The plot means nothing to me. It's a general feeling, a moment in life, just moments of existence. Call it scenes from provincial life." |
Cue horns ...
As am I! Welcome to my birth month CINEMA COFFEE write-up, on a birthday film watch outside of GUYS AND DOLLS (1955) ... The 1967 Jacques Demy musical, shot in the Summer of 1966, THE YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHEFORT/LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT.
Of all Jacques Demy's films, LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT is personally my favorite of Demy's filmography. Demy and "Rochefort" was even an inspiration for the graphics I created in an episode of the 5-part "mini-series" I shared on my YouTube Channel about my grand-aunt Bettye Lightsy, BETTYE: THE MINISERIES, creator of the first Black model agency in 1950s Chicago (for the rest of the collection).
Of all Jacques Demy's films, LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT is personally my favorite of Demy's filmography. Demy and "Rochefort" was even an inspiration for the graphics I created in an episode of the 5-part "mini-series" I shared on my YouTube Channel about my grand-aunt Bettye Lightsy, BETTYE: THE MINISERIES, creator of the first Black model agency in 1950s Chicago (for the rest of the collection).
If you've followed my CINEMA COFFEE blog pieces, you know each write-up is on the topic of #ForMyMom, aka "Mom and I Films." However, the film in topic of this write-up, a discovery of my own after losing my mom, connects to her through its director, Jacques Demy, and his 1964 masterpiece LES PARAPLUIES DE CHERBOURG/THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG. Becoming an instant favorite of mine, leading to a rooted love for the films of Demy, I can not watch LES PARAPLUIES DE CHERBOURG without the film memory my mom and I created with it.
June being my birth month, I wanted to shed as bright a light as the colors of Demy on a film that's become another birthday watch for me ... LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT (1967). Where, unlike GUYS AND DOLLS, which I reserve as a date night, party of one, on my actual birth date, with my personal pint of dulce de leche ice cream, I watch LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT from the first of June throughout the entire month as a celebration!
And that it is, a celebration of a film. Something alluded to a number of times by cast members, extras, spectators, and the city itself both during the shooting of the film and years later during the film's 25th reunion in 1992, held in Rochefort on June 5th, the date of Jacques Demy's birth, as being a "party." A reunion that included attendance by many original extras, crew, the townspeople of Rochefort, cast member Catherine Deneuve, who witnessed a site named after her sister Françoise Dorlérac, who passed shortly after filming "Rochefort" in 1967, and Agnès Varda (with her and Demy's son) for the christening of the Jacques Demy Avenue in Rochefort by the bridge where the opening and close of the film took place.
Indeed, a feeling you get from the beginning to the end, the way the film is shot and presented, it is a party, and we are all invited. Every audience, of every age, of any decade.
And that it is, a celebration of a film. Something alluded to a number of times by cast members, extras, spectators, and the city itself both during the shooting of the film and years later during the film's 25th reunion in 1992, held in Rochefort on June 5th, the date of Jacques Demy's birth, as being a "party." A reunion that included attendance by many original extras, crew, the townspeople of Rochefort, cast member Catherine Deneuve, who witnessed a site named after her sister Françoise Dorlérac, who passed shortly after filming "Rochefort" in 1967, and Agnès Varda (with her and Demy's son) for the christening of the Jacques Demy Avenue in Rochefort by the bridge where the opening and close of the film took place.
Indeed, a feeling you get from the beginning to the end, the way the film is shot and presented, it is a party, and we are all invited. Every audience, of every age, of any decade.
LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT is such a comfort to watch and hear. Don't let the word "musical" deviate you from discovering this classic if you think "musicals" aren't your thing (being a musical lover, these are shocking words to hear, but ... nobody's perfect.) There's so much to love about this film, I've used it myself throughout this past year of 2020 in to 2021 as more than a birthday month watch, putting in my DVD at any random moment in time, just for a dose of sparkle and shine.
I can't express the delight and joy felt while watching, and the happiness you take with you long after it's over. It's as if the celebration continues even when the movie has ended ... Like a caramel Frappuccino with caramel drizzle in the cup. Yep. It's sweetness in a cup. There is something for everyone. It's a sweet blend for any film fan, no matter what genre you favor. Not just the music, which I use as an alarm clock ... more on that in a bit, but a cast with:
And American actors/dancers:
who, according to Demy himself, played a major role in helping Demy shoot the film in the three weeks Kelly was there to shoot his scenes. |
The film, which took four months to shoot, largely a love story on the surface, is not a film I think I'd recommend getting too involved in the story's plot. LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT has much more to offer than that. Just let go, and go along for the ride, let the film carry you where you need to go. There are more elements, some you don't see coming and some you do, along the way, as you follow the two "Young Girls," played by real-life sisters Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorlérac, whose characters Delphine, the ballet instructor, and Solange, the music teacher, give ballet and singing lessons at their studio flat, both in search for something more than their current life situation, one personally and one professionally, both receiving more.
