Viver por Viver

I saw the movie when it was theatrically released in 1967.I enjoyed it a lot.But when I saw it again on the telly a few years back,I asked myself:"How could I have come to like that?" I could say the same of all the Lelouch I saw when I was young.Those movies have become dated ,politically correct (with the exception of "la vie l'amour la mort" but it was Lelouch dutifully stepping into the shoes of André Cayatte),sometimes entertaining (le voyou:1970;la bonne année :1974),often so overlooong and pretentious they are almost unbearable (toute une vie:1974;les uns et les autres:1981).

"Vivre pour vivre" is still watchable,at a pinch ,for the actors (the best of the three leads is arguably Annie Girardot).The historical context (the Vietnam war) adds nothing to the psychological plot and dates the movie.

In Paris, the famous forty year-old journalist Robert Colomb (Yves Montand) is married with Catherine (Annie Girardot) but he is an unfaithful husband. After a love affair with the gorgeous actress Mireille (Irène Tunc), Robert meets the twenty-one year-old American model Candice (Candice Bergen), who has come to Paris for taking photos, in a hotel and feels a great attraction for her. Later, he meets her again by chance in a box fight and they begin a torrid affair. Robert is assigned by the television to interview a group of mercenaries in Congo, and he takes Candice to Nairobi with him and his photographer and friend Michel (Michel Parbot) pretending that they are tourists in a tour. Robert promises Candice to tell his wife about their love affair, but he has no courage to disclose the truth to his wife that proposes him to celebrate his birthday in Amsterdam, where they had traveled in their first trip together. Out of the blue, Candice appears in Amsterdam and in the end Robert tells the truth to Catherine about his double-life and the affair with Candice. Catherine leaves him and Robert moves to Candice's place, but six months later they break their relationship. Candice returns to New York and Robert travels to Vietnam to cover the war, where he is imprisoned by the communists. When he returns to Paris, he misses Catherine, but she has a new life with another man.

"Vivre Pour Vivre" is a classy and charming romance about infidelity and loss of a wolf French journalist. Claude Lelouch supports the magnificent story with a screenplay the uses one of the most beautiful music scores of the cinema history as the substitute for dialogs and the result is impressive. As I refereed in the title of my review, the director uses the sounds of silence- when words are not necessary. The lead trio composed by Yves Montand, Annie Girardot and Candice Bergen (for me, the most gorgeous actress from the late 60's and 70's) show awesome chemistry and performances. The sequence in close when Catherine hears the truth from Robert about his infidelity is stunning. The locations, the worldwide situation in the 60's as background with the use of footages and the cinematography are also wonderful. Only today I have finally seen this movie, since in the 60's I did not have the necessary age to watch in the movie theaters and only now this film has been released on DVD in Brazil by Classicline distributor. The conclusion was totally unexpected for me. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Viver Por Viver" ("To Live for Living")

Yves Montand is a reporter who used to travel to in-war places during the 60s. Due to long periods of home absence without his wife he usually had other love stories. In this routine he met (Candice) Candice Bergen whom he fell in love immediately. His wife (Annie Girardot) finally perceived the way he ignored and lied her. All this compelled her to live her own life and finally leaving his husband alone. There is a Spanish proverb: `One never knows what one has until it is lost' and this is the end of the reporter.

Yves Montand is a documentary film maker married to Annie Giradot. He cheats on her. He begins an affair with American model Candice Bergen and takes her along on a shoot in the Uganda and crosses the border to interview the men at a training camp for mercenaries. When they return to Paris, she wants him to tell Mlle Giradot, but he says he needs time to disengage.

Claude Lelouch's follow-up to A MAN AND A WOMAN is about the ability of love to survive when one of the partners is in a job at once exciting and frustrating, and whether it is love at all. Lelouch alternates between his principals engaging with each other -- although Montand gives a performance in which he seems to be acting all the time -- and montages: war footage, African wildlife, the aftermath of a battle in Viet Nam,Montand and Giradot after their breakup, with Lelouch's longtime collaborator Francis Lai doing the score.

Mlle Giradot offers a fine performance, as does Montand. Miss Bergen is not so engaging, although that may be a deliberate choice.

Although this picture was nominee by best foreigner picture, it wasn't enough to convince me as high class production, Yves Montand may not a better choice to the role, a chauvinist man who has many women in his feet, most probable by his money, when he gets Candice Bergen a beauty girl 25 years younger is too much, a sort of French's stuff, smoking all the time spreading a fancy fake appearance, also another French trademark, the best of the picture were the outrageous images from war from Africa and Vietnan, displaying a deepest dehumanization of those endless bloody conflicts just for a senseless power, pointless killing and pain and all those herelings's interviews which some them don't mind over such slaughter just to able to get enough money to allow to their children best study condition in highest quality school at Europe to the future, at all costs, how many lives they needed killed, all remains are Montand's vehicle!!

Resume:

First watch: 2019 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 7