MUBI

Au Hasard Balthazar (1966)
Spoiler.
Robert Bresson wrote and filmed this study in human folly that might have been titled the end we all die as the family and its patient, faithful burro all perish with the exception of the long suffering madre, all a victim of the human folly of pride: as the father refuses to compromise; Marie refuses Arnold’s love as it is inspired by childhood romance and begins a decline into nihilism; Louis because he is a fatalist; and Balthazar because it has no will of it’s own and has only marginally less ability to resist fate. Not a cheery world, but saved for us by the infinitude of humanity in the visage of Anne Wiazemsky and the animal nobility of Balthazar, we, being as romantic as Arnold.

Remember the happy times; forget the rest.

I would give this film 3 1/2 stars. It is a noble effort by Bresson but marred by his insistence on getting “natural” performances by amateurs. From what I have gleaned, it took numerous takes to get “natural” actions and reactions from the actors. Even the donkey does not always come across as purely natural but does seem charming under what must have been stressful conditions for it. What was intended to be authentic ends up wooden and disjointed. This breaks the natural flow of the narrative progression and ultimately makes watching the film somewhat of a task rather than a pleasure. Pasolini was much more successful in his use of amateurs.

Having said this, the film’s strength is its story. The elevation of the everyday, of mundane lives that seem to be trapped by futility, and the heartbreaking tale of a humble creature subjected to the whims of those downtrodden by life. Indeed, the examination of what we would see as the joys and sorrows of such a creature is what makes this film worthy of viewing. To know and view all life as having value is central to this film’s importance. Whether Balthazar is a Christ figure or not, he shares in the mystery of suffering and redemption and is indeed a cinematic Saint.

I’ve been very late in discovering this poetic, philosophical masterpiece. Bresson shows the whole life in 95 minutes, life of all mankind, which is tied with pain and misery. The key point is the parallel life of the Balthazar and Marie. We’re all like Balthazar, we live in pain, but the difference between us and a donkey is that animals don’t complain or try to seek the reasons behind everything. The reasons are beyond them, so they just carry on in their lives while we think we can have control on our lives. The only thing we can do is to realize it’s more or less the same for everyone. Although Au Hassard Balthazar is heavily influenced by catholicism point of view, and I don’t agree with it totally, but this is an absolute masterpiece. Donkeys go to heaven too, by the way. The ending scene is among the most beautiful scenes I’ve ever seen. Balthazar dying among a horde of ships… Back to innocence because of the pain it endured in life and paid for its sins? Maybe. I just know this fantastic experience left me in tears.

Génie de la passion – 10/02/2009

Le cinéma de Robert Bresson n’existe plus. Ces jeux d’acteurs monocordes et décalés sublimés par des images d’un autre temps, posés avec une attention à nulle autre pareille, n’existent plus. On peut voir dans Balthazar un anthropomorphisme du Christ pour évoquer l’avidité des hommes. On peut aussi voir en Balthazar l’oeil muet de la caméra de Bresson qui regarde les passions des hommes se déchainer autour de lui et sur lui. L’âne est à la fois le témoin et le vecteur des passions et tente sans cesse de fuir leur folie, leurs obsessions dans lesquels tous s’enferment jusqu’à se perdre. Mais se contenter de l’histoire serait passer à côté de la magie du film qui repose tout entier sur sa mise en scène et le non-jeu des acteurs. Ses plans ciselés, ses lumières, ses mouvements… Chaque image semble pensée, posée là pour faire sens. On est forcément attrapé par cette puissance et cette intelligence là.

Mouchette was my first Bresson film; I was not used to the way he directed his actors, and found it to be endlessly frustrating upon the first viewing. This film is what sold me on his style.

In this film, I feel that the muted acting (or ‘modeling’) on the part of the human characters — especially Marie — actually made the donkey Balthazar the most sympathetic character. I saw Balthazar’s suffering as completely innocent and Christ-like, while Marie suffered because of her all-too-human desire to feel loved and needed. Bresson’s directing style served to accentuate this dichotomy.

This is a very sad film, but it is also very beautiful.