This section is updated as warranted.
Responsible Newsdesk Editor: Trond S. Trondsen.
Please submit news updates to newsdesk@robert-bresson.com

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To link to a specific News Item on robert-bresson.com, link as follows: http://www.mastersofcinema.org/bresson/TheNews.html#yyyy-mm-dd

March 29, 2008

Kinokuniya of Japan published the Bresson Collection, Vol. 1 a few months ago. The DVD box-set contains The Devil, Probably, Lancelot, and Trial of Joan of Arc. Details on the Kinokuniya website. The google-translated page is perfectly readable.

To whet your appetite, a subtitled fragment from Le Diable probablement may be found on youtube.

Interesting read: Tilda Swinton, une actrice animale.

Two recent books that may be of interest to Bressonians far and wide: (a) Richard T. Kelly's first novel, Crusaders. The book pays homage to, inter alia, Diary of a Country Priest (both novel and film), as well as (b) Rune Christiansen's (rather stunning!) The Absence of Music. Both Richard and Rune are robert-bresson.com site visitors.

November 3, 2007

Screenings were well attended, both for Bresson's own films (each screened twice) and for those where his influence may be detected (for details see BFI's website).

Sadly, neither Une femme douce nor Quatre nuits d'un rêveur could be screened, but Affaires publiques was screened and well-received.

Highlights included Tim Cawkwell's lucid introduction to Un condamné à mort s'est échappé, in which he disentangled free will and grace, Jansenism and the importance of Pascal (see also Jonathan Hourigan's earlier interview with Tim Cawkwell as well as Cawkwell's book, The Filmgoer's Guide to God). Jonathan Hourigan introduced L'Argent, drawing on his experience of working on the film and Roger Crittenden introduced Le Diable, probablement, with a delightful narrative concerning an inspiring three-day workshop in Paris with Bresson and Roger's students from the National Film and Television School.

The panel discussion, chaired by Richard Kelly of Faber and Faber and addressing the proposition Robert Bresson, Probably, was lively. The writer and director Neil Hunter and Jonathan Hourigan concentrated on the singular pleasures of Bresson's films, including their spiritual and formal dimensions and his influence on others, whilst academics and writers Dorota Ostrowska and Rachel Moore placed Bresson in broader cultural, theoretical and historical perspectives. A knowledgeable and passionate audience contributed enormously to the evening.

The most thrilling moments, away from Bresson's films themselves, revolved around Mylene Bresson's gracious and deeply illuminating introductions to Le Procès de Jeanne d'Arc and Lancelot du Lac. She peppered fascinating anecdotes with powerful insights into Bresson's process and intentions. Perhaps the most memorable concerned her discussion of Lancelot as Bresson's most enigmatic character.

September 3, 2007

Marco Vanelli, editor of the Italian film-magazine Ciemme, published by Cinit — Cineforum Italiano (one of the national associations of film culture in Italy), sent us a copy of their latest issue, number 152-153, which includes a well-researched article on a biopic on St. Ignace of Loyola which Bresson was commissioned to direct in Italy in 1948 under the supervision of Universalia (a major player in Italy at the time, closely tied to the Vatican). The article is written in Italian, and the price of the issue is 15 Euros. A cover scan is shown on the left (click for a larger version), and here is the Table of Contents. We also note that their Issue 131-132 was devoted to Bresson (cover scan).

Site visitor Rob Farmer informs us that BBC Four broadcast Au Hasard and Mouchette back in July. As Rob put it, "A pleasant surprise to see anything by him at all on TV."

We received the following note from site visitor Michael Partridge of Sheffield, England:

I'm a frequent visitor to your site and have a little advice for those wishing to 
order Les Anges du Peche but don't speak French.

Customers of their country's amazon throughout the english-speaking world will find 
it easier to order via Amazon France (www.amazon.fr). If you're paying by Debit or 
Credit card no conversion of Pounds/Dollars to Euros is necessary. There are even 
english Help Pages available (follow the link called "Consultez nos pages d'aide").

The Euroscreenwriters website has some interesting material on Bresson. And so does the Pacific Film Archives. Thanks to Rob Sica for the latter link.

Filmmaker James Day sent us the following note:

Hello:
 
I think what you're doing with your site is fantastic. I just graduated film school 
and Bresson, who I consider the zenith of cinema, is my favorite director. There's a 
YouTube version of my thesis film and here's the link: http://youtube.com/user/Plautus450.
The film, Santa Susana, runs 14 minutes long and is a story about a young girl, Therese, 
looking to escape from her lifestyle while being pursued by her tutor Gerard. I think more 
than anyone who I've sent the film to, you might be most interested in seeing it given 
the Bresson influences. I hope you find time to view the film. Please pardon the reduced 
visual quality due to the video compression. Hope you're well and please consider kicking 
serious stuff with your site.
 
Sincerely,
 
James Day

And filmmaker Kunal Mehra writes:

[...] I'm an independent filmmaker based in Portland, Oregon and recently completed my feature 
film The Wind Blows Where It Will [ windblowswhereitwill.com ].

Its aesthetics and acting were strongly inspired by Robert Bresson (I always carried a copy of 
"Notes on the cinematographer" in my pocket while on set). I also owe much cinematic debt to 
Chantal Akerman. [...]

[ ... ]

July 23, 2007

July 15, 2007

The British Film Institute is mounting a complete retrospective of Robert Bresson's films, including several by directors influenced by Bresson, in the first half of October. The retrospective is entitled Robert Bresson, Probably. Stay tuned for details.

May 12, 2007

The latest issue of Senses of Cinema features a special Bresson section, containing the following articles:

• Going Beyond Cézanne, by Peter L. Doebler
• Robert Bresson and Flannery O'Connor, by Guy Crucianelli
• A Man Escaped, by Noel Vera
• Sins of Omission, by Dan Harper

Jane Sloan kindly agreed to let us post her Critical Survey on our website. She even added a (long overdue) note on L'Argent for us.

There was a screening of Le Diable probablement in New York City, organized by the French Institute Alliance Française, on March 6. The event also included an introduction and Q&A with Benoit Jacquot and Jean-Michel Frodon. Site visitor Brian VandenBos informs us that "...a 35mm print was shown. The print had a lot of dust and dirt, but it was such a treat to see it on the big screen that I soon forgot about those shortcomings. Bresson's sound design really shines through in a cinema experience; DVDs simply cannot do him justice in that regard.".

We have been having email problems here at robert-bresson.com, but the issue has now been rectified. If you recently tried to submit an item to newsdesk and received a bounced message, please try again.

[ ... ]

January 8, 2007

The January 3 broadcast of L'Avventura (the radio show) with Laure Adler, on France Culture, was dedicated to Les Anges du péché, and Bresson's cinema, with guests Mylène Bresson and Florence Delay. There was also an analysis of the last scene of Pickpocket by Caroline Champetier. The broadcast is available online until the next broadcast, on January 10. (A digital audio recording of the broadcast is preserved in robert-bresson.com archives.)

January 1, 2007

Bresson-collaborator Jonathan Hourigan provided us with the following capsule review of Beth Curran's new book.

Beth Kathryn Curran's TOUCHING GOD, THE NOVELS OF GEORGES BERNANOS IN THE 
FILMS OF ROBERT BRESSON (Peter Lang, ISBN 0-8204-7826-1) unfolds across 
four chapters, book-ended with a brief introduction and conclusion. Chapters
One and Three consider Bernanos's novels, JOURNAL D'UN CURE DE CAMPAGNE and
NOUVELLE HISTOIRE DE MOUCHETTE, whilst Chapters Two and Four consider 
Bresson's adaptations of each of these novels.

