This film is powerfully rooted in a particular time and place (1950s France - specifically Cherbourg, during the Algerian War). At the same time, however, the director addresses universal themes of love, absence, opportunity and regret.
The glimpses of Cherbourg are tantalizing, and somehow achingly beautiful for anyone who has ever spent any time there, and the color palette is simply stunning.
Catherine Deneuve looks stunning too (she never looked quite like this again - even in the second half of the film she has already changed). The simple plot is carried along, at least in the first half, by the convincing nature of the relationship between Deneuve's character and her mechanic boyfriend.
The film is slightly spoiled, however, by the rather disjointed plot in the second half, and the lack of variation in some of the sung dialogue (in fact there are no spoken words in the entire movie). However, it is worth watching for the look alone. The best music comes in the scene at the railway station, which somehow manages to feel emotionally authentic despite being so stylized.
So watch the movie if you can. There is no other like it.
The glimpses of Cherbourg are tantalizing, and somehow achingly beautiful for anyone who has ever spent any time there, and the color palette is simply stunning.
Catherine Deneuve looks stunning too (she never looked quite like this again - even in the second half of the film she has already changed). The simple plot is carried along, at least in the first half, by the convincing nature of the relationship between Deneuve's character and her mechanic boyfriend.
The film is slightly spoiled, however, by the rather disjointed plot in the second half, and the lack of variation in some of the sung dialogue (in fact there are no spoken words in the entire movie). However, it is worth watching for the look alone. The best music comes in the scene at the railway station, which somehow manages to feel emotionally authentic despite being so stylized.
So watch the movie if you can. There is no other like it.