Hiroshima mon amour
I think it’s been some 3-4 years since Gorp said that I should watch this film, and I always refused because I disliked the Hiroshima theme. That is still the case – I don’t think this fear of atom bombs, which has inspired a few masterpieces in art like “The Physicists”, is of interest nowadays anymore. But a love story, especially the “Before Sunrise”-style kind in which the main characters seem to just talk to each other, will never seem old.
Despite having gotten a recommendation, I actually had no idea that this film would be this kind of talking love story. Back then, I disliked those cheap, romantic “Caucasian goes to Africa or Asia and starts some love story with native” love stories and I also disliked Resnais because of “Providence”. In essence, misconceptions and prejudices kept me up from watching this film. Of course, parts of these prejudices are true. The beginning of the film gave me a “Nuit et brouillard” déjà-vu, it’s overly political and there really is nothing Japanese about the movie except for some Asian faces, some gimmicky traditional-looking dances and the constant mentioning of the name of Hiroshima.
It is the love story that makes up for all the gimmicks. These two characters work the best when they are in bed together, which is the only place where their love can truly flourish, and they have. They also port themselves with more dignity than your average Nouvelle Vague (I’m thinking Antoine Doinel here, the most Schnitzlerian character of all times), and there is a surprising equality between them. Despite the short period of time they knew each other, there is an immense trust and closeness between them, similarly to “Before Sunrise”. As characters, they are probably better than Julie Delpy and especially Ethan Hawke who is kind of unlikable by default. It is therefore not very hard for Eiji Okada to overtake him, although I thought he was much better in “Suna no Onna”.
Resnais himself changed so much over the years, oh my goodness! Starting with “Nuit et brouilliard” and “Hiroshima mon amour” he evolved to stranger films like “Marienbad” or “Providence” and ended up at more light-hearted comedies with Sabine Azéma. My favorite Resnais will probably always be the film which is a little non-Resnais-like, since “Mélo” is neither a comedy in the Azéma-Jaoui-Bacri style nor strange in any sense nor a tragedy in black and white. It’s the only one of his films which is just a love story.
Whereas “Before Sunrise” is romantic in an almost silly way, this film is much more dark and bleak. This extremely handsome couple is painfully aware that they will forget about each other, just like the whole film is about forgetting. This awareness makes this film special, even amongst similarly disillusioned Nouvelle Vague films. It’s the better and more mature “Before Sunrise”, but it did not age all too well despite its deserved status as a film classic.