06/09/2002 Entry:
"The Lady And The Duke - Eric Rohmer (2001)"

I remember seeing the trailer for this and thinking to myself, "ugh, period piece, pass." I really just am not a fan of the genre (with the exception that proves for Barry Lyndon.) However, I was intrigued when the blurb came up, proclaiming that Lady And The Duke brought Rohmer into the digital age and I'm thinking to myself...what are you talking about? Then I noticed the backgrounds, and I was fascinated. I could tell exactly what was being done, and I knew I was going to have to go see this.

It is interesting to contrast the use of digital technology in The Lady And The Duke with something like Attack Of The Clones. In the former, actors are filmed in front of green screens and stripped into gorgeously painted stylized backgrounds, which don't even attempt to look "real" yet feel more real than anything I can imagine Rohmer conjuring up in the studio or on location. In the latter, actors are filmed in front of green screens and stripped into computer-generated backgrounds which attempt to look as "real" as possible, and only end up looking more fake than any studio setting possibly could have.

It helps that most of the scenes using the stripped in paintings are largely people moving around and not really engaging in much talking or discussion. Most of the film takes place indoors on standard sets, with the painted backdrops sometimes stripped into windows. As I said in my entry on Attack Of The Clones, I feel that the lack of a set can only hurt the actors in trying to capture a character or mood. Of course, it also helps in Rohmer's film that all of the fellow actors actually exist, and they don't have to pretend to shake hands with a digital character who will come later.

The most intriguing thing about the technology Rohmer employs here is its three-dimensionality, or its lack of it, depending on the scene. When a group of people walk down a street in front of a painted landscape, your eye catches the fact that the backrgound is flat. The painter (painters?) does an admirable job with perspective, but you still know in the back of your mind that this is not a three dimensional world. It creates a weird kind of conflict in your head as you watch these scenes, its pretty surreal. This is even more apparent when Rohmer introduces some interaction with the scenery - a horse turning into a doorway and disappearing, people hanging out of windows. It was really fun and interesting to watch and wrestle with these scenes mentally. Also, it seemed to me like many of the sets were simply painted rather than constructed. For instance, the moulding on walls and doors was just a flat painting rather than real mouldings. This created a sort of flattened background for these scenes where the characters are actually in a real room, and provided a stylistic link with the outdoor pieces. Credit too should go to cinematographer Diane Baratier for lighting these scenes so flatly yet so beautifully.

Unfortunately, at its heart, this was still a period piece that I didn't find horribly interesting. The cast did a fine job, but I still found myelf looking at my watch in the second half. This just isn't my thing, and I admit a bias. But the beauty of the sets and backdrops, and the integration of technology in this film was wonderful, and I can only hope its something we can look forward to used seeing again.