Curran's book is enticingly short at just 115 pages but still offers close,
lucid and accessible chronological readings of all four texts. Curran reveals
the two artists' differing spiritual concerns and world views and explores 
Bresson's strategies for adaptation (more faithful in the case of LE CURE 
than MOUCHETTE) with considerable insight. Her painstaking analysis of the
famous multi-layered narration in LE JOURNAL is especially useful to serious
scholars of Bresson's work.

Mouchette is a pivotal film in Bresson's oeuvre. His last in black and white
and his last using non-source music. Also the film which sits at the fulcrum
between those films supposedly concerned with redemption and transcendence 
and those whose vision seems more pessimistic (or "lucid" to use Bresson's 
preferred term). The two novels and their adaptations also offer interesting
contrasts in terms of the self consciousness of their protagonists. Curran 
considers Bresson's visual aesthetic and is especially interested to explore
his innovative and expressive use of sound.

TOUCHING GOD concentrates upon its four texts and does not stray far beyond
their boundaries. Its close reading of the four texts is illuminating. 
Curran's book is certainly a welcome addition to Bresson scholarship, perhaps
especially as Bressons approach to adaptation has generally focused more on
the films drawn directly or indirectly from Dostoevsky than from other 
sources. Perhaps Curran will also have pointed the way for another scholar 
to undertake a similar project in relation to Dostoevsky and Bresson.

A Prosperous and Blessed New Year to all our readers!

[ ... ]

November 7, 2006

October 24, 2006

October 22, 2006

August 24, 2006

We have had the chance to watch Intermedio's DVD release of El Diablo Probablemente. A newly restored transfer forms the basis of this release, and the image quality is simply stunning. French, with Spanish subtitles. Aditional details here. Some screenshots: [ 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | menu | menu ].

June 18, 2006

As noted in the Documentaries section of our sister site Nostalghia.com (here), Road to Bresson/De Weg naar Bresson has earlier been published on DVD by the Dutch Filmmuseum (filmmuseum.nl). Spoken languages are Dutch, French, English, and Russian, but the Filmmuseum DVD contains no English subtitles. Site visitor Jacob Dijkstra of The Netherlands therefore took it upon himself to diligently transcribe the film into English. Also, we provided him with a DVD copy of the widely circulated English subtitled recording of the documentary, as recorded off of British television. This enabled him to also assess the accuracy of this version (subtitles, narration). The final result is contained in this PDF document.

Intermedio's Bresson DVDs include a Bresson Bibliography compiled by Fran Benavente. Intermedio have kindly given us permission to post a PDF version of the bibliography here on robert-bresson.com. It will find its permanent home in the Words section. Also watch for robert-bresson.com's own comprehensive Bresson Bibliography, to be published in the Fall. This work, coordinated by Frank Blaakmeer, will include detailed bibliographies/annotations generously donated by Shmuel Ben-Gad, Jane Sloan, and Hans Helmut Prinzler. The end result promises to be the most comprehensive Bresson bibliography ever published.

A summary of Bresson on DVD is found in the latest Senses of Cinema, here...

A letter from a reader in France:

Bonjour,

Sur le site de l'Institut National de l'Audiovisuel (ina.fr) plusieurs
interviews de Robert Bresson et de ses "modèles" sont disponibles en
visionnage gratuit.

Bien amicalement.
Philippe Leclert

Amazon.fr's listing for Diary of a Country Priest from Studio Canal now contains more and different information (though it still contains the same cover, complete with the same embarrassing faux pas). In the past it had said it was unavailable. It now says it is available in one to two days (in France, no doubt), and gives a review of the film. We are not saying it is definitively available, but it gives the appearance of being available now. Also a box set of Mouchette, and Au hasard Balthazar is available from Gaumont/TriStar Home Video — but the covers are the same as the Arte versions. (Thanks to Wade Rupp for these observations).

April 11, 2006

March 11, 2006

[ ... ]

February 12, 2006

Hoberman's piece on Pickpocket and Mouchette is found here.

January 13, 2006

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art have scheduled four screenings of Mouchette. There will be two screenings on Friday, January 20 at 7:30 and 9:30 and two more on Saturday January 21st at the same times. The schedule is also available via the LACMA website.

The announced Gaumont DVD release of Un condamné à mort s'est échappé has officially transitioned from a (repeatedly) Delayed status, to a current status of "Cancelled". The title has been pulled from most e-tailer websites. We hope to bring you more information as soon as it is available.

In our March 10, 2004 news update, site visitor Ian Booker requested more information on Rachel Berendt (Marie-Monique Arkell) who was featured in The Diary of a Country Priest and who is likely a relation of his. We have received a helpful letter from another person who is also related to Rachel Berendt, and we would like to put this person in touch with Mr. Booker directly. However, Mr. Booker's email address no longer appears to be working. Do any of our readers have Mr. Booker's contact information? Please contact newsdesk.

November 22, 2005

DVDBeaver's Pickpocket comparison DVD review is found here.

November 4, 2005

Boston-area screenings of Bresson and Dreyer continue this month at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge as a part of their Jacques Doillon series: A Man Escaped on Saturday, November 12 at 2:30 pm and Wednesday, November 16 at 9:30 pm. Dreyer's Day of Wrath screens on Wednesday, November 16 at 4:45 pm. And over at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, there's a startling screening of a rare Dreyer silent, with live jazz accompaniment: Love One Another (1922) on Thursday, November 10 at 8:30 pm [ Thanks to Matthew Packwood for the info ].

On a somewhat different note: Patent absurdity reaches new heights, here ("Process of relaying a story having a unique plot"). Behold where the idiocy of Software patents have led us...

October 29, 2005

Dear News Desk,

I think it might have been useful for the nincompoop who
trashed my essay on Bresson in the New York Press to have
read the actual sentences it contained instead of picking
out buzz words that apparently threw him into such a tizzy
that he forgot to take his medication.  Virtually everything
he accuses me of saying was taken so absurdly out of context
that this little storm in a teacup created the false
impression that I said that Michel "rubbed up against people
to cop an orgasm," when the actual sentence likens the act
of pickpocketing to other forms of subway importunity; the
reference to "finding hundreds of lovers in prison" was
clearly a reference to Genet's famous interview on the BBC
regarding his tenure in the Mettray Reformatory; I did not
equate Michel with Camus' Merseault but rather said that any
such comparison lacked real validity.  I did, in fact, state
that for Michel the act of pickpocketing had a psychosexual
dimension and that in the real world we live in today, the
Dostoevskian redemptive ending was unlikely to unfold in the
manner suggested by such mannerist auteurs as Paul
Schraeder; in Dostoevski's time, being sent to prison did
not exclude you from the community of fellow humans.
Peasants stood at rail stations to deliver bundles of food
to convicts being shipped to Siberia.  I'd like to know who
in today's world has the simple humanity to do anything
remotely similar.  Having spent a good deal of time visiting
contemporary prisons in both America and France, I can
assure you that attitudes towards the incarcerated, and the
brutalization they experience there, do not produce
rehabilitated criminals of any type.  Furthermore, I am not
unacquainted with persons who knew Bresson quite well, and
have it on excellent authority that he was thoroughly
familiar with the writings of Guy Debord and took them quite
seriously.  The journalist who attacked me chose to
misrepresent what I wrote as glib, nihilistic, and
disrespectful of Bresson's artistic intentions.  Nothing
could be further from the truth.  I have studied all
Bresson's films for many years and if my own opinion
indicates a waning of faith on his part, I am hardly alone
in that assessment.  Unfortunately, most American
journalists not only cannot read French but take no interest
in any body of criticism that hasn't been generated by the
outpouring of received ideas American critics attach to any
non-American artists.

