Download (12MB) - University of Salford Institutional Repository
Download (12MB) - University of Salford Institutional Repository Download (12MB) - University of Salford Institutional Repository
sosnatori I The Dreamers: 1968 Revisited: Replacing the Political with a Cinematic Education Released in 2003, I sognatori I The Dreamers was meant to stimulate in the younger generations the enthusiasm of the students of 1968 who rebelled against the socio-political situation of the time.(l) Instead the film provoked criticism that centred on the accusation that it was a personalized and distorted account of the student uprising.(2) The following analysis of the film partly recognizes the validity of this criticism, positing that The Dreamers elicits narrative expectations that ultimately remain unfulfilled, in the sense that the narrative strand outlining the socio-historical ferment in France is effectively closed off after twenty minutes before being revived during the film's final scenes. The following discussion of the film's structure indicates how viewers are presented with an intimate narrative strand - referred to henceforth as the 'second narrative' - which, inscribed within the filmic whole, redirects their attention towards a discourse on cinema that Bertolucci enunciates by celebrating masterpieces that have contributed to the history of cinema, and have fuelled the imagination of audiences and their ability to comprehend different realities. Therefore rather than being a distorted account of historical events, the film's initial socio-historical context becomes a frame within which Bertolucci's more personal agenda is articulated. The film's didactic intent - with regard to imparting the importance of cinema - springs from observations Bertolucci made in an interview in 1997 about the world being 'less and less educated, thanks to television', which he considered to be 'a great repository of non-culture', (Nowell-Smith and Halberstadt , 1997: 247) and about the depressing situation where global interest in movies is based on their commercial success, Bertolucci illustrating this by comparing the differing destinies of Rouge (1994) from Kieslowski's Three Colours and Pulp Fiction (1994) by Quentin Tarantino. According to this value system, Bertolucci 162
easoned, 'great movies of the past, entire schools of cinema' nowadays 'would be completely ignored' and he felt that 'something has to be done' (Nowell-Smith and Halberstadt, 1997: 250-251). In concrete terms, the film that Bertolucci eventually directed seems to draw on his personal experiences in Paris, where he studied at the Cinematheque Franqaise in 1959, (Gerard F.S., Kline T.J. and Sklarew B., 2000: XVII) and to evoke Godard's Histoire(s) du Cinema. However, the following analysis of the film will highlight how the development of both narratives and the intellectual validity of their discourses are undermined by the affective charge created by the film's extended and often self-indulgent depictions of the sexual rites-of-passage of the young protagonists. Plot summary The opening credits roll over images of an American student - Matthew - attending the screening of Hollywood and European films at the Cinematheque in Paris, hi voiceover and in the past tense he reflects on the excitement experienced by students in discovering the intimate connection between cinema and life, and the ways in which films clarify intricate existential questions. The scene switches to the crowds gathered at the university to oppose the Government's decision to close the Cinematheque and expel its creator, Henri Langlois. There, Matthew gets to know Isabel and her twin brother Theo, just as a confrontation with the police starts. With the twins' parents leaving Paris for a holiday, and Matthew staying at their apartment with them, the focus of the film shifts from the socio-historical events of 1968 towards the intimate narration of their cohabitation. Secluded in the apartment, the trio distance themselves from the turmoil outside, and spend their days discussing cinema and politics and exploring their sexuality. Yet when the turmoil in Paris finally bursts into their life again, Matthew remains faithful to his non-violent beliefs and departs, while the twins join the barricades to attack at the police, whose uniforms are uncannily modern. This detail makes the images of the police charge - shot frontally and in digital slow motion - lose their 163
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easoned, 'great movies <strong>of</strong> the past, entire schools <strong>of</strong> cinema' nowadays 'would be<br />
completely ignored' and he felt that 'something has to be done' (Nowell-Smith and<br />
Halberstadt, 1997: 250-251). In concrete terms, the film that Bertolucci eventually directed<br />
seems to draw on his personal experiences in Paris, where he studied at the Cinematheque<br />
Franqaise in 1959, (Gerard F.S., Kline T.J. and Sklarew B., 2000: XVII) and to evoke<br />
Godard's Histoire(s) du Cinema. However, the following analysis <strong>of</strong> the film will highlight<br />
how the development <strong>of</strong> both narratives and the intellectual validity <strong>of</strong> their discourses are<br />
undermined by the affective charge created by the film's extended and <strong>of</strong>ten self-indulgent<br />
depictions <strong>of</strong> the sexual rites-<strong>of</strong>-passage <strong>of</strong> the young protagonists.<br />
Plot summary<br />
The opening credits roll over images <strong>of</strong> an American student - Matthew - attending the<br />
screening <strong>of</strong> Hollywood and European films at the Cinematheque in Paris, hi voiceover and<br />
in the past tense he reflects on the excitement experienced by students in discovering the<br />
intimate connection between cinema and life, and the ways in which films clarify intricate<br />
existential questions. The scene switches to the crowds gathered at the university to oppose<br />
the Government's decision to close the Cinematheque and expel its creator, Henri Langlois.<br />
There, Matthew gets to know Isabel and her twin brother Theo, just as a confrontation with<br />
the police starts. With the twins' parents leaving Paris for a holiday, and Matthew staying at<br />
their apartment with them, the focus <strong>of</strong> the film shifts from the socio-historical events <strong>of</strong> 1968<br />
towards the intimate narration <strong>of</strong> their cohabitation. Secluded in the apartment, the trio<br />
distance themselves from the turmoil outside, and spend their days discussing cinema and<br />
politics and exploring their sexuality. Yet when the turmoil in Paris finally bursts into their<br />
life again, Matthew remains faithful to his non-violent beliefs and departs, while the twins<br />
join the barricades to attack at the police, whose uniforms are uncannily modern. This detail<br />
makes the images <strong>of</strong> the police charge - shot frontally and in digital slow motion - lose their<br />
163
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