Le bonheur

Varda's Marvellous Style Takes On A New Sinister Life This 1965 follow up to her 1962 classic Cleo From 5 to 7 is a mesmerising work of incredible beauty yet effective underlining dread. Varda brings Le Bonheur (translation: Happiness) an air of mystery, subtly and hidden layers that truly makes what could have easily been a conventional drama into something else entirely. Le Bonheur follows François, a wealthy carpenter who lives a happy life with his good natured wife Thérèse and their two children but one day he unquestionably falls in love and into an affair with an attractive postal worker Emilie and he finds himself both in love with Thérèse and Emilie A simple plot, a simple film but also so much more. Le Bonheur stands as one of Varda's most acclaimed and famous works even though back when it was released back in 1965, it came under fire from male critics for it's at the time explicit sex scenes, themes and depictions of male infidelity which was unheard of at the time for a woman filmmaker to depict but the film stands the test of time and here we are. Le Bonheur creates a landscape of colors and love, both acting as eye pleasing scenery as well as symbolic walls of our main character François's hidden sadness and undying desire for more. Although a simple concept, the underlining themes and subtexts of the film turn it into a complex and complicated experience that contemplates and asks the audiences emotionally and psychologically how we preserve women, love and happiness. Varda brings to life a truly beautiful film that underneath lies a terrifying and horrific tale of male infidelity at it's most quiet, unsettling and manipulative. Varda's direction and writing as always is solid in this picture, in interviews she did stated that the script was quickly written and it does show at some parts, there are a view things that feels unexpanded on and despite having a runtime of 79 minutes it did feel a bit too rushed and at times abrupt, that being said however Le Bonheur does sport a great pacing and structure which is kinda rare for a Varda film which makes it almost the ideal introductory piece to Varda, this, Cleo From 5 to 7 and Vagabond makes great films to start with Varda. Another part also due to the beautiful direction from Varda and the breathtakingly colourful cinematography by Jean Rabier (of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg fame). Here Varda uses the scenery, colors and costumes to once again express the main character François's walls that hides his inner lost search under the beautiful but disturbingly fake happiness. The editing here too is stunning like the opening sequence that effortlessly and effectively describe the film's eerie and powerful tone to the constant use of Mozart's Clarinet Quintet in A, K 581, all of these decisions creates a mindless, hypnotic and numbing experience that perfectly reflects the main character of this story. Jean-Claude Drouot plays our lead François in Le Bonheur and delivers a quaint and eerie performance that captures François and his foolishness and selfishness so perfectly. There are many ways to interrupt the film and especially how and why François acted the way he did, on the service he seems like a lost man and his sudden and unexpected falls for Emilie seems at first like a product of that confusion but as the film goes on theres a deeper layer of heartless desire that ultimately crumbles and alienates himself and everyone around him but the way Varda portrays this is so elegantly put, so subtle, symbolic and transcending. Claire Drouot (the real time wife of Jean-Claude Drouot) stars next to him as the kind and loving wife Thérèse and also turn in a good performance, with the usage of Claire and Jean-Claude's real life two children in the role of François and Thérèse's two children, their performances together really feels natural and the family unit feel really ease off of them throughout which gives an air of realism that blends and contrasts well to the colorful scenery of everything that surrounds them. Lastly Marie-France Boyer plays the attractive and mysterious Emilie, both her and Jean-Claude Drouot match together well in their scenes together and make the characters' sudden and abrupt relationship feel real with much depth and tension. Although her screen time is quite small compare to Jean-Claude and Claire Drouot, I find her to be the most memorable performance out of the entire film along with Jean-Claude. Le Bonheur is a valiant and brave effort from the always wonderful Varda, it has some flaws and some things that I personally and admittedly don't get but I believe some part of that is due to my age so I believe this is yet another picture I'll definitely revisit! Beautiful direction, solid performances and a simple yet impactful story that encapsulates what Varda wants to say as well as creating a unique and engrossing experience. Among her 1960s work, this is undoubtedly one of the best, thought and emotion provoking!