I am no longer surprised that when a writer is attacked by a
hack with a grudge, the press simply piles on the abuse and
never bothers to read closely any text under attack, but I
would expect better of an organization which I assume is
dedicated to fairly appraising things written about Bresson
instead of jumping on a rather nasty and ill-intentioned
bandwagon.  Furthermore, the New York Press article was
apparently personally directed at myself for being what the
writer considers "the wrong kind of homosexual." That is to
say, the kind that mentions, even very much en passant, the
erotic dimension of Michel's apprenticeship to a master
thief and to the act of theft itself.

It is hardly my fault that this journalist does not know how
to read English.  That he doesn't know how to read French is
a given, considering the kind of people hired by
publications of this type.  But please, before taking it on
trust that some hack's juvenile misreading of a carefully
considered piece of writing deserves repeating ad nauseam,
take the trouble to read the text being parsed so mindlessly
and consider also that simply because I do not share the
pieties of someone who knows nothing about Bresson except to
associate him with the word "Christian," this hardly means
that I have grossly misrepresented his work, and I would
certainly not be motivated by the shabby and dismissive
disregard this so-called writer has attributed to me.

I realize this is rather a dead issue at this point but I do
find it infuriating that so many people who write for
worthless giveaway fishwrap take sick pleasure in twisting
the carefully considered writing of their betters.  And I
am, as far as I'm concerned, certainly not an inhabitant of
the crapulous world of submental journalists.

Very truly yours,

Gary Indiana

In subsequent correspondence, Mr. Indiana adds,...

[...]

I do, and did at the time, understand that certain
statements in my essay would elicit very contrary views.
And it is indisputably true that my polemical style can be
abrasive to people who fail to see its intentionally
humorous aspects.  However, it never occurred to me that
anyone willing to pay the rather steep cost of a Criterion 
DVD would lack the sophistication to distinguish an
unorthodox analysis from a facile screed.  Even given that  
this all arose before the DVD was even issued, because for
reasons still unclear to me the essay was provided to Film
Forum and blown up as a lobby card, it seems no less
surprising that patrons of Film Forum would exhibit such a
woeful lack of sophistication and tolerance for divergent
opinions.

[...]

Finally, let us add our own two cents' worth. That humour is indeed often a subjective experience, and that there will always be diverging opinions, can be illustrated by contrasting the following two quotes:

Peter Cowie: "Not that I'm against Dreyer, he possessed a humorous streak that unfortunately never entered Bresson's personality." [Commentary track, the Criterion Edition of Diary of a Country Priest]

Gary Indiana: "Critics frequently link Bresson with Carl Dreyer, which is a bit like pairing August Strindberg with Henrik Ibsen. Like Ibsen, Dreyer has a seamless lack of humor and a solemnity that gives his films the gravity of a cancer operation. In Bresson, however, the absurdity that delicately fringes Strindberg's dark dramas echoes in whole passages of deliberately idiotic dialogue, in actions that speak volumes about nothing but feel uncomfortably textured like real life. Dreyer boils life down to its pivotal moments; Bresson shows that most of our lives are consumed by meaningless routines. This can be startlingly funny, just when you thought a Bresson movie couldn't become more grim." [Essay in DVD booklet, the Criterion Edition of Pickpocket, quoted with the kind permission of the author]

Our own – shockingly noncategorical and decidedly non-vogue – opinion is that both Dreyer and Bresson possessed a rather profound sense of humour. Two examples that immediately come to mind are Dreyer's The Parson's Widow and Bresson's Four Nights of a Dreamer, e.g., the drawn-out shoot-out scene in the film-within-a-film (Bresson's little joke). Bresson's general use of irony in his ellipses and reversals is also often very refined. Dreyer's brilliant sense of humour is plain obvious and needs no further introduction.

October 25, 2005

Having numerous readers in Australia, we decided to take a closer look at the recent batch of Australian Bresson DVDs (see our April 6 and April 30 news updates, as well as the October 10 followup). The titles released to date are Pickpocket, Joan of Arc and L'Argent (with Au hasard Balthazar and Mouchette to follow next year). All three DVDs are released by the discerning áccent Film Entertainment, and authored by IML Digital (who, incidentally, have worked with us on the Masters of Cinema DVD Series). All discs are Region 0 (no region coding), PAL, and they carry easily readable English subtitles.

Pickpocket: The digital transfer is very satisfying indeed; it is similar to, but perhaps a bit sharper than, that used by Artificial Eye in the U.K., reviewed here. Some example screenshots: [ 1 | 2 | 3 ]. áccent include tastefully designed animated menus which differ from those used by mk2 and AE [ main menu | chapter selection menu | special features menu ]. Babette Mangolte's documentary The Models of Pickpocket is included as the only video extra (aside from an áccent-designed, non-original trailer). The DVD booklet contains a fine essay by Adrian Martin, called The Prince of Pickpocket, wherein he points out an interesting, and hitherto unremarked, Australian connection hidden within the film.

Joan of Arc: Another beautiful film-to-video transfer, a slightly improved version of the mk2-sourced material used by Artificial Eye in the U.K., reviewed here [ example screenshot ]. The menus are again radically different from those found on the mk2/AE releases [ main menu | chapter selection menu | special features menu  ] (all menus are animated and best appreciated in full motion video). The Special Features are identical to those contained on the mk2/AE releases. However, the two interviews with Bresson are here combined into one single piece with a chapter stop at the transition point. The Burning Issues of History extra seen on the menu screenshot is the same as the Georges Duby and Laure Adler segment found on the mk2/AE discs. An original essay by Adrian Martin, Prisoner, found in the DVD booklet, rounds off the package.

L'Argent: The transfer is very similar to that used by Artificial Eye, reviewed here. See also our own review of the film itself and the Region 1 New Yorker disc. The image quality is in our opinion quite excellent, and superior to that offered by the Region 1 disc — here is a random screengrab. The menus are again a radical departure from the standard mk2/AE menus: [ main menu | chapter selection menu | bonus features menu ]. The Special Features consist of an original trailer and a "documentary". This documentary is actually the Marguerite Duras on Bresson (1:27) and TSR Interview with Robert Bresson (12:56) segments (found on the mk2 and AE discs) joined together, with a chapter stop in between. The TF1 Interview is not included. The DVD booklet includes an essay by Adrian Martin, called Show me the Money.

All three discs come highly recommended, as they are all based on the original mk2 materials restored under the supervision of Mylène Bresson — and it is all very professionally presented by áccent Film Entertainment. áccent inform us that they put considerable effort into improving upon the original mk2 materials.

October 11, 2005

Dear Mr. Trondsen:
 
I find your characterization of my remarks on Bresson tantamount to a 
wilful misreading of them. I do not "deny" Bresson's Christianity as 
reflexively as you imply. I was simply pointing out that Bresson began 
his career on a relatively unproblematic note, vis-a-vis spiritual 
concerns, that gradually altered so radically that his final films are 
those of an atheist. It is disheartening to see Bresson's lengthy, 
distinguished and complex career be reduced to a simple common 
denominator of unreflexive religious belief when it was plainly anything 
but. Likewise the almost deafening silence that has fallen over the 
blatant homoeroticism of Pickpocket, Le Diable Probablement, Au Hasard 
Balthazar and (my personal favorite) Un condamne a mort s'est echappe.
 
Very sincerely yours,
 
David Ehrenstein
Los Angeles, Ca.
www.ehrensteinland.com

The Metro Cinema in Edmonton, Canada, is screening Pickpocket November 25 to 28. The full programme is found here [ Thanks to Kyle Armstrong for the heads-up ].

