Response XII- Contempt

Of all the Godard films I have seen so far, I believe that "Contempt" really makes a name for itself because it is unlike any other Godard. If I would have seen this film without knowing Godard directed it, he would have been the last person I would have guessed directed it. I find this film to deviate from Godard's traditional style.

In my opinion, Godard's films are very strange. Many of them are very dense, difficult to understand and toy around with cinematic elements such as genre. For me, it was a relief to see a film like "Contempt" that was not very strange and was rather easy to follow and understand. I believe the main reason this film was not as Godardian as it could be, was because Godard had a great deal of pressure coming from the producers (Joseph Levine and Carlo Ponti) and since he was using Brigitte Bardot, the biggest name in European cinema at the time. Furthermore, this film was based on a novel written by Alberto Moravia called Il Disprezzo; therefore, I would imagine Godard could not play around with this film as much without butchering Moravia's story.

I really believe that the main reason this film was so clear cut and easy to understand is because "Contempt" is a faithful adaptation of Moravia's novel. I have read some of Alberto Moravia's books and he is a fine author. His novels are usually easy to understand, follow a linear storyline, deal with relationships, and are full of plenty of dialogue and detailed descriptions which make his books similar to plays. I could have guessed that this film was based on Moravia simply because there is one scene in Paul and Camille's flat which lasts for a very long time. Moravia's books are like this; generally his stories do not take place in a variety of settings. For example, in his novel Gli Indifferenti, the whole story takes place in three settings.

The scene that takes place in Paul and Camille's flat is not only the longest scene but also probably the most interesting. In this scene, the bickering between a husband and wife is portrayed beautifully. In this scene I felt like the concept of gender roles was being played with. After that scene I felt as if the woman in the relationship, Camille, possessed the most power in the relationship. She took advantage of his love for her by threatening to leave her husband and by revealing that she no longer loved him anymore.

Although it seems as if Camille seems to have the power in the relationship, my belief that was proven to be wrong with the fact that she constantly seeks her husband's approval before she does things. An example of this is when Paul allows Camille to take the a taxi apart from him with the sleazy film producer. This shows that Paul had some sort of power over Camille.

I feel as if these two character do not trust each other. They seem to constantly reassurance of their love for one another. This is especially true of Paul. He lets Camille run off with the producer all the time as a test to see if she will stay faithful to him. The are both immature and play games with each other. The mind games Camille and Paul play with one another and their immaturity is what makes this film interesting and entertaining.

"Contempt" is in great part about Hollywood and film making. A very sleazy, stereotypical film producer appears in this film. Godard portrays Hollywood in a very stereotypical manner in this film. I believe he meant to to show his audience that Hollywood is very superficial. This is demonstrated in a scene when the sleazy producer was reviewing some scenes. When a beautiful, busty woman appeared on the screen, his eyes widened and he began to display a lustful grin as he exclaimed "That is what we need to use, that is what makes money!"

Next to "Breathless" this is probably my favorite Godard film, not just because it was easy to follow and entertaining, but because it differs greatly from what I have seen of Godard so far.