5X2
January 25, 2006
- Dan Ramer,
DVDFile.com
I very much enjoyed writer/director Francois Ozon’s
Swimming Pool. That 2003 film had an intriguing premise
and an ending that left the viewer embroiled in uncertainty. His
next film, produced the following year, was also co-written with
collaborator Emmanuele Bernheim, but didn’t quite succeed in
drawing the viewer into the drama.
The title represents
“5” vignettes portraying the progression of the
relationship between “2” people: Marion (Valeria Bruni-
Tedeschi) and Gilles (Stephane Freiss). Theirs is a failed
liaison. I’m not giving anything away; they sign their divorce
papers in the very first sequence. And they then proceed to the
nearest hotel room for a bit of goodbye sex; apparently the sex was
better than the marraige.
Like in 2000’s
Memento, Ozon has chosen to tell their story backwards, from
that session in the lawyer’s office to a first attraction to one
another when they accidentally meet at a seaside resort in
Sardinia. And through each vignette, we begin to understand more
and more about these two dysfunctional people.
Gilles seems
self-involved to the point of insensitivity. I was left with the
impression that he uses women more than having a relationship with
them. He’s so inconsiderate that he drinks too much at
their wedding reception and simply takes to their hotel wedding bed to
sleep, ignoring his bride standing beside him in sexy lingerie.
She’s no prize either. As he dozes off in a drunken
stupor, she doesn’t slip into bed to sleep alongside her
groom. She wanders off to a nearby forest and allows herself to
be seduced by an American stranger who happens by, apparently
repeatedly. She stays with him for the night, returning to her
husband after dawn.
Perhaps these are the behaviors
that will sow mistrust and eat away at any affection they may have had
for one another. In another vignette, they entertain
Gilles’ gay brother and his most recent lover; the subject of
fidelity provokes pained expressions on Marion and her husband.
There is untold pain lurking just below the surface.
This
is a doomed relationship. Neither of these people have the
skills to work on their marital problems nor the compassion to put
their mate’s needs ahead of their own. Only Marion’s
realization that sex cannot heal the wounds of their marriage, and her
determination to walk away from Gilles for her own good leaves a
lasting positive impression. But that occurs at the end of the
first act of this five-act film.
The film is a frustrating
experience. The couple is unable to make valid connections,
unable to communicate their needs, and unable to resolve the problems
that erode the marriage. And that is where the film fails.
Neither of the protagonists evokes feelings of admiration or empathy;
there is simply no one to identify with. We’re left with
an effective character study about unpleasant, emotionally immature
characters.
Only the artifice of telling the story backward
finally evokes a valid response: poignancy. In the last of the
five vignettes, we see the couple orbit one another, flirt, make those
superficial connections that have the potential to develop into
something more. And as they swim in the Mediterranean toward a
sunset, hopeful that they might have a future together, only the
audience knows of the futility and wasted years that lie ahead.
The Video: How Does The Disc Look?
The film’s theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 is
presented in anamorphic video. The images are only slightly
beyond average. The transfer is slightly soft and marred by
modest edge halos. Small object detail is mediocre and finely
grained textures are not conveyed well. Color accuracy is quite
good based on very natural flesh tones. Shadow detail is also
acceptable. I didn’t notice any macroblocking or mosquito
noise.
The Audio: How Does The Disc
Sound?
The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is mostly
concentrated in the front channels. This is another dialog
driven film. The surrounds may occasionally kick in with a few
ambient or environmental sounds. Deep bass is neither present
nor missed. Sound effects simply serve the images. The
original Music by Philippe Rombi and the numerous source tracks are
okay, but nothing special. The fidelity is all right, but I was
not impressed. The dialog seems to be distortion-free
throughout, but since I am pitifully mono-linguistic I can’t
comment on intelligibility.
A second French track is
presented in Dolby Surround 2.0. Optional subtitles are in
English.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There?
There are six deleted scenes
(17:07). One of them could have changed the title to 6X2.
Among them is an extended first sequence called Prologue that
extends our reach to a little earlier on the day of the divorce decree
signing. It opens with the couple sleeping together, surrounded
by boxes of split possessions. She’s clearly saddened by
the split, and the scene adds credibility to their tryst after the
signing. They can’t stand living with one another, but
they are reluctant to give up the sex. The extended scene ends
with a reluctant acceptance of their fate, a realization of
futility. The second scene is an extended version of the
conversation between the brothers at the dinner party. The third
is an unnecessary extension of Marion wandering into the forest.
The fourth is the morning after her wedding night infidelity.
The fifth is an earlier meeting that adds back-story without
enlightenment. And the last is a bizarre little sequence
entitled Marion Synchronized Swimmer; I won’t even
guess about that one.
Making Of 5 X
2 (16:33) is not about the making of the film;
it’s about the filming of the wedding reception. The
narration-free sequence shows us the director and his cast at
work. We are given a feel for his shooting style, seemingly
experimental, somewhat adlibbed, and not thoroughly planned in
advance. He seems to develop his shots and blocking during
rehearsals, first with stand-ins, then with his players.
Auditions (6:30) appears to be an
extemporaneous session by Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi’s Marion and
Stephane Freiss’ Gilles, meeting to discuss the terms of the end
of their marriage . . . and to flirt with the notion of a bit more
sex.
Lighting Tests (1:08) places
the two principal actors in two sets and, well, lights them. Not
very illuminating.
The trailer gallery
(5:50) offers previews for: Kontroll; Born Into
Brothels; and, Second Best.
The 90-minute
film is organized into twenty chapters.
Exclusive
DVD-ROM Features: What happens when you pop the disc into your PC?
There are no DVD-ROM features on this DVD.
Final Thoughts
Effective in its
portrayal of a disintegrating relationship, all that’s missing
from the film is a sympathetic character to capture our empathy.
There are good performances of two frustratingly dysfunctional people,
a modest transfer, an unexciting audio track, and a collection of
moderately interesting supplements. This film may be of interest
to enthusiasts of modern French cinema, and fans of Ozon in
particular.
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