We recently received the following friendly greeting from Finland:

Hello and thank you for your valuable work in keeping the works of Bresson 
on our minds.  And showing that the Internet can indeed provide a place for 
topics that are both intellectual and interesting. And a special thank you 
for your good taste in the site design.
 
I was one of the people in Finland forming the Kokkolan Elokuvakerho Outolempi 
(Cine Club Strangelove) in the litte coastal city of Kokkola in the eighties. 
As part of our programme, we ran a week of Bresson films [ 1 | 2 ], and that 
gave us an idea of compiling a book of texts about Bresson into Finnish, because 
none was available at the time. So we found people to translate Paul Schrader's 
and Susan Sontag's essays on the subject plus other more recent writings. Then 
our Board Member, Mr. Pertti Hyttinen, sent a letter to Mr. Bresson  (translated 
into French by our Chairman of the Board, Mrs. Outi Aimo-Koivisto) asking 
permission to translate and add his Notes sur le cinèmatographe (1975) 
into the book (to form its basis, of course).
 
This is what Monsieur Bresson wrote to Mr. Hyttinen:
 
		"Paris Le 14 Juillet 1988
		Monsieur,
		Je vous remercie de l'interet que vous portez
		a mon petit livre Notes sur le cinematographe
		et vous autorise bien volontiers àle publier en finnois.
		Veillez agreer, Monsieur, l'expression de mes
		meilleurs sentiments.
		 
		Robert Bresson"
 
I would be glad to send this book, "Merkintäjä Robert Bressonista" (published 
in 1989 in Kokkola, Finland, by our cine club with the pariticipation the 
Institute Chydenius), to you, to be added to your collection of Bresson literature 
and memorabilia, as a gift from Finland as thanks to your work on Bresson, and the 
immense pleasure it gives Bresson aficionados around the globe. The book is 
illustrated, there is also a rare photo by Finnish film critic Jaakko Tervasmäki 
of Bresson in Cannes in 1962, and also Bresson's letter is copied into the book.
 
For this reason, I would need your address.
 

Yours faithfully,
 
Hannu Björkbacka
Film Critic 
Keskipohjanmaa newspaper 
www.keskipohjanmaa.net (kulttuuri - elokuvat) [elokuvat = films]
Kokkola
Finland

October 10, 2005

While not always a fan of Armond White, we most certainly do agree with him in this case. Trying to make Bresson into something he likely wasn't doesn't seem to us to be "reinterpretation," but rather an attempt to change the actual meaning of his work. We respect personal readings so long as they are identified as personal readings. If Mr. Ehrenstein wants to construct a personalized reading of Bresson's work, he's more than welcome to do so, as long as he acknowledges his subjectivity. To suggest that Bresson's religious convictions (so often if cautiously acknowledged by Bresson) are somehow passé in this day and age – and therefore should be ignored – is flatly irresponsible scholarship. The fact that Mr. Ehrenstein's rebuttal conflates the "Christianity" of Bresson with the "Christianity" of George W. Bush reveals a profound lack of understanding and a flippant cultural reactionism that only supports White's argument.

Paul Schrader is being interviewed by WNYC — here [ mp3 audio file, 7 MB ].

Cinematheque Ontario presents Pickpocket in its new 35mm print for a limited run, October 14, 15, and 16. More details here.

Les Anges du Peche is screening in NFT2, London, at 8:45 pm, Monday 31st Oct – as billed in the London Film Festival catalogue. Mylène Bresson is expected to be present. Additional details here.

Rialto's Mouchette page is now up, here

Site visitor Dean Schneider writes: "You mentioned on the news page the release of Bresson's films Pickpocket, Trial of Joan of Arc and L'Argent on DVD in Australia but you have thus far not made any more mention of them. I have so far only bought Pickpocket, and it is a very good disc. The picture and sound on the film are of first rate quality, and the documentary Les Modeles de Bresson is very good."

September 10, 2005

The Criterion Edition of Pickpocket (link) will contain an audio commentary by James Quandt, a video introduction by Paul Schrader, an essay by novelist and culture critic Gary Indiana, as well as new and improved English subtitle translation. All other bonus materials are identical to those of the MK2/AE release.

July 27, 2005

Film Forum, New York, report that they will be showing Pickpocket in a new 35 mm print (through Janus) October 7 – 13. Paul Schrader will be introducing a show on opening night. Also, Mouchette will be screened in a new 35 mm print (through Rialto Pictures) October 14 – 20.

The World Socialist Web Site carries a newly published article on L'Argent, The state of the modern soul by David Walsh [ Many thanks to Eddie Kasica for the update ].

We don't normally read this guy, but apparently he has quite a following... search for the word "Balthazar" on this page.

July 12, 2005

June 22, 2005

The Savant also has a review of Criterion's Au hasard Balthazar, found here.

And, finally, a review of Artificial Eye's Trial of Joan of Arc DVD is found at DVDTimes, here.

June 15, 2005

May 11, 2005

April 30, 2005

The Institute of Contemporary Arts in London is showing Mouchette on the 2nd and 5th May. More details here.

A review of the Australian Pickpocket release (Accent) may be found here. A review of the U.K. Pickpocket release (Artificial Eye) is located here. Regarding U.K. DVD prices, here is one of the better price comparison sites out there. [ Thanks, Wayne Spencer ]

The Criterion Edition of Au hasard Balthazar is slated for a June 14 release.

April 16, 2005

April 15, 2005

British newspapers have carried a number of capsule reviews of Pickpocket in connection with its theatrical re-release, see Guardian, The Times, The Independent, The Artificial Eye press booklet for the film can be found here (PDF file). [Thanks, Wayne Spencer!]

April 7, 2005

This week's issue of the London listings magazine Time Out carries a review of the cinema re-release Pickpocket by Wally Hammond: "Released in the same year as Godard's BREATHLESS (1959) and filmed on the same sun-dappled Parisian streets, Bresson's mid-career tale of the mysterious operation of grace and redemption on the fate of a young thief is considered by many to be his masterpiece. Newcomers to Bresson's films — and this new print re-release of PICKPOCKET is as fine a place as any to enter his unique cinematic universe — may be surprised to hear that this is perhaps his most optimistic, open, sensuous and sexually charged film, given its dark Dostoyevskian subject matter. Even for those used to Kiarostami's minimalism, this is a further step into essentialism. Bresson's actors — 'models' — are non-professional and strictly coached; but there is no mistaking the orgasmic pleasure that sweeps the face of indolent, penurious student Michel (Martin LaSalle) as he succeeds on his first 'dip' at Longchamps racecourse; nor his despair as his world begins to fall apart. Bresson's goals were deep; to sweep away the dross of expectation and viewing conventions by means of a purified cinema. At times in this thief's journal — the extended train station robbery sequence, for instance — his visual discourse touches the sublime." Source: Time Out London Issue 1807: April 6-13 2005, page 76. [Thanks to Wayne Spencer for this item.]

April 6, 2005

It is high time we mention the Australian DVD releases of Bresson's films. The Australian company doing this is called Accent. Pickpocket has just been released, replete with Babette Mangolte's documentary. Trial of Joan of Arc is slated for a May release. With each of Accent's Bresson DVD releases — there will apparently be 5 or 6, all English subtitled of course — there is a new essay on the film in question, unavailable anywhere else, written by none other than our esteemed colleague Adrian Martin of Rouge. Rumors are that Accent will eventually do a complete Bresson Box Set.

Cover art and other details of Artificial Eye's Pickpocket release can be accessed via MovieMail.

Petr of Nostalghia.cz tells us that he has just reprinted Petr Malek's substantial 1998 analysis of Diary of Country Priest: section 1 | section 2 | section 3 | section 4. All in Czech.

