somewhere in between
It’s certainly good. Personally, I prefer Wages of Fear and Le Corbeau.
I found that it telegraphed the ending. Not a masterpiece but a very good film that I’ve rewatched a few times.
Matt:
Isn’t the whole subjective-objective debate about contemplating the fact that preferring one thing over another doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better? In other words, that people shouldn’t rely on their preference to determine whether or not a work of art is great.
Doinel:
How is telegraphing the ending necessarily a shortcoming if film is chiefly a visual medium before being a narrative medium? Film is about how ideas are conveyed through images, and how images are conveyed through ideas, regardless of the plot of the film itself. The plot/narrative is meant to be secondary, so whether the ending is telegraphed or not is irrelevant if what is most important is what’s expressed with the use of visual language.
I think Diabolique is a masterpiece.
How is telegraphing the ending necessarily a shortcoming if film is chiefly a visual medium before being a narrative medium?
This is a thriller. It does not transcend the genre. In that genre, the suspense is based on not knowing what’s around the corner. If you give away the twist in a thriller, then the movie fails on that level. I think the ending is telegraphed, but I still love it. At least the ending doesn’t come out of nowhere like in Wages of Fear.
In other words, that people shouldn’t rely on their preference to determine whether or not a work of art is great.
Personal preference is the ONLY thing a person should use to determine the greatness of a work of art. I’ve never seen the magical rubric that you sit down with while watching a movie to determine whether or not it’s objectively a great work of art. If I don’t like Citizen Kane (which I don’t) and I can explain myself (which I can), then I shouldn’t have to deal with people shoving supposedly “objective” measures of greatness down my throat. I just don’t get what you’re saying when you say things like this quote.
“Isn’t the whole subjective-objective debate about contemplating the fact that preferring one thing over another doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better? In other words, that people shouldn’t rely on their preference to determine whether or not a work of art is great.”
Ugh. Let’s not pollinate yet another thread with that argument . . . but, either way, you do have to start from your own experience (even if you own experience is not entirely your own).
ThisLife
Do people think Diabolique is a masterpiece, or is it just a solid, effective, 50s French, noirish thriller?