A Noiva Estava de Preto

Set aside the place of the picture in Truffaut's oeuvre, along with the extent of Hitchcock's influence and the literary antecedents of the story; in other words, take a blindfold test, so to speak, on the movie itself. If created by J. Doe from a story by R. Roe, this film would generate lukewarm praise at best - none for the credibility of the plot or main character. The narrative, presented in a naturalistic, matter-of-fact manner, is in fact completely contrived to serve the purposes of a bizarre story. The leading character, whether to be viewed as suicidal or homicidal (or both), is presented not as psychotic, but as in total emotional control of herself - as self-composed and methodical as she could possibly be.

It just doesn't work. The stories Hitchcock used were developed from simple, seemingly random everyday encounters, the kinds of mishaps or minor aberrations that might touch any of us. Such an approach here might have made the picture more worthy of serious appraisal.

Bride Wore Black, The (1968)

*** (out of 4)

Truffaut's homage to Hitchcock deals with a mysterious woman (Jeanne Moreau) who, after a failed suicide, decides to track down and kill the five men responsible for her husband's death on their wedding day. Needless to say, this film was pretty much remade by Quentin Tarantino in the two KILL BILL films but you can see the films influence go even further with various exploitation movies including Jess Franco's SHE KILLED IN ECSTACY as well as the notorious I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE. I think this film works very well as a homage but doesn't work too good on its own. What I was shocked to find is that there's very little emotion of any kind here. There's really no drama, no one to really care for, no suspense and very little mystery. I'm really not sure what the point of the film was except perhaps for Truffaut to show his appreciation to Hitchcock and try to copy a film like the mystery master would have made. The movie has some very good stuff in it but again, I'm sure it could have been better had a few things been changed. The five murders are pretty much like separate short films and this is something I liked. I like how all five murders appear just like their own movies but this does lead to one of my complaints, which is the running time. It really seemed like the movie was padded with needless scenes and stuff that could have been handled in less time. I found all the murders to be quite fun in their own right and that includes the ending, which really worked even though I've read it was different than what was in the novel. Another major plus is the performance by Moreau who manages to be very believable in the role. I thought she came off perfect as the quiet assassin even though you could look into her eyes and see the pain she's feeling for her dead husband. The supporting players, mainly the five men, are quite good as well, although none of them really stick out as being great. The Bernard Hermann score does a good job at reminding us of his previous work with Hitchcock and there are plenty of nice references to the master's films.

At a party you engage the fiancé, on the balcony you let him have his say, as the breeze catches your scarf, he tries to catch on your behalf, and then you leave, after you've helped him on his way. You invite, a gentleman, to a recital, at the end you make a plan to go where he dwells, enjoy a glass or two of drink, then clean receptacles in sink, as you leave it looks as if he's lost his vitals. Helping out when mum's away, it just seems right, businessmen don't find in kitchens, much delight, though that's not the only place, there's a less visited space, that you make cosier, sealed up, and quite air tight. You like to model for an artist as his muse, you overwhelm him with the picture you infuse, it's like a bolt from Cupid's arrow, has just settled in his marrow, as the lights go out, you may have blown his fuse. Serving lunch can be rewarding in its ways, helping out the less well-off with lengthy stays, and you'll always have a stab, to help your own mental rehab, to end the misery that haunts all of your days.

Jeanne Moreau is always outstanding!

Interesting take on Hitchcock territory, although it lacks the suspense and capacity to involve the viewer as The Master's films always did. The true wonder here is Jeanne Moreau, as cool as a cucumber, going about her revenge business with clockwork accuracy, exuding class and talent equivalent to five of today's stars. Bernard Herrman's passionate score seems slightly out of place against the film's emotional detachment, and most of the time things fall just a little bit too perfectly in place, but overall, this is a satisfying film, of interest to genre fans.

La Mariee Etait En Noir/The Bride Wore Black(1967) is more a study of lost love and revenge than a film of Hitchcockian proportions. Based on the novel by Cornell Woorich, The Bride Wore Black(1967) is a sad story that has an Edgar Allen Poe quality to it. Jeanne Moreau tops her performance from Jules & Jim(1961) with her role as the death obsessed Julie Kohler. Fits in with the two themes of Francois Truffaut in life and death. Films that belong with the theme of life are The 400 Blows(1959), The Wild Child(1969), and Day for Night(1972). The movies that goes with the theme of death are The Bride Wore Black(1967), Jules & Jim(1961) and The Story of Adele H(1975).

The performance of Jeanne Moreau is as heart wretching to watch as the performance given by Isabelle Adjani in The Story of Adele H(1975). The film score by Bernard Herrmann is hauntedly macabre. The scenes depicting Julie planning her revenge are chilling and well planned. The Bride Wore Black(1967) showed the big respect Francois Truffaut had for the techniques of Alfred Hitchcock. Another movie that has its tragic elements is the Terence Fisher film, Frankenstein Created Woman(1966). The only difference between the film and the novel is the omission of the twist ending from the motion picture.