Dorlérac and Deneuve both spoke of the risk it was to cast Deneuve as the ballet instructor, as it was Dorlérac who had the training in ballet between the two sisters.
It's a film, according to Deneuve, Jacque created to have both sisters, in the film as twins, together to "recreate a music that resembled our life tempo." (Catherine Deneuve) LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT also played a part in giving Dorlérac and Deneuve the opportunity to recapture their sisterly bond from their youth prior to filming, something the two felt they had lost since leaving home and venturing out into their own separate lives.
Dorlérac and Deneuve both spoke of the risk it was to cast Deneuve as the ballet instructor, as it was Dorlérac who had the training in ballet between the two sisters.
It's a film, according to Deneuve, Jacque created to have both sisters, in the film as twins, together to "recreate a music that resembled our life tempo." (Catherine Deneuve) LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT also played a part in giving Dorlérac and Deneuve the opportunity to recapture their sisterly bond from their youth prior to filming, something the two felt they had lost since leaving home and venturing out into their own separate lives.
If you've never experienced a Demy film, the colors he explores in use, is a mark of its own. Distinctively Jacques Demy. His print. Even in his black-and-white films, you can see color. A Jacques Demy film is an explosion of Alabama Shakes "Sound and Color" and Oh Wonder's "Technicolour Beat." It's an experience.
Underneath the primary story of LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT lies other avenues the film takes, one which involves Delphine and Solange (and their brother in the film "Booboo" played by Patrick Jeantet) Danielle Darrieux, the only cast member to use their own undubbed singing voice, who could've easily been a third "young girl of Rochefort" in my opinion, she looks divine here dazzling on-screen. This makes witnessing her work here a pleasure to watch, knowing this was an experience she enjoyed, particularly working with Demy and Deneuve, and likewise, becoming a memorable experience for those who worked with her on-screen.
You could tell by the way people treated her that she was revered. She was a beloved person. But she never called that to anyone’s attention, she just was there. And it was stunning to be around her. It was just amazing.” |
Even further into the storyline ... lies another. Like a Matryoshka doll, there are so many stories inside of another story. But ... this particular story, that sort of pops out of the doll from nowhere, I won't open for you. Discovering part of a film, if not the film itself in its entirety, for me, is part of the fun. Part of the film memory.
Costumes by costume designer Jacqueline Moreau (who, as of 2021 is still with us at 91 years young!), used the same pattern for the dresses worn by the mother (Darrieux) and daughters (Dorlérac and Deneuve) in the film, changing only the colors and trim of the fabric, and hats by French milliner Jean Barthet, adding in the music, by composer (and Demy's frequent collaborator) Michel Legrand, matches all the elements perfectly with the film, in its story, sets, designs, costumes, and colors. The size and scale blend of music and backdrop are harmonious in sight and sound. The music in the film, a favorite of both Legrand and Demy. Upon the first instrumental sounds you are met with on-screen, you can understand why. Were these songs stand-alone tracks, I'd purchase the physical CD to listen to without it being a motion picture soundtrack. The music flows along and enhances while complimenting the energy of what's happening on the screen so well, I've found myself using a different song from the soundtrack as my alarm notification to wake me up for the day. You can not have a bad start to your day with this soundtrack. Specifically, "Marins Amis Amants Ou Maris," my personal favorite song to hear wakes me up, reserving "Chanson Des Jumelles" for the first of June, TODAY!, and my actual birthday.
Something unique about LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT is how much you feel as if you are a part of the town, the celebration, and the everyday life that's going on in it. Which I'm sure many of us can say about a number of films, but, with "Rochefort," you're constantly included as if you are a customer at the café, sitting at your usual table, or, looking out over the square, from your own studio flat. You can sense how special the filming of this story was. Not without complications, as it was filmed in both English and French simultaneously, causing endless takes for scenes, but the location suits the film, Demy was right in selecting Rochefort over the other locations he and filmmaker (and wife) Agnès Varda, who filmed all the color images that Summer to make a film about the film, scouting. Initially wanting to film in Hyères, causing the title of the film to be THE YOUNG GIRLS OF HYÈRES, Demy sacrificed the wordplay for the architecture Rochefort provided. The right call.