A new course is being offered at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada this fall, namely FS 410 FILMMAKERS Carl Dreyer and Robert Bresson.

April 3, 2005

Some online retailers are now taking pre-orders for New Yorker's L'Argent DVD, due to be released on May 24.

Our friends over at DVDBeaver.com have reviewed the MK2 boxset, here.

April 2, 2005

The long-awaited Criterion Edition of Au hasard Balthazar has been announced as "Coming Soon".

March 25, 2005

The box set containing A Man Escaped/Lancelot du Lac/The Devil, Probably is still planned by Gaumont, but has been postponed until Fall (our DVD Release Calendar has been updated accordingly). [Thanks to David Pouchard for both of the above updates.]

Details of a week-long run of a new 35mm print of Pickpocket at the Renoir in London between 8-14 April 2005 are now available at the Artificial Eye website. Some release dates for the Artificial Eye Bresson DVDs are given here, and it all seems to line up with what we alreay have in our DVD Release Calendar. [Thanks to Wayne Spencer for the info.]

The Devil, Probably  will screen at the Nashville Film Festival on Saturday, April 16th at 1:15 pm, according to their website. The film will be introduced by Harmony Korine. Tickets are on sale now through ticketweb.com. [Thanks to Brandon Bentley for the headsup.]

In connection with the MK2 re-release of Pickpocket/Procés/L'Argent, here is a fine article by Philippe Azoury, La trinité de Bresson.

The "press conference" that was supposed to be included on the L'Argent disc of the MK2 DVD set appears to be missing from the DVD.

March 21, 2005

March 18, 2005

February 24, 2005

February 21, 2005

February 17, 2005

February 12, 2005

Michael Dudok de Wit's Academy Award-winning animated short Father and Daughter will be screened in front of Pickpocket when the latter is re-released by MK2 in Paris cinemas in mid-March.

February 11, 2005

French film editor Damien Maestraggi informs robert-bresson.com that Humbert Balsan, prominent French producer and actor in Lancelot du Lac (Gawain) as well as first assistant director on Le Diable Probablement, died last Monday, February 7. What follows is today's press release from the cinémathèque, first in French and then followed by an English translation.

COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE CINÉMATHÈQUE FRANÇAISE

Claude Berri, Président, Martine Offroy, vice-Présidente, 
Serge Toubiana, Directeur général, l'ensemble du Conseil 
d'Administration et tout le personnel de la Cinémathèque 
française ont appris avec émotion et tristesse le décès
d'Humbert Balsan, producteur et acteur, vice-Président de 
la Cinémathèque française depuis le 20 juin 2000, et Président
de l'Académie Européenne du cinéma.  Ils s'associent à 
la douleur de sa famille, de ses proches et de ses collaborateurs.

Acteur en 1973 dans Lancelot du Lac de Robert Bresson, Humbert 
Balsan a joué dans de nombreux films, dont Loulou de Maurice 
Pialat (1980). En 1976, il est assistant à la mise en scène sur 
Le Diable probablement de Robert Bresson. En 1977, il réalise un 
portrait de Nadia Boulanger.  Il devient producteur en 1978, avec 
Le Soleil en face de Pierre Kast. Depuis lors, il enchaîne de 
nombreux films, totalisant à ce jour une cinquantaine d'œuvres, 
parmi lesquelles Quartet de James Ivory, tous les films de son ami
Youssef Chahine depuis Adieu Bonaparte (1984): Alexandrie, encore
et toujours, L'émigré, Le Destin, L'Autre, Silence... on 
tourne, et Alexandrie...  New York.

PRESS RELEASE OF THE FRENCH CINÉMATHÈQUE

Claude Berri, President, Martine Offroy, vice-president, Serge
Toubiana, General manager, the whole of the Board of Directors 
and all the personnel of the French Cinemathèque learned 
with emotion and sadness the death of Humbert Balsan, producer 
and actor, vice-president of French cineclub since June 20, 2000 
and president of the European Academy of Cinema.  They offer 
their condolances to the grieving family, friends, and collaborators.

Actor in 1973 in Robert Bresson's Lancelot du Lac, Humbert Balsan 
played in many films, one of which was Maurice Pialat's Loulou (1980). 
In 1976, he was assistant director for Robert Bresson in Le Diable 
Probablement.  In 1977 he directed a portrait of Nadia Boulanger.
He becomes producer in 1978, with "Le Soleil en Face" by Pierre 
Kast.  Since then, he produces several films, adding up to about 
fifty works to date among which were James Ivory's Quartet, all the 
movies of his friend Youssef Chahine since Adieu Bonaparte (1984):
Alexandrie, encore et toujours, L'émigré, Le Destin, L'Autre,
Silence...  on tourne, et Alexandrie...  New York...

February 1, 2005

Mani Kaul's first film, Daily Bread (1970), was screened last night at CalArt's REDCAT theatre with the director in attendance. At the event, it was announced that he will be teaching a class on Bresson this semester. The course is called The Work of Robert Bresson: Fragmentation and Meaning. Excerpt from the course description: "Bresson claimed to have forsaken 'representation' in favor of what he described as 'fragmentation.' Representation for him led to a descriptive as opposed to a visionary cinema he strove for through fragmentation. A single image or a single sound thus carried no semantic spillover—it was the juxtaposition of neutral fragments that reveal meaning and emotion through elliptical gaps between them. The class offers an analysis of Bresson's films with reference to his book, Notes on the Cinematographer."

We recently received the following letter from Paris, and thought you might find it of interest.

From   : Franck Poncelet
Date   : January 6, 2005 5:15:00 AM PST
To     : editor@mastersofcinema.org 
Subject: Two French film worth noting

Bonjour, happy new year to you and bravo for your splendid work.

I'm a film buff from Paris, France, and there are two new 
out-of-the-way French releases I would like to report.  First the 
bad news: they have no English subtitles.  Then the good news: two 
little known gems available in very good editions with rich bonuses.

Both films have in common French novelist Jean Giono (1895-1970), 
a writer you could compare to William Faulkner in many ways. He 
wrote Le hussar sur le toit which was turned into a very dull film 
a few years ago.

Crésus (1960) is the only film directed by Giono, from an original
screenplay by himself. It features Fernandel in the main role.

Un roi sans divertissement (1963) (A king without distraction) was
adapted by Giono himself from his 1948 novel and directed by François
Leterrier (the main actor in Robert Bresson's Un condamné à mort s'est 
échappé).

Both films were thought of as out of fashion and out of touch when 
they were released in the full swing of the Nouvelle Vague. But, 
like good wine, they have aged superbly (which is not the case, 
by the way, of every Nouvelle Vague film...).

In Crésus, a poor peasant finds a huge pile of money 
in the mountain and is very embarrassed by its trove.

In Un roi sans divertissement,  set in mid-19th century in a faraway
village, a police officer must deal with a serial killer, only to 
discover afterwards he's been seized by the same urge.

Both films were shot entirely on location, Crésus in black and 
white in the Alpes and Un roi sans divertissement in colour in the 
Cévennes, and in real snow!

Several stunning scenes could be signed Bergman or Tarkovsky: Crésus
invites his friends to a banquet on a long table on a windswept height, 
the police officer kills a goose just to gaze, spellbound, at the blood 
spilled on the snow...

These two neglected films are worth revisiting, especially in such editions.

The bonuses are rich indeed. They include a 60-minute long study on Giono
and interview with him and Fernandel in Crésus and a commentary by
director Leterrier in Un roi... plus a 45-minute return to the village where
the film was shot with the cinematographer and the actors.

