Out 11971

Almost made me want to start smoking again! It hit me as funny or at least jovial or ironic. The editing was off the charts with long held shots of Paris traffic and people on the street mixed with urchins and funky rooms.I loved the Frederique character and all the characters for that matter. Being a long time student of improvisation I thought those portions fit seamlessly with the goings on which were a little "Out there"to say the least! This 12 hour classic was never boring to me and in fact I hated to see it end!

Yoga and cigarettes. Antoine Doinel is still obsessed with Balzac, but this time, instead of starting a fire, he infiltrates a secret society of chain-smoking thespians. Like my own life, this is full of offbeat histrionics and mystery. And Rivette did the backwards-talking thing 21 years before David Lynch.

where is the film then

totally wonderful & bizarre_where am i who are these people what's going on_i love all of the improv stuff i used to do that in dance_great being there_so some pieces don't really fit or seem like dead ends_ but hey it's a mystery train a crew a cult a group of secret entities_shhh_don't say a word_you didn't see me

I have been reading and hearing about this film since the early 1990's. I was so excited to finally have the opportunity to finally see it. I was very disappointed.

There is magic to be found here. But Jacques Rivette's experimental film presents far too many challenges to actually enjoy them. Structured into episodes, it takes well over five hours before any sort of shape begins to form. And even when it does begin to take a turn toward something, OUT 1 tends to hint at more than it delivers.

I might have had a better chance with the edited version, but I doubt it. Proceed with caution.

Saw this at the Berkeley PFA in 2007, over the course of two days. Remember agreeing with my friend at some point during the intermission that in the theater was the only way to commit to watching something that long. Now that seems pretty naive given how steamrolling through long programs of "content" is a regular weekend past-time for a lot of people, myself included.

Some of the improvisational scenes are arguably a little much in my recollection, but the movie—particularly bits around Leaud—is worthwhile for anyone who has an adventurous (or masochistic) approach to film. Watching it all at once may be borderline hallucinatory. Expect some confusion; Balzac is the stated literary reference but watching Out 1 feels a bit like reading 'The Crying of Lot 49' or 'Gravity's Rainbow.'

I remember the overall arc being something like:

Hours 1-3: Jean-Pierre Leaud pretends to be deaf and scams people. Improvisational acting rehearsals begin.

Hours 4-6: Jean-Pierre Leaud reads a book, says 'équipage' over and over while being followed by kids. Rehearsals continue.

Hours 7-9: Jean-Pierre Leaud meets with Eric Rohmer, who tells him he's an idiot. Rehearsals continue.

Hours 10-12 1/2: Rehearsals end. Michael Lonsdale walks on a beach.

At some point I think someone dies.

Maybe some day I'll watch it again and see how wrong my memory is.