Up, Down, Fragile

Although the film was released in Germany with only one copy I believe that it is not only Rivette's best film and that does mean very much but also one of the best movies of the 90's. It's Rivette's most funny and most light film. The female characters and his look at Paris is even more wonderful than in his other movies. As in all of Rivette's film everything can happen and the film is indeed full of wonderful surprises. But mostly I admire Haut bas fragile for Rivette's sense of the possibilities of the cinema which has become a very rare thing in our days.

I'm not very familiar with Rivette, but I did enjoy the other two films I've seen by him (three, technically, counting his Joan of Arc movie as two). This one - I did not enjoy it. It's as purposeless and indifferent as Celine and Julie Go Boating, but nowhere near as enjoyable. It has a handful of enjoyable moments - mostly in its song and dance numbers (it's a musical - when Rivette feels like it). And the three stars, Nathalie Richard, Marianne Denicourt and Laurence Côte, are all quite cute. But, man, does this go absolutely nowhere for nearly three hours. I can only watch Richard dance around like a dope for two hours, tops. Anna Karina also has a small part. I feel like I deserve a trophy for getting through this - I felt like giving up 40 minutes in and I really wish I had.

The dance scenes were too long, the chansons didn't really match with the plot. The only cool scene was the deadly game with the mysterious club owner. Without the singing and dancing stuff it could be a wonderful movie about the story of the three women which are linked together in a special way.

After half of the time I was the only one left in the cinema watching the boring movie. Even my french flatmate didn't like the movie.

If you like to see a better (and typical) french movie then choose "La vie est une chanson".

I didn't like it at all, it seemed pointless and silly to me. Just having those two random musical numbers seemed daft rather than stylish. That "Cole Porter" song was horrible.

The subplot about the strange murder game just petered out, it didn't make any sense to me at all. There was also an strange moment when Nino and Louise suddenly were great pals, walking down the street arm in arm, having only met vaguely before that.

It could have been intriguing and fun, but I thought it was fake whimsical and boring.

It was the only thing with English subtitles here in Vientiane, but I wish I hadn't bothered.

You can trust Rivette. The New Wave is not dead! Fresh and enlightening, definitely not boring (despite the Rivette-standard-length). People in Paris during summertime whose stories link together. A sort of ball of yarn that unrolls more and more as you go on watching. The dancing scenes are top-notch. Good Paris views. Any fans of the New Wave films should not miss this film; Anna Karina has a pretty big role and she does it good as ever. She has aged though, as you will see. My favorite scene is in the end when the camera shows inside Karina's house and one of the walls is filled with old posters of Karina. And she says something like: don't bother about that old rubbish.

I'll vote it a 4 out of 5. Watchers unfamiliar with French films in general and The New Wave in particular maybe won't find it very interesting though.