"You have a very superior pelvis."
Imagine that line as one of cinema's great heartbreaking moments, because it is. I had doubts going into Richard Lester's Petulia, expecting a stereotypical 60s, counterculture romp. The first few minutes did nothing to ease my anxieties, but after the initial (and strange) meet cute, with leads Julie Christie and George C. Scott, the movie veers off into several wild directions. It's no 60s romp.
Scott and Christie make for a very strange, then believable, then fantastic couple after they both leave their spouses to start spending time together. They're both looking for a bit of freedom (Scott from his marriage and responsibilities, and Christie from a dark recent past shown in some flashbacks) and San Francisco, a budding countercultural melting pot, seems for them the right place to do it. With that much story set up, Lester feels free to throw in all kinds of side-stories and sub-plots to keep us from the end, and they work magnificently to create a whole.
And again, thank you, Mr. Nicolas Roeg, for existing. Anything you film is among the most aestheically pleasing ever produced on film.
As for Christie, she really takes a backseat to Scott's heart and soul character of the film, but she's great as the fish-out-of-water looking for anything to set her free (whether it be a man, or a tuba). This film fits nicely into my whole "we don't get to know Christie's characters very well" shpeel from a couple days ago. Petulia, I must note, was released in 1968, right in between Far From the Madding Crowd and The Go-Between.
Petulia: 9.3/10
Julie Christie in Petulia: 8.5/10
There are only two more films left in the Christie marathon: Demonseed (Yay!) and Shampoo (not too excited,really).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment