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Reviews of 10:30 P.M. Summer

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Ogier de Beauseant

3Mar12

10:30 P.M. Summer (1966)
Jules Dassin has directed and collaborated with Marguerite Duras for this confection which I was ready to swear was from the pen of a writer of women’s fantasy fiction but reading her bio is certainly a humbling experience in that regard but nevertheless what the film presents is something less than what I would think is a mirror on reality. From the first scene, the “travelers” at nightfall, after a days drive, in a pounding rain, are just out of the pages of Vogue in their spiffy gear and coiffures. Well Melina Mercouri as Maria is a little rumpled but that’s always been her shtick, Greek and earthy. Hubby Paul (Peter Finch with a perpetual frown) and Claire(Romy Schneider—never less than radiant) along with Paul and Maria’s young daughter, Judith, too young, gracias a dios to comprehend the drama about to be played out, complete the entourage. . The ensuring nights entertainment goes beyond fantasy into a derangement of the mind of Maria in her mad fantasy of love for a fugitive of an honor murder and is, by chance, energized by the sight of Paul and Claire on a small terrace, in the downpour madly smooching, to a voyeuristic frottage on the wall of her terrace in an explication, one might guess, of the ménage à trois that is the subject at hand. Passing over Maria’s fateful embrace of the murderer, the travelers reach Madrid, with the final scene eerily recalling -West Side Story with Paul and Claire calling out for a Maria gone missing. For those romantic souls who will find it odd and interesting with a fine emotionally charged atmosphere.

Not a significant moment in the film, but with a credited composer for a bespoke score, this sequence has Rodrigo’s Adagio from his Concerto de Aranjuez playing on a phonograph: I suspect the cheapskates didn’t want to pay the royalty.

RoseDarling

8Oct11

I liked this film a lot more than I thought I was going to. It’s a sort of bizarre, meandering tale about Paul and Maria, a middle-aged married couple on a road trip through Spain with their daughter and a young friend in tow. The exact nature of the couple’s relationship with this “young friend” (Claire, played by Romy Schneider) is never divulged. She may or may not be having an affair with Paul, and this may or may not be sanctioned by Maria, who spends nearly all her waking hours in an alcohol-induced haze. Due to a large storm, the party is forced to stop for the night at an overcrowded hotel in a small town. The town is abuzz about a murderer on the lam- a man who killed his cheating wife and her lover. When Maria encounters the fugitive hiding out on the roof of the hotel, that’s when things get really weird.

I went into this expecting a so-so 60’s film, and instead found an overlooked gem. With the exception of the girl who plays the couple’s daughter (who is one of the most obnoxious, terrible, zero-talent child actors I’ve ever seen), the performances here are all top notch- particularly from Melina Mercouri, who plays the alcoholic Maria. Romy Schneider is her usual effervescent self, and it’s easy to understand why Paul might fall for her. The film is gorgeously shot and impossibly modern looking- with the exception of a couple instances of what would now be considered anachronistic hair and clothing styles, it looks as though it were shot yesterday. It’s precisely this kind of timelessness than can elevate a a film from being merely “good” to “great.” 10:30pm Summer is currently streaming on Netflix- watch it before it it’s gone.

Currently 4.0/5 Stars.