L'Heure bleue

"Die Blaue Stunde" is a staple in my video collection, and one to which I return agein and again to enjoy. With each viewing I find myself engrossed in the subject matter, the work of the actors, and the deliberately sparse, clean style of the director. The film is small, intimate, and modest; happily, it doesn't pretend to be anything else. It is honest, straight-forward, and has an authentic feel throughout. Andreas Herder as Theo and Dina Leipzig as Marie are very touching in depicting the lonliness and lack of direction in lives as they reach out in vain for fulfillment. Their characters emerge as universal, crossing language barriers to move us, regardless of our particular cultural environment. Even the music, often a sole piano playing sparse notes in the upper register, points up the intimate nature of the drama, well shot in semi-documentary style.