In this review, I look at the second feature film by French New Wave director Agnès Varda, accompanied by the music of Michel Legrand.
Florence "Cléo" Victoire, played by Corinne Marchand, is a Parisian pop singer, awaiting the results of what she already knows will be a grim medical diagnosis. Tracing in real time her afternoon between the hours of 5 and 7pm, we follow her movements through Paris as she tries to connect with those around her, looking for consolation and attempting to come to terms with her fear of imminent death.
Set in the 60s, this feature was a significant feminist film for its time and one of the starters of the French New Wave, but it also holds a vibrant musical experience.
French composer and jazz pianist Michel Legrand helped define the 60s with his composition 'The Windmills Of Your Mind', which won an Oscar after it was featured in the 1968 crime movie 'The Thomas Crown Affair'. His career in cinema spans over 154 film soundtracks as he worked with some of France's pre-eminent New Wave directors, among them Jean-Luc Godard and Jacques Demy, but in his work with Agnès Varda on 'Cléo from 5 to 7', a different side of Legrand is present.
Originally, Legrand was not considered to be play an acting role in the film. Varda explained in an interview with Les Lettres françaises in 1962 that she cast Legrand after observing him rehearse the songs with Marchand, commenting that he was "very gifted and had a marvelous personality, exactly right for this role." In the role of Bob the pianist, Legrand had a comedic personality, with an infectious energy and passion for music, not to mention an effortless command of the piano.
Using lyrics written by Varda, Legrand managed to compose soundtracks that shaped the entire atmosphere and character progression; interpreting the shifts of emotions that Cléo goes through during the day.
From the early stages of the film, as Cléo descends the staircase, the same three note pattern on different tones repeats, her footsteps follow a metronome-like beat, evoking the sound of a ticking clock, propelling her to move forward onscreen despite her clear distress, because - for Cléo - time is running out.
Whilst in a taxi, she becomes embarrassed when her song is heard on the radio, which indicates a conflict in her relationship with her music. The climax of the film was also musically interpreted, featuring the film score, during Cléo and Bob's rehearsal. Following her abrupt ending of the rehearsal and taking to the streets, Cléo meets Antoine, a soldier on the leave.
As they walk away silently, four disparate, dissonant chords emerge from the soundtrack and lead into the closing credits.
The four soundtracks of 'Cléo from 5 to 7' were released as an EP on January 2nd, 1962. Michel Legrand was working right up until his death at the age of 86 on January 26th 2019. Having announced plans to perform at London's Royal Albert at September 20th, the promoters have said that the concert will still go ahead, but as a tribute to the late French composer.
Florence "Cléo" Victoire, played by Corinne Marchand, is a Parisian pop singer, awaiting the results of what she already knows will be a grim medical diagnosis. Tracing in real time her afternoon between the hours of 5 and 7pm, we follow her movements through Paris as she tries to connect with those around her, looking for consolation and attempting to come to terms with her fear of imminent death.
Set in the 60s, this feature was a significant feminist film for its time and one of the starters of the French New Wave, but it also holds a vibrant musical experience.
French composer and jazz pianist Michel Legrand helped define the 60s with his composition 'The Windmills Of Your Mind', which won an Oscar after it was featured in the 1968 crime movie 'The Thomas Crown Affair'. His career in cinema spans over 154 film soundtracks as he worked with some of France's pre-eminent New Wave directors, among them Jean-Luc Godard and Jacques Demy, but in his work with Agnès Varda on 'Cléo from 5 to 7', a different side of Legrand is present.
Originally, Legrand was not considered to be play an acting role in the film. Varda explained in an interview with Les Lettres françaises in 1962 that she cast Legrand after observing him rehearse the songs with Marchand, commenting that he was "very gifted and had a marvelous personality, exactly right for this role." In the role of Bob the pianist, Legrand had a comedic personality, with an infectious energy and passion for music, not to mention an effortless command of the piano.
Using lyrics written by Varda, Legrand managed to compose soundtracks that shaped the entire atmosphere and character progression; interpreting the shifts of emotions that Cléo goes through during the day.
From the early stages of the film, as Cléo descends the staircase, the same three note pattern on different tones repeats, her footsteps follow a metronome-like beat, evoking the sound of a ticking clock, propelling her to move forward onscreen despite her clear distress, because - for Cléo - time is running out.
Whilst in a taxi, she becomes embarrassed when her song is heard on the radio, which indicates a conflict in her relationship with her music. The climax of the film was also musically interpreted, featuring the film score, during Cléo and Bob's rehearsal. Following her abrupt ending of the rehearsal and taking to the streets, Cléo meets Antoine, a soldier on the leave.
As they walk away silently, four disparate, dissonant chords emerge from the soundtrack and lead into the closing credits.
The four soundtracks of 'Cléo from 5 to 7' were released as an EP on January 2nd, 1962. Michel Legrand was working right up until his death at the age of 86 on January 26th 2019. Having announced plans to perform at London's Royal Albert at September 20th, the promoters have said that the concert will still go ahead, but as a tribute to the late French composer.