that is exactly the quality of it. Seeing the main character peeling potatoes or making coffee has a zen-like feeling to it that you find in very few other films. It's so slow, that it's almost the cinematic equivalent of meditating. While watching the potato peeling going on, you notice little things you wouldn't have noticed in films at a faster pace.
But it's not only the slow rhythm that makes this film very special. It's also the camera. It never moves. And I mean never. Not one instant. It would be interesting to kow if director Chantal Akerman has been influenced by Yasujiro Ozu, for whom the static camera has become a trademark. There are other Ozu-like elements in 'Jeanne Dielman', for instance the camera filming a room a few seconds before the characters enter it, and after they have left it. Moreover, Akerman uses a limited number of camera angles in the apartment where most of the film takes place. Gradually, the viewer gets to know every corner of it, every piece of furniture, and every picture on the wall. After a while, it feels as if you're at home with Jeanne Dielman.
And then there's the question what te film is about. It's about gender relations, it's about motherhood, it's about sex (yes, apart from a housewife Jeanne is also a sex worker), it's about regret, it's about boredom, it's about life and also, in the end, about death. So yes, it's quite fascinating. I kept on watching, amazed by the cinematographic radicalism. And I was never bored.
Is this the best film ever made? I don't think so. It's too unorthodox, too much an outlier in the cinematographic universe. In order to be the best film ever, it should have more qualities than just being different. Is it worth seeing? If you like something special, it certainly is.
But the news that Sight & Sound considers this to be the best film ever, meant that I couldn't postpone seeing 'Jeanne Dielman' any longer. I felt the need to see it for myself. Is it the masterpiece so many critics think it is, or rather a pretentious, joyless arthouse experiment?
Now that I've seen it, I think it is neither. It is, above all, very special. Many viewers may find this film too slow. Yes, it is extremely slow. This is not slow cinema, this is snail's pace cinema. But that is exactly the quality of it. Seeing the main character peeling potatoes or making coffee has a zen-like feeling to it that you find in very few other films. It's so slow, that it's almost the cinematic equivalent of meditating. While watching the potato peeling going on, you notice little things you wouldn't have noticed in films at a faster pace.
But it's not only the slow rhythm that makes this film very special. It's also the camera. It never moves. And I mean never. Not one instant. It would be interesting to kow if director Chantal Akerman has been influenced by Yasujiro Ozu, for whom the static camera has become a trademark. There are other Ozu-like elements in 'Jeanne Dielman', for instance the camera filming a room a few seconds before the characters enter it, and after they have left it. Moreover, Akerman uses a limited number of camera angles in the apartment where most of the film takes place. Gradually, the viewer gets to know every corner of it, every piece of furniture, and every picture on the wall. After a while, it feels as if you're at home with Jeanne Dielman.
And then there's the question what te film is about. It's about gender relations, it's about motherhood, it's about sex (yes, apart from a housewife Jeanne is also a sex worker), it's about regret, it's about boredom, it's about life and also, in the end, about death. So yes, it's quite fascinating. I kept on watching, amazed by the cinematographic radicalism. And I was never bored.
Is this the best film ever made? I don't think so. It's too unorthodox, too much an outlier in the cinematographic universe. In order to be the best film ever, it should have more qualities than just being different. Is it worth seeing? If you like something special, it certainly is.