Hélas pour moi
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Hélas pour moi | |
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Directed by | Jean-Luc Godard |
Starring | Gérard Depardieu |
Cinematography | Caroline Champetier |
Release date | 8 September 1993 |
Running time | 84 minutes |
Country | France |
Language | French |
Hélas pour moi (
Plot
Abraham Klimt arrives in a small Swiss village to investigate an incident that occurred on July 23, 1989 involving Rachel and Simon Donnadieu, a local couple. He interviews several of the townsfolk and enlists the aid of a poet, Aude Amiel. In flashback, the story of Rachel and Simon unfolds. Per the Greek myth on which the film is based, God, or a god, comes to earth with his assistant, Max Mercury. He decides he wants to possess Rachel Donnadieu, so he takes the form of Simon Donnadieu when Simon leaves home on a business trip. God-as-Simon returns to Rachel while Simon is away, and the two have an encounter.
Or not. Rachel is not talking about the incident, and Simon, in a brief encounter with Klimt at the end of the film, denies that it happened. The evidence provided by the flashbacks is contradictory. Ultimately, Klimt concludes, "There is nothing left to say concerning Simon and Rachel. The rest occurs beyond images and beyond stories."
Cast
- Gérard Depardieu as Simon Donnadieu
- Laurence Masliah as Rachel Donnadieu
- Bernard Verley as Abraham Klimt
- Aude Amiot as Aude Amiel
- Roland Blanche as The drawing teacher
- Jean-Louis Loca as Max Mercury
- Louis-Do de Lencquesaing as Ludovic
- Fabienne Chaudat
Background
Cinematographer Caroline Champetier said that the original scenario began with God riding a train through France and Switzerland, observing all the battles of humanity through the window. This sequence required expensive special effects and Godard finally gave up on the idea after visiting a company that demonstrated for him the effects they achieved for Jean-Pierre Jeunet's Delicatessen.
References
- ISBN 9789053564561.
External links
- Hélas pour moi at IMDb