I could tell you more if you're interested. CinéGénération is apparently a
small company. I don't know if they have any plan to let an English-speaking
company use their work in the future.  You'll find in French a presentation of 
these two DVDs on www.dvdrama.net

Anyway, these films look great even if you don't  grasp a single word of it!

Best regards,
Franck Poncelet               

January 30, 2005

The Belcourt Theater in Nashville, TN, is screening Au Hasard Balthazar with seven showings. The film is part of "Nashville Premiere's Best of 2004 Festival" — further details here. Many thanks to Tony Youngblood of Mayfield, KY, for the update.

January 26, 2005

• Un condamné à mort s'est échappé. Bonus materials under preparation.
• Au hasard Balthazar. Bonus materials: An introduction to the film by Philippe Azoury. Excerpts from a TV program produced by Roger Stéphane, "Pour le plaisir," aired 11/06/66, 50 minutes.
• Mouchette. Bonus materials: A 10-minute introduction to the film, by Pierre Azoury. A TV program, "Cinéma," dedicated to the filming of Mouchette, aired on 26/01/67, 7 minutes. Robert Bresson interviewed by Belgian TV in 1966, 7.5 minutes.
• A 3xDVD Box containing the titles Un condamné à mort s'est échappé, Lancelot du lac and Le Diable probablement. Bonus materials under preparation.

Dan Talbot's 2004 Gotham Awards Speech can be found here. Some Bresson trivia in there.

December 7, 2004

Site visitor Tim Cawkwell sent us a nice note, informing us about a book he recently published: The Filmgoer's Guide To God (London: Darton Longman & Todd, GBP 10.95, ISBN 0-232-52466-1). Says the author, "I attach a contents list from which you will see that pride of place goes to Bresson, Dreyer, Rossellini and Tarkovsky, with Bresson being primus inter pares in this august group. I make reference to virtually all his films but concentrate rather on the first half of his career." The book is available through the Norwich cathedral shop.

Paul Schrader writes, "I have a letter [Robert Bresson] wrote me in 1980 you are free to copy or quote from, in it he said..."

Dear Schrader,

I do not know how to thank you for all that you have done on my behalf. 
It is unfortunately too true that I am having great difficulty financing 
this film which I will call, if I do it, L'argent. But I think really 
that I will renounce directing such as it is in the current situation. Too 
bad or so much the better! I will write, or return to painting.

I can't at the moment think of coming to the USA, but I would have liked 
to have seen you again.

With all my gratitude fondly to you,

Robert Bresson

November 30, 2004

Closer inspection of Nouveaux's Au hasard Balthazar (see our previous news update) has revealed some very brief, but unsightly, digital pixelisation at 1:18:08 and at 1:23:41.

A review of Nouveaux's Mouchette DVD may be found over at DVDTimes.

November 20, 2004

September 30, 2004

Adrian Martin briefly mentions Bresson in his article on narration in the French New wave for Criterion's Focus e-journal.

The Union Theater at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will be screening several Robert Bresson films from October 20th through the 26th. The films scheduled are, Diary Of A Country Priest; A Man Escaped; the newly restored print of Au Hasard Balthazar; Lancelot Du Lac; The Devil, Probably; L'Argent; as well as Weyergans' Without A Trace (Bresson, ni vu ni connu). The complete programme can be viewed here (scroll down). [Thanks to filmmaker (and frequent site visitor) Dave Andrae for the tip!]

September 27, 2004

September 20, 2004

Check out this brief note on The Models of Pickpocket from the Village Voice.

Curzon Mayfair (London) are screening a Double Bill of Mouchette and Au Hasard Balthazar, at 12:00 on Sunday 26 September.

September 13, 2004

San Paolo Multimedia, Italy, has just released Mouchette on DVD. No English subtitles. More information here. [Thanks to Manuele Lemme for the tip]

Bresson appears to be the most-selected filmmaker of presenters in Toronto International Film Festival's Dialogues: Talking with Pictures (see previous news update). Please take a moment to read these comments by Chantal Akerman.

August 29, 2004

Anthology have provided us with two sets of images from Babette Mangolte's The Models of Pickpocket: The first one shows Martin LaSalle, the protagonist Michel (believe it or not). The second shows Pierre Leymarie, who plays his friend, Jacques. Photo Copyright © 2003 Babette Mangolte (All rights Reserved).

Included in the 2004 Toronto International Film Festival's Dialogues: Talking with Pictures series ("Dialogues showcases seven films that have influenced the lives of the presenters, and include extensive question-and-answer sessions following each screening"), we find "Chantal Akerman (DEMAIN ON DÉMÉNAGE) presents Robert Bresson's DIARY OF A COUNTRY PRIEST (JOURNAL D'UN CURÉ DE CAMPAGNE) (1950). Bresson's adaptation of the Georges Bernanos novel is a masterpiece, a pure and intense account of a young priest whose faith is neither understood nor accepted by his village."

Mastersofcinema.org's own Nick Wrigley has just received a copy of the British Film Institute's Les Dames DVD and provided us with the following quick comparison between it and the earlier Criterion edition:

They're different transfers, but probably from the same print. When the first 
title comes on screen - "Paul Bernard" - the bfi version repositions itself, 
and "Paul Bernard" moves down the screen slightly. This does not happen on the 
Criterion version. Hence, definitely different transfers.  The bfi version seems 
to have everso slightly better contrast and resolution but the difference is 
marginal. The sound defect "skkkwrrrr.... skkkwwrrrr... skwrrrr" is present on 
both versions. The bfi thank Films Ariane (same as Criterion).  The bfi disc only 
offers the original film poster (a 10 second video piece that goes back to the 
menu of its own accord, and might have been better as a static gallery screen).

For completeness, let us mention that the Japanese edition includes an alternate opening sequence as bonus material (see our DVD section). Our own Doug Cummings wrote a piece for Movie Mail in connection with the BFI release — read it here (scroll down). Finally, the Les Dames audio problems mentioned by Nick have been discussed elsewhere, in this article.

July 26, 2004

July 24, 2004

July 22, 2004

Turner Classic Movies will be screening Bresson's Le Procès de Jeanne d'Arc (1962) on October 15, at 2 am. See the TCM program listings.

Bostonians can look forward to a Bresson retrospective at the Brattle Theatre some time later this year (according to preliminary intelligence gathered by Trond during his visit to Boston last week.)

António Torres informs us of the publication of the first ever Portuguese edition of Bresson's Notes on the Cinematographer:

   Notas sobre o Cinematógrafo
   Porto: Elementos Sudoeste, 2004
   ISBN: 9720450525

July 6, 2004

Bresson's Au hazard Balthazar will be showing in San Antonio later this month. Refer to the Texas Public Radio's Cinema section for the full details. [Thanks to Eugenio Solis for the heads-up!]

MK2 France reports: "MK2 Editions plans indeed on releasing a Bresson collection, but not until next year (the exact date has not yet been defined). Nevertheless, these DVDs will include English subtitles on the films as well as on the bonuses. Thank you for showing interest in MK2 products. Best Regards, Andrew Wilsdorf, MK2 Editions"

June 9, 2004

May 29, 2004

May 27, 2004

May 26, 2004

May 20, 2004

May 18, 2004

May 13, 2004

Watch this news page for our upcoming reviews of the New Yorker R1 DVDs of Lancelot du Lac and Man Escaped. (We have put some initial comments and screenshots up on our parent site, mastersofcinema.org; see May 13 update.)

Au Hasard Balthazar and Diary of a Country Priest will be screened May 26 & 27 at 7:30 p.m. in Los Angeles at the New Beverly Cinema, 7165 Beverly Blvd. Tickets $6.

