"Hiroshima Mon Amour" (1959), Alain Resnais' debut
feature length project is a baffling film, one that is extremely
difficult to even summarize in a synopsis!
We
are (almost) introduced to two characters in a passionate clinch, their
faces not shown, conversing with one another, although it is mostly a
one-sided conversation. The woman keeps saying things about knowing, and
seeing Hiroshima closely, while the man keeps interjecting and
contradicting her. She insists that she has seen and remembers a lot
about Hiroshima but he contradicts her again saying that she is "not
endowed with memory"! The conversation happens against a strange
background score, and shocking visuals, some of which is part of actual
documentary footage of the irreparable damage done to human life and
property during the tragic Hiroshima bombings of 1945. The woman
continues to talk; although at this point of time we aren’t sure exactly
which year it is set in, whether during the war or much after it!
The
camera glides across corridors of hospitals, bombing sites, showcasing
bodies of dead and deformed children, further moving into the homes of
survivors who are rendered only half humans, losing hair rapidly, yet
trying their best to survive despite being crippled and deformed for
life! The visuals of the grisly aftermath keep getting displayed, as
almost impassive voiceovers continue to narrate away for the first few
minutes.
Soon
we cut away from the nightmare-like tone of the initial few minutes and
are shown the faces of the conversing couple. A French woman and a
Japanese man have just spent the night together. The woman, an actress who hails from Nevers, France, is in Hiroshima to shoot for some scenes in a film she is starring in,
while the Japanese man is an architect.
Believe
it or not, the rest of the film is like one lengthy conversation with
repeated ramblings, sometimes deadpan, sometimes over-emotional, between
these two individuals who, after making love one night, find that they
are madly in love with each other! Some of the conversation seems
random and meaningless, some quite forlorn, while most of it sheds light
on the dark past of the woman, particularly revolving around her failed
romance.
It
is from this vague conversation that one can try and draw some
inference as to the central idea of the film. Only on a broad level, it
is safe to say, that juxtaposed against the tragedy at Hiroshima, a
prominent theme in the film is that of undying love; the loss of loved
one(s), and most importantly the memory of such love (or tragedy) that
continues to haunt an individual.
In
one bizarre scene, the lengthiest, perhaps, shot in a bar, the woman,
who appears to be a rather fragile, emotionally wounded individual, has a
few hours left with the man, before she returns to France. She
reminisces in a drunken state, about her first love affair with a German
soldier, who got killed. Only we aren’t really sure if it’s a dream she
is narrating or a past, for she seems to be talking in present tense.
There are a lot of flashback scenes interspersed, disturbing ones at
that, describing how she was punished by confinement to a cellar and
having her head shaved off! The woman gets hysterical, cries out loud,
gets slapped by the man, then calms down again, constantly narrating the
events, referring to the Japanese man as part of the story, although it
is actually about the German soldier! During the time he keeps pouring
drinks for her and listening to her story, the Japanese man keeps
reiterating how much he is in love with her and would like to be with
her!
It’s
all befuddling but you do find yourself giving in to the strange but
strikingly original narrative. There’s this soul-stirring background
music score, top-notch cinematography, a partially great atmosphere,
moody story-telling style, and the use of quick flash backs (a strong
influence of the French New Wave). The acting is superlative all the
way, by the two leads, most especially Emmanuelle Riva for her
spellbinding performance, considering the camera mostly captures every
expression on her face for a long time. And finally, there’s a sheer
uniqueness about "Hiroshima Mon Amour" that makes it a film that
deserves great admiration.
Only
this this film is no "Last Year at Marienbad" (1961), that stupendous
surrealist dreamscape of a film that Resnais followed this up with, and
made use of some of the devices used in "Hiroshima Mon Amour" to a
significantly greater effect.
Despite
a well-written screenplay by Marguerite Duras, “Hiroshima Mon Amour”,
nevertheless, oscillates between extremely surreal on one hand to
extremely documentary-like real on the other, which lets it down
slightly. It would've perhaps benefited more, had there been some
consistency in its mood. Moreover, it certainly seems a tad long and
repetitive even for its modest 90 min length and could've actually been
much more accessible if cut short by at least 15 minutes.
Remarkable though; an essential film outing.
Score: 8/10
