Godard’s CONTEMPT (Criterion)

 

Picture: B-     Sound: C     Extras: B+     Film: A

 

 

There has been so much said about Jean-Luc Godard that it leaves very little to say without sounding like a broken record.  His contribution to cinema is well-documented and his influence as one of the fathers of the French New Wave still lingers today in the fast paced editing world of MTV and the special effects driven Hollywood we have come to love/hate.  When his name comes about most people automatically think of his films such as his debut film Breathless (1959) or maybe even some of his pictures that followed such as Band of Outsiders, My Life to Live, Alphaville, or Crazy Pete.  The most neglected, yet certainly a personal favorite Godard film of mine, is his 1963 film Contempt.  For some odd reason this film is like a magnet to me. 

 

There are several reasons why this film is dear to my heart and I will try my best to explain these reasons coherently.  First off, the film is like a mirror of itself.  It’s about making movies, so therefore the film reflects itself.  The storyline is simplistic yet its themes are layered very smoothly throughout.  We begin our story with Paul, who is a screenwriter writing a script for a film called Odysseus.  The film is going to be directed by Fritz Lang (yes the real, legendary Fritz Lang) and is being produced by an American producer played oddly enough by Jack Palance.  Brigitte Bardot plays Paul’s wife Camille and this might be the one film she actually acts in. 

 

Paul and Camille seem happy, but he is becoming increasingly busy trying to support the household and create a ‘good life’ for his wife that she becomes upset with him.  What is important to know about the story of Odysseus is that it’s the story of Odysseus and Penelope and how he, after the Trojan War, does not return home immediately.  Penelope then finds other suitors and similar to this Camille finds her suitor to be that of Jack Palance’s character.  What upsets these two women is not that they are neglected so much, but rather that they let the suitors come in without resistance.  This theme actually reminds me of the Flaming Lips song “Fight Test”, in which the character always thought that it was more respectable to not fight than to stand up and fight.  However, like in the song and like in the story of these two women…the male loses. 

 

Godard shot this film with one of his main cameraman Raoul Coutard and unlike many of Godard’s full-frame black and white films; Contempt is a scope Technicolor film that is just gorgeous!  This Criterion Edition DVD finally captures the brilliant work that went into the filming of Contempt and is presented in its original Franscope ratio of 2.35:1 and is anamorphically enhanced.  This is certainly one of the best-looking transfers to come from the Criterion Collection for a film of this age. By comparison you might want to look at Fellini’s Juliet of the Spirits also a Criterion DVD released in 1965 and also shot in Technicolor.  Contempt looks far better by comparison although both are nice prints.  Contempt was created on a new high definition transfer from the 35mm interpositive from the original camera negative.  

 

The film is in Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono, with the only real complaint being that it is not 2.0 Mono, which would alleviate some of the harsh compression that the one channel is receiving since it must carry all the dialogue, all sound effects, and of course the beautiful music by Georges Delurue.  The soundtrack was mastered at 24-bit, which explains some of the nice fidelity within that track despite being cluttered.  The film also contains the English-dubbed soundtrack, but what is interesting about Contempt is that you really don’t need it.  Partially because there is a translator in the film because the Jack Palance character does not understand French, so all the scenes with him are translated for the viewer.  However, if you really want to hear the entire film in English the option is available.  The third audio track is a commentary by film scholar Robert Stam, who does an excellent job putting the film into context and mentioning many side facts about Godard and the working conditions.  The commentary is never dull or dry, but quite informative. 

 

The entire second disc of this set is devoted strictly to features.  Most of these are quite interesting and important such as the conversation between Fritz Lang and Godard, which is one hour in length.  There are a few other short little films as well as a TV excerpt plus an excellent interview from last year with cinematographer Raoul Coutard.  As if all this wasn’t enough there is also a demonstration comparing the film in its pan & scan versions to its original scope aspect ratio showing just how much information is cut from the film. 

 

Contempt is a beautiful film and its finally available for the home viewer in a glorious transfer.  Oddly enough Contempt is a dark drama on one hand, but on the other there is a rather humorous undertone to certain scenes especially those involving Palance and Bardot.  Towards the end of the film the two of them are trying to have a conversation with only one minor setback, they do not know what each other is saying.  Oh well, communication is the last thing on their mind at this point. This 2-disc set makes the investment worth it even more, but the film is certainly worth having on its own.  There are still a lot of Godard films that are still unavailable in the DVD format, but this set is certainly a blueprint for how the rest of them should be issued on DVD.

 

 

- Nate Goss