March 10, 2004

From    : Ian Brooker
To      : robert-bresson.com
Date    : Wednesday, March 10, 2004 4:22 am
Subject : Diary of a Country Priest: Marie-Monique Arkell



Dear Trond Trondsen,

I am writing to you regarding Marie-Monique Arkell, who appeared as
the Countess in Robert Bresson's Journal d'un Curé de Campagne (1950).

I have just acquired the Criterion Collection DVD of the above film
and have listened to Peter Cowie's commentary. He states that nothing
is known about this actress and that she appeared in no other film
before or after.

Marie-Monique Arkell was my second cousin (twice removed). To my
knowledge she appeared only once under this name —  her baptismal
name. She was, however, far better known in Paris and elsewhere under
her nom de theatre — Rachel Berendt. In fact she appeared under the
latter name in at least two other films: Augustin Genina's Paris
Beguin (1931) with Jean Gabin and Fernandel; and Carlos Borcosque's
Una Vez en La Vida (1941).

She enjoyed a very successful stage career in France, England, and in
North and South America up until the outbreak of the Second World War.
A devoted follower of Sarah Bernhardt, she published a memoir of the
great actress Sarah Bernhardt en mi Recuerdo in Buenos Aires in 
1945.

It is likely that she spent the duration of the War in South America.

She came from impressive English theatrical stock: her grandfather was
the English dramatist, T.W.Robertson — the author of Caste and her
great aunt was the actress, Dame Madge Kendal. Her first cousin was
Philip MacDonald — the detective thriller writer and Hollywood
screenwriter.

She was married twice: firstly to the actor, Pierre Fresnay, and then
to the writer and director, Louis Verneuil. She died in Paris in
January 1957.

I am researching her career and would be grateful for any information
from Bresson scholars.



Yours sincerely

Ian Brooker

March 6, 2004

March 4, 2004

The following U.K. DVD releases are currently in the works: Le Procès de Jeanne d'Arc, Pickpocket, and L'Argent from Artificial Eye, and Au Hasard, Balthazar and Mouchette from Nouveaux Films.

March 2, 2004

Italy appears to be one step ahead of the rest of the world: Sanpaolo Audiovisivi has just released two additional Bresson films on DVD: A Man Escaped andThe Devil Probably. No English subtitles. We recall that the same distributor released Le Procès de Jeanne d'Arc, L'Argent and Pickpocket in November of last year. Thanks to Gregory Meshman for the update. Our DVD Section has been updated.

February 29, 2004

February 27, 2004

Now test your own luck: Win a free copy of Criterion's Diary of a Country Priest DVD — here!

February 21, 2004

Filmmaker Babette Mangolte informs us there will be a screening of her new film, The Models of Pickpocket, at the School of the Arts Institute in Chicago on April 8th, 2004.

February 9, 2004

February 8, 2004

From    : Daryl Chin
To      : T. Trondsen/robert-bresson.com
Date    : Sun, 08 Feb 2004 12:05:38 -0500
Subject : Bertolucci info on Bresson casting

[...]

At the Pinewood dialogue session sponsored by the American
Museum of the Moving Image (following a special screening of
THE DREAMERS), Bernardo Bertolucci explained why he cast
Eva Green and Louis Garrel as the leads of his movie (this
is their first "major" appearances in a film).  As the name
suggests, Louis Garrel is the third generation of Garrels
(after his grandfather, the actor Maurice, and his father,
the director Philippe); Bertolucci explained that, in 1968,
with LA CONCENTRATION and LE REVELAT EUR, Philippe Garrel
(at the age of 18) would be the "enfant terrible" of
European cinema (a status that Bertolucci enjoyed after THE
GRIM REAPER and BEFORE THE REVOLUTION, which he made before
he was 23).  Bertolucci admitted that he was always jealous
of Philippe Garrel's youth, and, now, in his movie about
1968, he was able to cast the son.

But it is Eva Green who is relevant to this discussion.

AU HASARD BALTHAZAR and Godard's MASCULIN FEMININ have more
affinities than many of us realize.  In Sight & Sound in
1966, Richard Roud wrote an article in which he discussed
both movies, which were both produced under a deal with
Svensk Filmindustri.  (Other films done as French-Swedish
co-productions during that time were Agnes Varda's LES
CREATURES and Alain Resnais's LA GUERRE EST FINIE.) In
MASCULIN FEMININ, "the children of Marx and Coca-Cola" were
played by Jean-Pierre Leaud, Chantal Goya, Catherine-Isabelle
Dupont, Michel Debord, and Marlene Jobert (her
screen debut).  Marlene Jobert, of course, would go on to a
notable screen acting career; she would also marry a
Swedish dentist, with whom she would have twin daughters,
Joy and Eva Green.  The dentist she married was named
Walter Green.  Yes, he played Jacques, the rich young man
whom Marie jilts in favor of Gerard, in AU HASARD BALTHAZAR.
(His only acting credit.) All these years, I had never been
able to identify the Swedish cast members in AU HASARD
BALTHAZAR (part of the deal was that the films had to have
Swedish participation, thus in MASCULIN FEMININ there is the
film-within-a-film with Eva Britt Strandberg and Birger
Malmsten, in LES CREATURES there was Eva Dahlbeck, in LA
GUERRE EST FINIE there is Ingrid Thulin).  All the
information on BALTHAZAR did not mention the cast, and did
not give detailed information (you had to know that Pierre
Klossowsky was a notable writer, because no press
information provided by the original publicity materials
had this information).  When AU HASARD BALTHAZAR was
released in France, the film critic Claude Mauriac released
the information that Anne Wiazemsky was his niece (and,
therefore, the granddaughter of Francois Mauriac).  But who
was Swedish in the cast of AU HASARD BALTHAZAR has always
been a mystery.

Until now.  Not only did Bertolucci identify Walter Green as
the Swedish cast member of AU HASARD BALTHAZAR, he explained
that Walter Green had been cast in BALTHAZAR because
Bresson had needed a Swedish cast member, and he had already
cast a Swedish person in a major role in a previous film.
Yes, Marika Green, the heroine Jeanne in PICKPOCKET, had
been a student in Paris, but she was Swedish, so when
Bresson needed another Swedish cast member, he contacted the
Green family, and Marika's younger brother Walter came so
that Bresson could fulfill his contractual obligation to
Svensk Filmindustri.

This makes the second marriage that resulted from the
proximity of AU HASARD BALTHAZAR and MASCULIN FEMININ (the
first being, of course, the marriage of Jean-Luc Godard and
Anne Wiazemsky).  And the result of Marlene Jobert's
marriage to Walter Green was twin daughters, Joy and Eva,
and Eva Green is now the star of Bertolucci's THE DREAMERS,
playing one of the generation of 1968, "the children of Marx
and Coca-Cola".

                       .......
    
I spoke to Annette Michelson, giving her this information
about the connection between Marika Green and Walter Green,
and she informed me that, when she had the occasion to    
observe Bresson at work (in the summer of 1971, while he was
filming FOUR NIGHTS OF A DREAMER), the girl cast was
Isabelle Weingarten, whose parents published a notable      
literary journal in Paris (similar to the Epsteins and The 
New York Review of Books) and Isabelle herself had been a  
published poet by the time she was 19 (and she has continued
with a literary career).
 
Then there is the casting of Guinevere in LANCELOT DU LAC:
when Bresson first tried to set up the project in the 
mid-1950s, he had hoped to cast a young artist, Niki De
Saint Phalle.  When he eventually made the movie twenty
years later, he simply cast Niki De Saint Phalle's daughter 
Laura as Guinevere.

Footnote: The Pinewood Dialogue with Bernardo Bertolucci took place on Monday, February 2, 2004. Link to Eva Green press-still added by robert-bresson.com.

