David Parkinson sings the praises of the forgotten man of the nouvelle vague, Jacques Demy, and his “musical without music” debut Lola, a loose prequel to The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.
Jacques Demy is the forgotten man of the nouvelle vague. Yet his films are every bit as cinematic as Claude Chabrol's, as personal as Francois Truffaut's and as subversive as Jean-Luc Godard's. His feature debut, Lola (1961), is a musical without songs. But it's also a homage to Demy's hometown of Nantes and the movies that moulded him.
Although Demy claimed that his chief inspiration was Max Ophul's Le Plaisir (1952), this is a picture stuffed with allusions. As well as the ironic inclusion of the Gary Cooper vehicle, Return to Paradise (1953), there are also references to Marlene Dietrich in The Blue Angel (1930), Gene Kelly in On the Town (1949), Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954) and Jean-Paul Belmondo in A bout de souffle (1960), along with any number of Hollywood happy endings. But a shot of poetic realism also permeates this waterfront saga, which recalls such bittersweet nostalgic gems as Marcel Pagnol's Marius trilogy (1931-36) and Jean Vigo's L'Atalante (1934).
Essentially, this is a rondelay of broken dreams, with Anouk Aimee working in a cheap cabaret in order to raise her seven year-old son by the absconded Jacques Harden, while his mother, Margo Lion, paints distractedly in Catherine Lutz's bar while trying to convince herself that he remains a dutiful son, even though she hasn't heard a word from him since he left. Prodigal Marc Michel similarly drifts through a life still tainted by an unrequited adolescent crush on Aimee, which comes full circle when he encounters widow Elina Labourdette and her 14 year-old daughter Annie Duperoux in a bookshop. Even Alan Scott, the shoreleave sailor that Harden nearly runs over in his car has regrets, as he leaves Aimee's bed to return to his fiancee Stateside.
Raoul Coutard's camera captures the subtly shifting scene in a fluent monochrome CinemaScope that is complemented by Michel Legrand's playful score. But it's Demy's lightness of touch, even in the lowlife subplot, that makes this as enchanting as its semi-sequel, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964).
A bittersweet love story beautifully shot in black and white, Lola was Jacques Demy’s debut feature in which he paid tribute to Max Ophuls. Described by Demy as a ‘musical without music’, it stars the stunning Anouk Aimée in the title role.
Set in the port city of Nantes, Lola tells the story of a young lady who is secretly awaiting the return of her one and only true love Michel who left on the eve of her pregnancy, and promised to return when he became rich. The story follows Lola as she struggles to make ends meet as a cabaret singer and her chance encounters with two men vying for her love.
Aimée gives a magnificent performance as Lola, garnering a BAFTA nomination for Best Foreign Actress, alongside Marc Michel and Alan Scott as her other love interests.
A famous flower of the French New Wave, Jacques Demy's 'musical without music' (apart from Michel Legrand's score), Lola, was the director's debut feature and a loving... more >
A famous flower of the French New Wave, Jacques Demy's 'musical without music' (apart from Michel Legrand's score), Lola, was the director's debut feature and a loving tribute to Max Ophuls. The incandescent Anouk Aimée shines in the title role. < less
