A romantic comedy from acclaimed French director Jacques Rivette (La Belle Noiseuse), this film centers on three men and three women whose lives converge during the run of a play in Paris. The star of the play, Camille (Jeanne Balibar), is returning to Paris after leaving her stuffy boyfriend Pierre (Jacques Bonaffe) and residing in Italy. Her Italian theater company has brought her to France, where the show is run by her lover, director, and co-star Ugo (Sergio Castellitto). Ugo is concerned
with the show's poor attendance, but also busy searching for a long-lost play by an Italian playwright. While on his quest, he discovers the beautiful young Do (Helene De Fougerolles), a student who offers to help him. Do's mother has a library that may contain the lost play, and Ugo runs into her possessive half-sibling Arthur (Bruno Todeschini), a shady man pursuing an affair with Pierre's wife Sonia (Mariane Basler), who also has a questionable past. After a brooding dinner at Pierre and Sonia's home, tensions mount in everybody's relationships and their romantic journeys are similarly tested. A lighter work from the usually dramatic filmmaker Rivette, the film was made by the director at the amazing age of 73. ~ Jason Clark, Rovi
Jacques Rivette's playful romance takes time to find its feet, yet its leisurely charm and generous compassion towards its characters proves a winning combination.
In its artistic quality, subtle complexity, and thematic concerns Rivette's film recalls Renoir's Rules of the Game and particularly Ingmar Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night, which also deals with a theatrical troupe and the notion of life versus art
If true love is a state in which each sees the other as he or she would most want to be seen (and maybe it isn't), then Va savoir (Who Knows) is the definition of true love.
For my money, this is a pretentious, overlong (150 minutes), boring film about people for whom living seems to be a chore, and human connection impossible.
There are a number of fantastic scenes in Va Savoir, but the realities of its characters and their portrayals -- some no doubt a function of a different culture, others undercooked in any language -- undermine its effectiveness.
Rivette and his players know that exploring the unanswerable is where the fun and riches lie. Anyone who treasures precisely tuned direction and meaningful dialogue will agree.
Rivette's take on the Hollywood screwball comedy, and specifically Howard Hawks. He expertly incorporates the genre and director into his own milieu. Love how he makes Castellitto his Cary Grant and Bonnaffe his Jimmy Stewart.
August 14, 2009
GringoTex Johnson
Another enjoyable Rivette film, though it lacks the sense of mystery and energy of his best films. This is more of a straighforward romantic comedy with typical Rivettian touches like the (6!)/(4!2!) character combinatorics and the interplay between life and theatre.
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