La Chambre indiscrète

I first saw this movie when I was eleven years old, and have never been able to get it out of my mind. I'm glad to see that it hasn't been completely forgotten. I've just ordered the DVD, and I'm anxious to see if it is as poignant to me at fifty-four as it was when I was eleven. There are only one or two scenes that I can actually vividly remember, but I'd say that's pretty impressive after forty-three years! I do remember how I felt when I left the movie-house... life is not easy, some decisions are forever, the way can be rife with disappointments, but if you are honest and open with yourself and others, there will be a firm foundation of strength in your relationships that can support you through anything.

One of the best of the so-called "kitchen-sink" films, THE L-SHAPED ROOM is nearly perfect. The set decoration probably deserved an award for the way it evokes, with poetry, the incredibly realistic environment of a down-and-out London rooming house. As many commentators have noted, this film avoids clichés and gives us real-seeming characters played by gifted actors. There is not a single weak link in the cast, with Tom Bell, Avis Bunnage, Brock Peters, Cicely Courtneige among others providing so many memorable moments. At the heart of the film is Leslie Caron in an award-nominated performance that is not likely to be forgotten by anyone who sees it. This is a performance that elicits true feeling, done with a kind of invisible artistry, so it seems completely real. Bryan Forbes, one of Britain's finest directors of the period, paces the film well, relying on Caron and others to fill what may have been longueurs with true meaning. The only criticism is the use of the Brahms First Piano Concerto in the soundtrack. The surging romanticism, while appealing in itself, doesn't fit very well with the mood of the film, apart from a couple of quiet scenes. It's certainly not a big problem, only it seems an odd musical choice. A deeply affecting, unforgettable film.

There's a room on the top floor where you are staying, it's partitioned from another where Johnny's laying, the bed is full of bugs, the landlady just shrugs, all in all the situation is dismaying. But that's the least of all the things that's on your mind, as you've got yourself in somewhat of a bind, after a fling with that man Terry, now you're growing like a berry, this is not the way your life had been designed.

An outstanding performance from Leslie Caron as Jane, a lost and lonely French young woman seeking sanctuary in a rundown rented London room after discovering she's pregnant. More than ably supported by Tom Bell as the love-struck youth with little to show for his troubles and Brock Peters as the friendly face next door, as their lives entwine and disconnect as the birth of the child approaches.

The characters in the oddly appealing drama are so deliciously flawed and the texture is so utterly British art. Leslie Caron is underrated as a dramatic actor--having made a name for herself in musicals--but she shines in this one. Her performance is reminiscent of the character she played in "The Subterraneans." She is perfect as the tortured free-spirit who stumbles. Another standout is Brock Peters. You feel the closeness of his room when he is lying in bed, talking to Jane through the wall. In fact, the whole boarding house feels real, seedy and full of dashed hopes. You ache for the pain and loneliness each person on the

house endures--I felt myself like a resident in this menagerie. The direction is taut, spare and real. I would have liked to have learned more about Toby's background, what drove him to this place. But I suppose a good film is supposed to leave a place for the viewers imagination.

I was a tender 14 years old in 1962, when I accompanied my mentor (my high school Spanish teacher) to an art house movie theater in Greenwich Village to see this film. My only previous encounter with Leslie Caron had been in the wonderfully entertaining film "Gigi". I must say, this two hour spectacle of unrelieved misery came as quite a shock to me. I left the theater thinking I had just seen the most depressing film I had ever seen in my life. And yet...I loved it! In fact, I felt very grown up at having survived it. This would not have been possible without the aid of the movie's soundtrack, Brahm's Piano Concerto No.1, which my astonished ears heard for the first time that evening. I've been in love with that piece--and with Brahms--ever since.