Ophélia

It is highly unlikely that this bizarre opus will be on anyone's 'essential Chabrol' list but for this viewer at any rate it remains an inventive and darkly humorous take on Shakespeare's masterpiece.

Chabrol's tried and trusted team are again in evidence. Paul Gégauff supplies plenty of acid wit whilst Jean Rabier's cinematography is autumnal and Pierre Jansen's score suitably sombre.

There are two very effective set pieces, namely the funeral swiftly followed by the widow's wedding which is the visual equivalent of Hamlet's "The funeral baked meats did coldly furnish the marriage table" and most especially the scene where the silent film-within-the film replaces the play by which Hamlet hopes to ''catch the conscience of the King". This also affords Chabrol another opportunity to have a dig at the self-satisfied bourgeoisie he so despised.

There are some especially fine performances of depth and substance from Claude Cerval, Alida Valli and Chabrol discovery Juliette Mayniel. Most negative reviews have been reserved for André Jocelyn as a strange young man who develops a Hamlet complex after seeing Olivier's film in the local cinema. He is obliged of course to feign madness but this is somewhat ineffective as it is obvious from the outset that he is halfway there already! Having appeared in smaller parts for this director he has been given the chance to graduate to a leading role with the result that his career proceeded to sink without trace. His is a deeply disturbed and complex character but cinematic licence should ideally have allowed for a more sympathetic actor with a greater screen presence.

Of the handful of films that have transposed the themes of Hamlet to a contemporary setting, this may not be one of the best but it is most assuredly not one of the worst.

After the death of his father, the weirdo Yvan Lesurf (André Jocelyn) believes his mother Claudia Lesurf (Alida Valli) and his uncle Adrien Lesurf (Claude Cerval) have poisoned him since they got married to each other. Completely disturbed and insane, the cruel Yvan decides to make a film based on Shakespeare's Hamlet to expose the wealthy Claudia and Adrien to their friends in their community. He also calls his sweetheart Lucie (Juliette Mayniel) Ophélia in a tragedy foretold.

"Ophélia" is a minor film by Claude Chabrol inspired by Shakespeare's Hamlet. The plot is weird, with subplots that go nowhere such as the factory strike, and not well developed. There are also strange characters, such as the mentally handicapped security guard and the joyful gravedigger. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Ophélia"

Note: On 27 November 2024, I saw this film again.

"Ophelia " was Claude chabrol 's biggest flop ;in 1963 ,it was screened in two theaters in Paris where it only attracted 5,000 persons ; instant karma: it was not released in the Provinces and, being never screened on TV, remains one of the most obscure works in the director 's huge erratic career .

Featuring both female leads of Georges Franju's masterful "les yeux sans visage" (aka "eyes without a face") ,the excellent Alida Valli and the then up -and -coming Juliette Mayniel , did it deserve such a fiasco? Hindsight displays some of its charms : the usual splendid black and white cinematography by Henri Rabier creating outside a haunting atmosphere , the disturbing music (typically Chabrolesque) by Pierre Jansen and the silent movie , by far the best moment ,the film in the film (to echo the play in the play in "Hamlet " ) called "la souricière " (the mousetrap ): its amateur actors are much fun to watch and one regrets that Chabrol did not treat his whole movie a a comedy .He was able to do it ,as his underrated spoof on the thriller genre " docteur Popaul" bore out :it was his biggest commercial success , even though it was a far cry from his great achievements of the golden period 1967-1973.

Handicapped by André Jocelyn 's hysterical dismal performance (the people who only saw the dubbed version or with subtitles are spared) , who gets one's nerves in the long run; no wonder it was his last movie .Gérard Blain, Jean-Claude Brialy ,where were you?

Of course ,Chabrol's social concerns are present; the king of Elseneur becomes a big boss , the squire of Erneles (sic) ,who has hired a milice to protect him against the workers/anarchists but Ivan Lesurf (re-sic) does not show any rebellion against the bourgeoisie he's part of ,no "rupture" with his privileged world,and the ending remains ambiguous for that matter.

Ophelia, an updated version of Shakespeare's Hamlet, is a far better adaptation of the play than most of the treatments that attempt to present the play in its original form. All aspects cinematography, script, superb casting, and especially the music that punctuates throughout capture the futility of vengeance that underlies Shakesphere's theme. The Chabrol gets his cast to act appropriately melodramatic to fit into this gothic/noir treatment without ever going over the top and becoming unbelievable. The screen adaptation by Chabrol and fellow Nouveau Vague Noir specialists: Martial Matthieu and Paul Gégauff keep the dialogue sparse and filmic as good Vague should be. The lead, André Jocelyn, has that creepy yet sensitive charm of America actor, Anthony Perkins. Andre's character, Ivan, directs the film within the film and in effect is playing Chabrol in his own film (another fine filmic touch). Claude Cerval, the guilt-ridden uncle, gives a masterful performance in character development. The rest of the cast is well worth mentioning but I'm out of time. I do want to salute Pierre Jansen for his affective and sparing musical score. It sets the tone of each changing emotion. Catch the silent film within film accompaniment and the discordant character development when our protagonists first meet.

Ophelia is not one of the best Chabrol films but its still entertaining; It has some of the charisma of the early nouvelle vague films such as breathless and 400 blows but lacks the personality of those as the characters in Ophelia , especially the lead are shallow and sometimes redundant. I just wish Chabrol didn't forget about the whole strike subplot, i think it would've been interesting to see the relationship between Ivan, Adrien and the workers.