"Sundays and Cybele" is a film that would be very, very difficult to make today. Even back in the early 1960s, folks were probably a bit uneasy about the plot...especially since it did seeem to POSSIBLY hint at pedophilia. Today, with a greater awareness of these issues, I really think it couldn't be made today...at least without some major revisions.
Hardy Kruger plays Pierre, a pilot with a bad case of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. He has huge gaps in his memory, is occasionally explosive and is quite sullen. However, when he meets a sad girl being taken to an orphanage, his life completely changes. Through some odd coincidences, the orphanage thinks HE is the child's father and since he feels sorry for her, he begins seeing her on visiting days (hence the Sunday in the title). However, much of their time together is spend not as father and child but almost like lovers...and the child talks out loud about marrying Pierre when she is older.
Oddly, Pierre does not tell his girlfriend about this situation and when she finds out, she is not enraged or worried that he might be a pedophile. She observes the pair covertly during one of his visits and thinks they are good for each other. However, all this comes to a tragic ending at Christmas when Pierre's behaviors get a bit goofy (even for him) and the police get involved.
This is a very well made but slow film. The cinematography is often quite interesting--particularly with its use of keyhole-style shots. As for the story...as I mentioned it is very slow and often made me feel uncomfortable. I think it was worse for me because I used to be a therapist who worked with sexual abuse victims and the strange relationship between the pair seemed pretty consistent with some pedophiles and the way they groom their victims. Still, if you can somehow ignore this (and that would be tough), the story has some interesting aspects. Not a bad film at all...but a rather disturbing one.
By the way, I have no idea why Hardy Kruger (a German actor) was chosen to play Pierre...a Frenchman. It did seem odd.
Hardy Kruger plays Pierre, a pilot with a bad case of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. He has huge gaps in his memory, is occasionally explosive and is quite sullen. However, when he meets a sad girl being taken to an orphanage, his life completely changes. Through some odd coincidences, the orphanage thinks HE is the child's father and since he feels sorry for her, he begins seeing her on visiting days (hence the Sunday in the title). However, much of their time together is spend not as father and child but almost like lovers...and the child talks out loud about marrying Pierre when she is older.
Oddly, Pierre does not tell his girlfriend about this situation and when she finds out, she is not enraged or worried that he might be a pedophile. She observes the pair covertly during one of his visits and thinks they are good for each other. However, all this comes to a tragic ending at Christmas when Pierre's behaviors get a bit goofy (even for him) and the police get involved.
This is a very well made but slow film. The cinematography is often quite interesting--particularly with its use of keyhole-style shots. As for the story...as I mentioned it is very slow and often made me feel uncomfortable. I think it was worse for me because I used to be a therapist who worked with sexual abuse victims and the strange relationship between the pair seemed pretty consistent with some pedophiles and the way they groom their victims. Still, if you can somehow ignore this (and that would be tough), the story has some interesting aspects. Not a bad film at all...but a rather disturbing one.
By the way, I have no idea why Hardy Kruger (a German actor) was chosen to play Pierre...a Frenchman. It did seem odd.