La Captive

This loose adaptation of Proust makes for a quiet, intense, low key look at the dysfunctional relationship between a very rich young man and the young woman he `keeps' at his house. Is she trapped or is he? Who's really the captive?

Not much happens in terms of events, the film is mostly in the details. Ah, but those details are fascinating and great. The two leads give amazingly subtle performances, and the photography and lighting - while never showy - are magnificent. One of the most interesting and effective `cold' looks I've seen in a film. Beautiful compositions.

A film for those interested in complexity of character, a director using image and mood to tell a story, and patience to allow the slow accumulation of details to add up over time to something very special.

Any film by Chantal Akerman is guaranteed to be, if not brilliant in its entirety, then filled with intermittent flashes of wit and humor. "The Captive" does have a few of these moments--most notably when Ariane, perched on a hotel room balcony, sings a spontaneous duet with an opera diva on a different balcony. Ariane's tuneful but decidedly non-operatic voice gains in strength as she trades lines with the diva, who may or may not be or have been her lover. [As a side note, if anyone knows who was doing the opera part, I'd love to know. I didn't see a credit for it.]
Knowing a bit about French inheritance laws, it did not seem improbable to me that a young man of extraordinary means and endless leisure could live in such grandeur, and with such swell suits. It should be noted that Simon lives not with his parents--no mention is made of them--but with his grandmother, whose apartment it is. Similarly, Ariane makes reference to an aunt, but not to her parents.
Is it correct to label Simon's uncomprehending interest in Ariane as an example of the "male gaze"? He sees her as an object, but one he would like to decipher as well as possess. It did not seem that his limitations were solely male. He displayed no signs of humor (making for some unfortunate moments inviting parody), and seemed, between his plump-cheeked hairless face and mole velvet suit, not quite formed or even sexually differentiated. (And what of the male driver, Ayme, whose is entirely objectified, whose gaze is never heeded or acknowledged, and whose name sounds like "loved"?)
The accompanying interviews with Akerman and Testud are the most interesting parts of this DVD. Akerman credits the influence of "Vertigo," which is everywhere evident in "The Captive". She claims not to know why she chose the male lead. I would argue that he bears a striking resemblance to Truffaut's "stand-in," Jean-Pierre Leaud; his presence summons up another strong directorial influence.
I don't know if it is true, as Akerman states, that Proust was the first to relate homosexuality and Jewishness as identities needing to be submerged. I suspect others got to this equation first.
It was intriguing to hear Akerman recount Testud's passion for the part of Ariane, since the actress's range is not tapped in the role. "Tomorrow We Move," the Akerman/Testud film that followed on the heels of "Captive," is not derivative (at least, not intrusively so) and delivers Testud re-enacting the spirit of the youthful Chantal as depicted in Akerman's first, short, film.

Now, where does one buy embroidered bright blue bed linens like the ones upon which Ariane sleeps, framed like a Madonna in her little alcove?

This is a film by an excellent director and two perfectly cast stars in an imperfect relationship. The discussions by the actress and filmmaker are excellent and show the depth of feeling that went into the film. The big question, Who is the Captive? is left unresolved but suggestive to a number of interpretations.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 5 reviews  3.4 out of 5 stars