A Song of Love (1950)

Two prisoners in complete isolation, separated by the thick brick walls, and desperately in need of human contact, devise a most unusual kind of communication.

Director:

Jean Genet

Writer:

Jean Genet

Stars:

Bravo, Jean Genet, Java

Cast

Uncredited cast:
Bravo	...	Older Prisoner (uncredited)
Jean Genet	...	Prisoner in Duo Fantasy (uncredited)
Java	...	Nude Prisoner / Hand swinging the blossom (uncredited)
Coco Le Martiniquais	...	Black Prisoner (uncredited)
André Reybaz	...	Guard. (uncredited)
Lucien Sénémaud	...	Younger Prisoner (uncredited)

Storyline

Inmates in a French prison are attempting to fulfill their sexual and emotional needs under the confines of their individual cells. Two inmates in particular, who are in adjacent cells, try to make that connection to the other, both physical and emotional, in whatever way they can. In their current attempt to do so, they are so caught up in the fulfillment they receive of that connection that they fail to notice that a voyeuristic guard has been watching them through the small peep holes in their otherwise solid cell doors. The guard was tipped to the activity by one of the two men trying to pass a bouquet of wild flowers to the other via their barred cell windows. The guard confronts one of the inmates. Although their encounter is primarily violently physical, each man copes with the situation by fantasizing about what is truly in his heart.

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Plot Keywords:

dancing alone | voyeurism | man in prison | smoke | penis | 

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Genres:

Short | Fantasy | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

France

Language:

None

Release Date:

1950 (France)

Also Known As:

A Song of Love

Filming Locations:

Fontainebleau, Seine-et-Marne, France

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

26 min

Sound Mix:

Silent Mono (re-release)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The producer Nikos Papatakis assigned the film to a Distributor, who got it registered in France - visa # 44127 of March 14, 1975. The film, with a musical score, and a few cuts by the producer, was shown at the Cinémathèque Française, and applied for, and won a money prize as a new, quality film from the jury of the CNC (Centre national de la cinématographie). Jean Genet, who had directed and edited the film, and even participated briefly in one scene, was not happy with this.

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Connections

Featured in Quelques fleurs pour un chant d'amour (2006)

User Reviews

A Song of Love

I can't believe that all four reviews here are preoccupied by the homosexual aspect of Genet's short film. I guess being familiar with his novels - Our Lady of Flowers, Funeral Rites, etc - I took it for granted that his film would necessarily be set in a prison and involve human longing manifest in homosexual contact between inmates. Don't be fooled, though. Movies like Brokeback Mountain harp on the homosexual factor, making it a political issue that hammers the viewer over the head. Midnight Express made prison sex a pop-culture joke. Genet seems naive by comparison. It's only a vehicle for his art, though certainly a favored one, owing to fact he spent most of his life in French prisons. Anyway, the setting could function just as well as a fictional netherworld dedicated to isolation. Its a brilliant and deliberately shocking movie and shouldn't be missed by anyone.