THREE COLORS: RED (1994)

A.K.A.: Trois Couleurs: Rouge

Country: France / Poland / Switzerland

Genre(s): Drama

Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski

Cast: Irene Jacob / Jean-Louis Trintignant / Frederique Feder

Plot

After accidentally hitting his dog with her car, a young woman meets a former judge who spies on his neighbor’s phone conversations.  The pair begin an unlikely friendship that changes both of them.

What I Liked

Fraternity.  That’s what the third color, red, stands for in the French flag, and that is the theme behind Krzysztof Kieslowski’s third film in a series loosely based on those colors.  It seems like a simple enough task to create a film showing how all of us are connected, especially through a medium that is in itself an example of that theme.  However, Kieslowski does so in a way that transcends any Oprah Book Club notion of togetherness and brotherhood.  This is a comprehensive portrait of how human beings are together in this world, both to our benefit and to our detriment.  We are shown how some people find togetherness in the most undesired places while others try to force togetherness in situations where it will not and cannot work.  Fraternity, we find, is both elusive and unavoidable.  It is desperately sought out by some and taken for granted by others.  The most mundane actions of our daily lives can have a profound impact on those of people we may never meet.  I’m rambling now, but all of the above is illustrated in the 99 minutes of this film.

“Three Colors: Red” has the depth and pacing of a novel.  In fact, had it been a novel, I suspect it would be considered among the best of the twentieth century, a musing on postmodern life in the technology age.  Each of the main characters is a stand-in for themes greater than themselves.  In fact, I believe one of them, the reclusive old judge spying on his neighbors, can easily be read as a stand-in for the Christian God, among other things.  Full of all of the complexity of human nature, emotion, morality, and even fate, this is not only an excellent movie; it is a terrific piece of literature, as well.  It is clear that the death of Kieslowski in 1996 robbed the world of a significant artist.

What I Didn’t Like

I haven’t seen the second film in the series (“Blue” is the first; “White” the second, “Red” the third), because it wasn’t included in the book I use as my source.  Based on how good the other two are, I’m sure I’ll be watching it sooner, rather than later.  However, “Red” can be said to be guilty of the same point of criticism that which some might find in “Blue.”  That is, watching it can be seen as too intellectual of an enterprise; the pure entertainment value is limited.  To quote my entry on “Blue,” “It is possible to spend too much of the film trying to recognize all that the filmmakers are trying to convey through their art, as opposed to sitting back and enjoying a moving film.”  Some may say the same thing about this film.

“Red” also has the added drawback of not starring Juliette Binoche, who turned in an outstanding performance in “Blue.”  Because the films are only loosely linked to one another, they are primarily about different characters and thus have different actors (Though Binoche makes a brief appearance towards the conclusion).  Irene Jacob has the lead in this film and she is good.  She has a beautiful and expressive face that immediately makes her character sympathetic, if not terribly interesting.  Perhaps her character was meant to be a blank slate, someone in whom the viewer can see his or herself during the journey of discovery that is “Red.”  In which case, Jacob does the job required of her.

Most Memorable Scene

The bizarre relationship between the main characters in this film begins with the woman’s invasion of the man’s home while he is sleeping.  Not much later she is shocked to learn that he too has been invading the homes of others (if only with his ears), and with far less praiseworthy intentions.  Yet she is clearly interested in joining him in his voyeurism, despite her professions of being disgusted with his actions and philosophy.  The scene where she stays in the man’s room as he switches his radio signal from house to house, listening on the affairs of his neighbors, and finds she has more in common with this lonely, strange man and his victims than she wants to admit is the crux of the film and its message.

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5