Bourne vs Cercle Rouge

Sometimes you need to be told exactly why a particular book is great or a cricketer valuable. The same of course can be said of films, and in particular Le Cercle Rouge. Funnily enough, the opposite holds true about the other film I saw this week, The Bourne Identity. It seems that you sometimes need to be told why a film is not so good as well!


The Bourne Identity

An immensely entertaining film. The partner and I came away satisfied with promises that we'd be back for a second viewing. What I couldn't figure out however, was whether Ultimatum is a great film and if it really deserved all the critical acclaim it got. Rottentomatoes gave it a 93% freshness rating; which is, if you are a regular 'ttentomato', as close as it can get to a hundred percent. But on the other hand, this rating only reflects the popular verdict.

David Bordwell* offers a more nuanced view in his post Unsteadicam Chronicles. For those who don't know this - The Bourne Identity has been entirely shot by a camera called the Steadicam which doesn't require a tripod or stand. So when Jason Bourne runs, the cameraman - onto whom the camera is strapped to - runs behind him. When he jumps, the cameraman follows suit. What it yields is a wonderfully spontaneous effect because the viewer is right there with Bourne. At this point, let me quote Bordwell,

The handheld camera covers three mistakes: Bad acting, bad set design, and bad directing. It’s worth considering, as some of Ebert’s correspondents do, what Greengrass’s style may serve to camouflage.

Perhaps the non-stop action also hides loose plotting. Some questions worth considering, Why would the CIA set up office in a building so easily viewable from another building across the street? How does Bourne get into Noah Vosen's office? How does he steal the Top Secret file? (Fine he recorded the phone conversation, but how did he get over the thumb scanner problem?) So it turns out that the film is not perfect after all. But it sure razzle-dazzles you. And I would certainly watch it again if I got the time. In the meantime do read all three of David Bordwell's posts on the film, they touch on a number of issues, from the fight scenes to the way the film was shot, edited and scripted.

Le Cercle Rouge (The Red Circle)

This is a 1970 heist or gangster film by Jean Pierre Melville, of French New Wave repute. If The Bourne Ultimatum has in its entirety 3200 shots, making for an average of just 2 seconds per shot, then Le Cercle Rouge is the opposite. Shots are carefully & lovingly composed, they last several seconds, in some cases minutes as well. There's not much dialogue, which forces you to concentrate even more on the screen. The movie's also shot in a predominantly blue tone with large amounts of yellow as well, as you can see from the still here.



More stills can be found at Eternal Sunshine of the Logical Mind post from where I swiped this photo. Everything about this film is different from Bourne, even its 'freshness' in Rotten Tomatoes. Le Cercle Rouge manages the almost impossible 96% freshness rating.

For those whose secret wish is to have an all expenses paid stint at a film school, the Senses of cinema page on Melville's directorial style is very revealing. His characters, to quote from the write-up,

often appear trapped within a particular moral framework or aesthetic design

...which explains a lot. For instance it helps you understand why Corey is stoic, unassuming and honourable. Finally, why name the film Le Cercle Rouge? The Criterion Collection page takes a stab at explaining the symbolism in the film. Mighty interesting stuff. You wouldn't lose much by reading it. And yes, in case you're afraid I missed the whole point, the film was fun to watch! : )


* Was introduced to the fantastic David Bordwell by Jayaprakash.