Varda por Agnès

Inspiration. Creation. Sharing. I also really, really want to visit (or live?) in one of those Film Shacks, where it's an art installation/structure where everything is lined with reels of film.

The final film by Agnes Varda is her second self-portrait (or is it even third or fifth or we have all lost count I suppose), but then she herself would have (mildly but still forcefully in her way) disputed this simply by the fact that she was so much more interested and captivated by other people and places than herself. She might have even been in the middle of shooting a self portrait like the masterpiece The Beaches of Agnes (that may be my favorite film of hers, up to this poont), and then she'll discover someone in her journey that she wants to make a documentary on instead, like the man with the little toy trains.

The "Beaches" may be a little stronger and more unique than this, which is more or less like a presentation ala Beastie Boys Story or DePalma where we are getting the Full Career Retrospective Extravaganza, but it isn't all Varda sitting down with a sideshow as she is talking to us in other places and the total strength and wonder of this is just how she accomplished so much while (mostly) keeping her ambitions somewhat modest and always about the personal and inter-personal.

She wasn't off making like grand epic films in a desert or out at sea, but there are certainly times when watching how she created some of these films and works of art that she was forging uncharted terrain of expression, whether it was depicting "happiness" ala Le Bonheur, a resentment at life like in Vagabond, or discovering the wonders of potatoes in the Gleaners and I films.

The structure of her life and work is what is so striking to me, how she begins with Uncle Yanco, her short documentary on her uncle she discovered when visiting the west coast in the late 1960s, ends with her and the artist JR on a beach being metaphorically but also it would seen literally away, and in between the flow from one subject to the next, each film to the next, is natural and emotionally congruent.

I even found myself becoming emotional near the end at the (as she would say again) inspitation of that move with the crane and then the helicopter going up to see the flower in the tree and how high it goes. Or, through so much of her travels and encounters, how despite all of her success how humbled and curious she was, and how much pleasure it gave her to share it with audiences, of other people and our relationship to mediums, to screens, and of course to cats and Beaches.

There won't be another like her, and I'm not sure there even should be. But her life and work is an example for others aspiring and long in it of perseverance and adaptability, of how those factors of Inspiration, Creativity and Sharing are such strong components for an artist when yielded properly, of finding some peace even in grief (the part about her being a widow, which I kind of took for granted, and how she transformed even that into art with other widows is astounding), and the joy of getting Robert De Niro to fall off a boat (ok it was his double but still).

During her last year at age ninety, the prolific and renowned Belgian/French director, Agnès Varda, reflects and philosophizes in her final documentary. The main structure has Varda lecturing young film students in a master class while flashbacks reflect her film career, her history of feminism, and memories of her beloved late husband Jacques Demy, another renowned French director.

It is miraculous that this fine film was completed. To be so energetic at age 90 when it would be a matter of months before her passing, Varda proved to be extraordinary in so many ways. Despite her health, she remained articulate, intelligent, and mobile to the end - despite her admission that she felt pain everywhere.

This film includes moments from her past films plus past video/art installations at museums and outdoor spaces. They all reveal a vast sense of creativity, insight, talent, and ambition with a solid heart at the centre. The film also represents film history as it includes many film clips of Varda's past contemporaries most of whom have predeceased her. There are also enjoyable histories of the hippy movement of the 1960s followed by the feminist movement of the 1970s.

Near the end, there are many clips from Varda's previous film "Faces Places" (2017). At first, it seems these scenes are unnecessarily long. But those film clips lead to a sublime conclusion that is unforgettable, reminding us that Varda was at least as astute about life as she was about cinema and art. This moment is haunting while being a great finishing touch to a great film, a great career, a great life, and a great person. - dbamateurcritic

It's funny how my favorite movie of Agnes Varda ended up being the one about all her movies. It is such a love letter to cinema that it's impossible not to move any film lover. I like many of her movies, especially the documentaries. She had what I would call a very creative pragmatism about making her movies that made them easy to watch and at the same time challenging and interesting. Here it's no different as she looks back at her movies and at her life giving what feels like a very honest take of it all. And it's just incredible that this ended up being her last movie, an unforgettable epilogue to a very influential life.

A look at the cinematic process of film making from the perspective of one of the worlds greatest female directors. This documentary is a gem, with Varda highlighting some of her best cinematic works, as well as a few failures. The viewer is taken on a journey through her life, from its humble beginnings to working with her husband Jaques Demy. We are shown vast projects involving art, still photos and cinematic sculptures that are sure to dazzle the viewer.

Unfamiliar with Agnes Varda's cinematography, this autobiographical and auto-critical work was a very welcoming entry into this charming artist's filmography. She uses footage from different events she attended and various clips that look back at her remarkable life and career. If she wouldn't have passed away recently, this wouldn't have been the director's final film. Seeing her driven by everything that touches her and inspired by even the most plain objects, makes me believe she had so much more to show us.

She tells us about her fear of turning 80, and her visualising that number as a train heading towards her, not able to stop it. After turning 90 years old, she can't stop laughing at that panic. When her eyesight problems got resolved, she decided to make Academy Award nominated documentary Faces Places with photographer JR. But not all of her films where a success and she mentions earlier box office flop One Hundred and One Nights starring Robert De Niro, for which he filmed his scenes in one day while he recites his phonetically learned French lines. It never really bothered her and she always kept moving forward and doing her own thing.

Looking back at older works of Varda, we also get some former cast members sitting down and discussing their collaborations with the iconic director and how they felt on set. Her in 1985 released film Vagabond, starred the then 17-year-old Sandrine Bonnaire, who remembers how rude Agnes was on location, when she showed the director the blisters on her hand because of her method-acting while playing a homeless traveler. To which Varda admits "I should have licked them!". They have nothing but praise for each other, while sitting cosy under a blanket on a camera dolly.

Watching this history piece on Varda's filmography and earlier career as a photographer, I can't feel anything but respect. When she tries to explain her love for doco-realism - supported by clips of her Cleo from 5 to 7, where we see pedestrians reacting to her imaginary character walking through the streets of Paris - I can't believe I've never seen any of her previous work. It just shows, there's still so much to be discovered and there's talent out there that have a personal eye on the world that could add an extra layer on mixing everyday life with dreams.

Her energy is laid back yet dynamic, while there's a certain calmness to her perception on life. She's not this old lady, she's that old lady that doesn't seem to age - as if she's lived multiple lives before and just knows how to deal with an ever-changing world. Normal situations seem to change into magical fantasy worlds in her hands and I for sure can't wait to check out the rest of her oeuvre.