Mouchette

Robert Bresson's Mouchette (1967) is a heartbreaking story of a teenaged girl named Mouchette. Her mother is dying, her father does not care about her, she has no friends at school and she ends up being mentally and physically abused by others. Bresson somehow manages to find beauty in this tragic story - and creates one of the most subtly poignant films to date.

Bresson's form in Mouchette is similar to Balthazar. There is simply nothing to add to what I said about it in the earlier review. The minimalism works SO well.

Rewatching Mouchette and Balthazar made me sure of one thing: I need to see more of Bresson's films because he might be on his way to become one of my favorite film makers of all time. His minimalism is so refined in these two films that I'm left quite speechless.

Score: 10 out of 10

Balthazar

Robert Bresson's Balthazar (1966) is a film about a donkey and the people around him. The multiple narratives of the different owners are constantly intertwined and the final result is very dense and astonishing. Through these storylines Bresson gives us a strong depiction of what he considers to be the current human condition (a term I had to use even though it is quite pretentious).

Bresson's minimalism is unforgettable for me. The extremely restrained acting, simplistic editing, gorgeous photography and the elliptical narrative provide the viewers with a weird feeling: even though we witness horrible things, we are filled with lingering sadness instead of anger. The film isn't depressing, however, but it is haunting.

Balthazar is a film that I have to watch again once in a while. It is hard to digest and it took me a while to understand it, but in the end it is a really rewarding cinematic experience.

Score: 10 out of 10