This time, I will talk about a film by Max Ophüls, known as ‘La Ronde’.
The story of ‘La Ronde’ was adapted from a play written by Arthur Schnitzler, who also wrote ‘Dream Story’, the novel that inspired Kubrick's ‘Eyes Wide Shut’. Schnitzler's visionary look at the sexual relationships and psychological aspects of the human condition was inspiring even for today's readers, as he seemed to see through the universal and anthropological traits that have governed human's behaviors all the way - our desires, our imaginations, and our needs for love and recognition from others. Freud, a contemporary of Schnitzler, was very impressed by the writer's ideas and was also amazed by how close their outlooks resembled each other, going as far to call Schnitzler his ‘double’.
The story were formalized in a sense, because it involved ten love stories, where they were interconnected and consecutive. To put it plainly: let’s say the ladies were represented by [A, C, E, G…]; and the gents were represented by [B, D, F, H…]. So A flirted with B, then when the relationship ended; B hanged around with C; then C with D; and D with E… and all the way back to A, rather ironically. Very stylized from a 19th century writer, isn't it? It can be considered as a round dance of love. What is more interesting, not only the sexual relations appeared random, they also transcended all form of class relations, which was really a core value back in the 19th century. Hence, the blue-blooded and aristocrats got a bang on with the low lives. If there existed a reason why the firewall of ideology could be crashed, then it would be that the clockwork of lust (I cannot find a word more appropriate than ‘clockwork’) here were driven by the desire and impulse to feel love and pleasure. The encounters in ‘La Ronde’ may sound amoral, if you really take it seriously within the framework of monogamy or ‘respect’ for someone you love. Yet, I do not feel Schnitzler and Ophüls were passing any moral judgments here. They were just merely reporting the truths of human nature.
While the play itself is a fascinating story on its own right, Ophüls’ creative approach
In his treatment of the story was also
noteworthy. Not only it stood as a testament for his unique style, the theme
was also addressed nicely through Ophüls’ style. For the design, the story was
told by an operator of a carousel, and it was evident that the analogy of a
carousel fitted well with the structure of the story because of their circular
forms. It also signified the filmmaker’s fluid and mobile camera style, and
reinforced the interaction between style and content. All the love stories were
locked in as if they were separate components of the carousel, yet it was
important to appreciate that they are all connected at the same time. It can be
ironic to realize that, while the stories belonged to the ten or so characters,
it was the operator which was orchestrating all the stories, and telling the
stories with a full control, as if he was a conductor of a symphony. The complexity
of the plot also stemmed from the fact that the stories itself were not all
objective, they resembled layers and layers of memories and opinions, which might
be subjective or even considered as rumors. Deleuze, who has admired Ophüls and
cited the filmmaker’s work as examples in his philosophy of cinema, has put it nicely
that the structure of ‘La Ronde’ resembled a crystal of memories – which was a
form of time-image for his categorization. He pointed out that the reason why it
was categorized as time-image was due to the fact that the stories were not
merely objective recollections, meaning that the audience had to actively
engage with these memories and discovered any (subjective) meanings for
themselves. This active participation often distinguishes the ‘time-image’,
often served as an ideal of film art, from the films with a more conventional
narrative. All in all, Ophüls’ version of ‘La Ronde’ illustrated a formal
beauty that signified the filmmaker’s achievement as a cinematic artist.
by Ed Law
27/1/2018
Film Analysis
