propos-86965

Robert Hossin directed and started in over 25 films. He had a distinctive "Noir" style. Always exquisitely photographed with a haunting original score. His persona, unlike Tritingant's cerebral quietness, is that of a lost soul searching for love only to be interrupted by violent inner demons. The Vampire of Deseldorf is no exception. The vampire here is a blue beard character who is disarmingly charming. Hossein, with little dialogue, captured the character with his eyes revealing a conflicted interior life.

Other Hossien motifs include wide-angle shots with large well-choreographed crowd scenes, long narrow streets shot at night, and a labyrinth this time made of brush.

Marie-France Pisier, in an early ingenue role, co-stars as a Marlene Dietrich-type cabaret singer. Her scenes include a lovely ballad. The film also includes a fine cast of supporting actors, another Hossein specialty.

The French actor Charles Denner stars in this lost gem of a film. Made in Montreal and released in 1966. A quiet film that deals with relationships rather than action. The humor is gently and subtle. It reminds me of Agnès Varda's directing. But the seriousness of the under-theme is not on full display due to the director's use of humor. The main themes are loss, longing and caring. Not a brief fling movie as in the synopsis. The sixties music is used well though showing it's age. The film deals with two happenstance meetings one with a beautiful woman and one with a little girl. Something I don't think you could handle in the same fashion anymore.

Renoir's intercutting of the train track sequences are evocative of Kubrick's 2001 closing. As hypnotic and mesmerizing as the unlikely affair. Gabin plays Zola's character not as Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde but as Lenny from Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. A traumatized child in a romantic leading man's body. The waltz music a fitting touch also Kubrickesque.