Kieslowski's Trilogy: Bleu- Blanc- Rouge

 

I'd love to read it if possible

 

 

My early fave was Bleu (there was a contemplative quality to that film, that I loved).... and Blanc didn't manage to reverse it, but I think Rouge definitely equalled it.

 

I'll go with Blue

 

 

I always found Blue really good, but a little too pretentious and definitely a downer. Red, on the other hand, is one of my all time favorite films, and one of the greatest films of the 90s. There's so much going on, so much symbolism and layers of meaning, it's simply levels beyond Blue and the amusing but often-neglected White. It seems audiences love Blue, while critics and film scholars love Red. Irene Jacob is a legend and treated like royalty, all because of Red. Personally, I could watch that film over and over, it's one of the most life-affirming films I've ever seen.

To be honest, I didn't think much of Red the first time I saw it. It's something that gets better and better with repeated viewings. I think the reason why many don't get Red is because they're missing the symbolism of Trintignant's character. They think he's a creepy older guy, spying on his neighbor's phone calls, and shamelessly flirting with the much younger Jacob. That's how I saw him too at first. Sorry, but that's not what's going on at all. 

Trintignant is God. He is the Judge who hears all - he even at one point seems to make the sun set, - but he's retired and passing the baton to his Son (the younger up and coming Judge). The Son is the same as the Father - their experiences are *identical*: the pen given as a gift, the books falling and opening to a key passage, the betrayal by the blond woman, following her across the ocean. This happens to *both* Judges. The retired judge knows the heart of Jacob - there's a deep mystery to their relationship. (Many scenes in the film have a mysterious, dreamlike quality. And what of that photograph of Irene that ends up being repeated when she survives at the end? Wow...) Trintignant's dog (which is the Spirit or messenger that draws them together) gives birth to 7 puppies; later, there are 7 survivors after the ship sinks. Red is the culmination of all three movies: the 7 survivors include the main characters from Blue and White. Irene Jacob and the others are literally baptized - submerged into the ocean, raised up and re-born. "Maybe you were the person I never met," the retired judge tells Jacob. Later she meets the young Judge, and we know all along that their paths have been crossing and that they're destined for each other.

Oh man, what an awesome film. I'm sorry, but Blue can't get near it, IMO. Many of those who truly get Red swear that the film is one of the best ever made, and with good reason.

The plot of Red was inspired partly by a couple of beautiful poems by Polish Nobel Laureate Wislawa Szymborska, including this one:

Kieslowski himself always said that Veronique is a flawed film, and that he didn't get to film it the way he wanted to. I forget the story - something like, the funding was cut off, the money ran out, so he had to piece together a film with the available footage that he had, even though it wasn't nearly the vision he had for the movie.

I agree that it's a beautiful film - but I also agree with him that it's not a masterpiece, but *clearly* could have been. When I see the film, I mourn for what could have been.

By the way, there's nothing unnecessary or superfluous about Red. Everything - every single thing - is there for a reason. It's clearly his most realized film.

The film theorist and critic Dave Kehr - who has called "Red" one of the key films and masterpieces ever made - did some amazing interviews and features on Kieslowski and the Three Colors films. Much of it's disappeared from the Web, but I did find this: http://www.petey.com/kk/docs/colors.txt

Definitely!