January 18, 2004

January 8, 2004

December 19, 2003

Rialto Pictures have informed us of the following screening schedule for Au hasard Balthazar.

Jan 31 NEW YORK, NY MoMA Film at the Gramercy Theatre
http://www.moma.org/visit_moma/momafilm/jan_29_04.html
--
Feb 13-19 SILVER SPRING, MD AFI Silver
http://silver.afi.com/afi_web/home.asp
--
Feb 20-23 DETROIT, MI Detroit Film Theatre
http://www.dia.org/information/info1.html
--
Mar 19-25 SEATTLE, WA Varsity
http://www.landmarktheatres.com/Market/Seattle/Seattle_Frameset.htm
--
Apr 9-15 CAMBRIDGE, MA Kendall Square
http://www.landmarktheatres.com/Market/Boston/Boston_Frameset.htm

November 26, 2003

The print used for the DVD comes direct from Studio Canal in France and, per Criterion's usual methods, will include newly-translated English subtitles.

Supplements will include, amazingly, 11-minutes of deleted scenes from the National Center of Cinematography in France. It's commonly known that Bresson shortened his initial cut due to time constraints, mostly subplots involving the priest's interactions with his parishioners, so this footage has never been widely seen.

The disc will feature a commentary by noted film scholar Peter Cowie, who focuses on the relationship between the film and Georges Bernanos' source novel.

The liner notes were written by Frédéric Bonnaud and translated by Kent Jones and Gavin Smith. (It's likely this piece was first published in the May/June, 1999 issue of Film Comment devoted to Bresson.)

Ms. Elmore also commented on the release's cover art (pictured above; click to enlarge), saying it was an image in their heads from the beginning and that they were trying to stay away from any "star-like" images of Claude Laydu in keeping with Bresson's approach to nonprofessional actors. The cover art is a more symbolic design featured in black-and-white sepia tone.

Although Criterion is hesitant to confirm plans for any specific Bresson releases in the future, Kate Elmore affirmed that "We're all about Bresson, here."

The Criterion Collection Diary of a Country Priest will be released in early February, 2004.  -DC

November 24, 2003

November 13, 2003

Sanpaolo Audiovisivi has just released three of Robert Bresson's films on DVD, through Fox Italy: Le Procès de Jeanne d'Arc, L'Argent and Pickpocket. Subtitles are French and Italian. Thanks to Paolo Pardo and Gregory Meshman for the update.

November 9, 2003

November 7, 2003

November 6, 2003

November 3, 2003

October 24, 2003

October 21, 2003

October 15, 2003

The following interesting information from James Quandt recently appeared in an otherwise somewhat misguided discussion thread on the Criterion Collection Forum:

From James Quandt, Cinematheque Ontario:

As the organizer of the Bresson retrospective that travelled in North 
America in the late nineties, I had to find the elements, negotiate 
the rights, and get prints made of many of his  films. It was very 
difficult to find adequate elements for LES ANGES DU  PÉCHÉ, but the 
final 35mm print looked reasonably good. The rights for the  film 
actually reside with a major French book company, with whom I worked 
on the  project. As for FOUR NIGHTS OF A DREAMER, this has 
been unavailable for  many years because of rights problems, but we 
managed to get all the necessary  permissions to get a new print made 
(from the original elements) and newly  subtitled. A nice coincidence 
was that the cinematographer happened to be  working on another 
film in the same lab, happened to notice FOUR NIGHTS on its 
worksheets, and asked to oversee the striking and colour timing of 
the print, which perhaps explained why it looked so great. (There are 
minor, irreparable flaws in the elements.) Those who saw FOUR 
NIGHTS in the retrospective may be the last in North America to ever 
have a chance to see it  on screen.

[...]

September 24, 2003

September 19, 2003

September 14, 2003

From    : Daryl Chin
To      : robert-bresson.com
Date    : Sun Sep 14, 2003  11:22:55 Canada/Mountain
Subject : Re: theatrical run of AU HASARD BALTHAZAR

In 1969, a new company called Cinema Ventures, run by two young men who had
just graduated from Yale, Thomas Russell III and Martin Rubin, announced
their first two acquisitions: the North American rights to AU HASARD,
BALTHAZAR and MOUCHETTE. However, the actual finances involved in a
theatrical run for the films in New York City proved to be daunting. They
were unable to release the films, and the rights were soon bought out by Dan
Talbot of New Yorker Films (this happened around 1972). He immediately
listed the films in his catalogues, and the films had numerous screenings at
the various repertory houses in New York City, including Talbot's own New
Yorker Theater, the Carnegie Hall and Bleecker Street Cinemas, the Cinema
Village, the Elgin, and the Thalia. But none of these screenings was for
more than a day, and so officially, AU HASARD BALTHAZAR and MOUCHETTE never
had theatrical releases in New York City. AU HASARD BALTHAZAR's theatrical
run at Film Forum will be the first official theatrical run for that film
EVER in New York City. (Cinema Ventures soon folded; they had also intended
to have a magazine, which was called ON FILM, and they did come out with one
very impressive issue. Among the contributors were Robin Wood, Peter
Bogdanovich - his extensive interview with Otto Preminger - and Stuart
Byron.)

[Incidentally,] I was the person who helped curate the first Bresson 
retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in February of 1970; I helped Thomas 
and Marty when they were trying to release the films, and I remember the two 
press screenings which we set up, and the press book we prepared. But they were 
never able to book the films in a theater where they would not have to incur 
all the expenses. And they didn't have the money to make 16-mm prints of the 
films, which would have helped in the noncommercial/educational markets, 
i.e., film societies, university film showings, etc. Ever since that time, 
I have kept track of all screenings of Bresson's movies in New York City, 
and there was never a full theatrical release for either AU HASARD BALTHAZAR 
or MOUCHETTE, though the films were much written about, especially by Andrew 
Sarris, Molly Haskell, and J. Hoberman.  [...] THE DEVIL, PROBABLY is the 
other Bresson film which never had an actual theatrical release in the 
United States.

[...]

One piece of information which nobody seems to be interested in is the
connection between Bresson's most prolific period (1965-1971, when he made
four films in a row) and THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG. In 1965, after its
worldwide release, and the success of the soundtrack album worldwide, the
company which had produced UMBRELLAS, Parc Films, i.e., Mag Bodard,
contacted Bresson with the proposal to make a film. Bresson immediately
proposed LANCELOT DU LAC, but that would prove to be too expensive, though
it's important because the methodology of the script for LANCELOT (by that
point, he had condensed the script into very discrete fragmented scenes)
would prove to be the method of BALTHAZAR. (It's very different from the
scripts for DIARY OF A COUNTRY PRIEST and A MAN ESCAPED and THE TRIAL OF
JOAN OF ARC, which have longer sequences.) It took him about a year to come
up with the script for BALTHAZAR, which was inspired by an anecdote found in
sostoevsky's THE IDIOT. (In talking about BALTHAZAR the other day with the
critic George Robinson, he [George] came up with the wonderful joke that 
Bresson had proposed a movie with a lot of armor and horses, and budgetary
considerations meant that he wound up making a movie with a motorbike and a
jackass.)

I've tried to find someone interested in publishing a short article I've
written about the circumstances of the filming of BALTHAZAR, but no one is
interested. Instead, too much is written "mystifying" Bresson. Quite
frankly: he made movies, and these were not "non-commercial" movies, but
movies made under the commercial filmmaking system of France. The fact is:
AU HASARD BALTHAZAR turned out quite well, and was brought in strictly on
budget, and because it was so modestly budgeted, the release of the film in
Europe was e