Rochefort, known to be famous for four things: begonias (of all varieties), writer Pierre Loti, LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT, and (by extension) twins, its citizens looked upon the Summer of 1966, according to the Mayor of Rochefort from 1977-2001, Jean-Louis Frot, who passed away at 87 in 2018, as "Year One" in the rebirth of Rochefort. A film highly celebrated amongst its town and those surrounding it.
This really is a watch worth seeing for yourself, if only for the joy it brings out of you and the joy you receive, or if nothing else, I mean ... GENE KELLY ALERT BRIGHT AND EARLY! *raises hand* "Present!" How could you not love that (no, no, that wasn't a question). He beams off the screen and you can't help but become that giddy fan all over again as when you first discovered him as a kid watching SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, or whichever film at whatever age that brought you to him.
Don't miss an opportunity to watch LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT as soon as you can. Be it wherever it's streaming, or, my own personal recommendation, buying it on its Criterion release where available. It will be a wise purchase. Either way, let me know what you think of the film once you've seen it! And don't forget your coffee while you watch! |
À bientôt!
For my other CINEMA COFFEE blog pieces:
#ForMyMom Cinema Coffee ... | COFFEE CINEMA: Talking Streetcar | CINEMA COFFEE: "Et tu, Brute?" | CINEMA COFFEE: "La Chocolaterie" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Milk? I loathe milk!" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Elderberry Wine ..." | CINEMA COFFEE: "The choice I never had ..." | CINEMA COFFEE: "The smell of Mimosa" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Mighty like a Rose" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Don't cry on the rolls" | CINEMA COFFEE: "You're the first Kansas I ever met" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Everybody calls me Gracie" | CINEMA COFFEE: "What the devil are Belinskis?!" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Hello friends and enemies." | CINEMA COFFEE: "Stop remindin' me of heaven." | CINEMA COFFEE: "Even Gatsby could happen" | CINEMA COFFEE: "I made a wish" | CINEMA COFFEE: Audie Murphy | CINEMA COFFEE: Put The Blame on Mame | CINEMA COFFEE: "Just Singleton." | CINEMA COFFEE: "Where I Come From, Nobody Knows" | Film Therapy: Coping through Cinema | CINEMA COFFEE: Socks fall down | CINEMA COFFEE: "The moon's reaching for me" | CINEMA COFFEE: The Horne: Luso World Cinema Blogathon | CINEMA COFFEE: Aunt Bettye Lightsy | CINEMA COFFEE: I never lose | CINEMA COFFEE: "I have a mother!" | CINEMA COFFEE: THE SIGN OF GEMINI | CINEMA COFFEE: Venus Rising | CINEMA COFFEE: Stan vs Geek | CINEMA COFFEE: "Positively the same dame"
#ForMyMom Cinema Coffee ... | COFFEE CINEMA: Talking Streetcar | CINEMA COFFEE: "Et tu, Brute?" | CINEMA COFFEE: "La Chocolaterie" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Milk? I loathe milk!" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Elderberry Wine ..." | CINEMA COFFEE: "The choice I never had ..." | CINEMA COFFEE: "The smell of Mimosa" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Mighty like a Rose" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Don't cry on the rolls" | CINEMA COFFEE: "You're the first Kansas I ever met" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Everybody calls me Gracie" | CINEMA COFFEE: "What the devil are Belinskis?!" | CINEMA COFFEE: "Hello friends and enemies." | CINEMA COFFEE: "Stop remindin' me of heaven." | CINEMA COFFEE: "Even Gatsby could happen" | CINEMA COFFEE: "I made a wish" | CINEMA COFFEE: Audie Murphy | CINEMA COFFEE: Put The Blame on Mame | CINEMA COFFEE: "Just Singleton." | CINEMA COFFEE: "Where I Come From, Nobody Knows" | Film Therapy: Coping through Cinema | CINEMA COFFEE: Socks fall down | CINEMA COFFEE: "The moon's reaching for me" | CINEMA COFFEE: The Horne: Luso World Cinema Blogathon | CINEMA COFFEE: Aunt Bettye Lightsy | CINEMA COFFEE: I never lose | CINEMA COFFEE: "I have a mother!" | CINEMA COFFEE: THE SIGN OF GEMINI | CINEMA COFFEE: Venus Rising | CINEMA COFFEE: Stan vs Geek | CINEMA COFFEE: "Positively the same dame"