Title: La Ceremonie
Year: 1995
Director: Claude Chabrol
Country: France
Language: French
I have never heard of Claude Chabrol until I saw that Criterion was releasing La Ceremonie on blu ray/dvd, The cover, which reminds me of Ingmar Bergman's Persona (1966) intrigued me enough to watch the film. Chabrol is known to be a very competent director with a keen interest in dissecting class through the visual medium. His style of suspense is inspired by Hitchcock.
A newly hired maid (Isabelle Huppert) for a rich countryside family befriends a post-office clerk (Sandrine Bonnaire) who encourages her to rebel against her employers.
Chabrol's film is deliberately paced, building suspense through atmospheric cinematography and a haunting musical score. Static shots and muted colours give us an uneasy feeling; dialogue between characters indicate a slow rise in tension that will inevitably be brought to a boil.
The screenplay is fairly unpredictable; you think the film is going one way & it ups the ante. The scathing critique on social class has explosive consequences, especially as the characters' resentments towards one another reach their peak. This commentary is incredibly relevant today.
La Ceremonie might leave many cold due to its slow pace. All the film's pieces have to be set up before something remarkable happens, but the wait is worth it. I certainly recommend Chabrol's work.
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