Customer Reviews

The Case of the Grinning Cat

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I think this is a wonderful DVD. The main film is charming, clever, and has more to say than is obvious straight away. The shorts that are with it are worth the price of the DVD all by themseves. I particularly loved the short CAT LISTENING TO MUSIC. And there is a somewhat longer short doc (17 minutes) about whales which will break your heart. All together i think this is really one of Marker's best.

Chris Marker holds a unique place in cinema, with an approach to his subjects that is intensely personal, philosophical and poetic. This film is a fascinating study of social and political state of Paris and French politics following the events of September 11th and the ensuing war in Iraq. It is not unlike "Le Joli Mai" a 1962 documentary by Marker that focused on the state of mind of Parisians immediately following the end of the Algerian War. Both films, made 40 years apart, capture with humor the ironies of political activism, of political manipulations, and of hopes lost and regained.

The cat, an animal worshiped by Marker, is fiercely independent and "never on the side of power." He serves here as the backdrop for Marker's musings through the streets and the subway. The grinning cat appears over the rooftops of the city, in tunnels, on sidewalks, and finally in political protests. Real cats also punctuate the film, most notably "Bolero," a cat who resides in the metro station of Strasbourg St Denis.

One of the final scenes (mentioned by another reviewer) is a reference to a murder that captivated the French media's attention for months: the brutal murder of actress Marie Trintignant by her boyfriend Bertrand Cantat, a French rock singer. Marker speaks of the ways in which tragedy quickly turns into a form of merchandizing, perhaps one of the most telling signs of our times.

This is a film essay with an English narration. The narration is well translated and captures the appropriate tone. Some of the graphics in French and the shots of advertisements and signs might get lost on the viewers not familiar with the language but the film will still be highly accessible regardless.

After seeing La Jetee, The Case of the Grinning Cat felt like a disappointment. The film is like a walk through Paris after 9/11, Marker follows protesters against Bush, Chirac, the Iraq war etc etc. Interspersed btwn the protests and related stuff are sightings of graffitti in the form of a grinning yellow cat (see the dvd cover). Marker finds this a mystery and tries to document the phenomenon. Here also follows some meditations on the cat as a symbol, and how it appears in stories like Alice in Wonderland etc.
The cat part is the interesting part of this film. It reminds of the Glaneuse-movie by Markers french new wave collegaue Agnes Varda (but Vardasfilm is much better). Anyway, the cat is intriguing and Markers quest to find out more about it begins well. But what is less interesting is the protest-part of the film. This feels so non original and flat. And why do I have to hear Markers smug remarks upon the validity of the protests, especially when they just reproduce the streamline leftist view? Boring. This is interesting only as a document of the times around 2001 in Paris with protests against government and Bush. And the problem is that Marker seems to become so fascinated by the protests that he forgets the cat (ok, he sees the cat on a sign in one of the marches against something, and this is obviously super interesting to Marker).
And can someone explain to me the last 10 minutes of the film? What has this story about an artist-turned-murderer got to do with anything? And what about the cat?
Bottom line: this film is worth watching, esp if you're into Marker and french film, but I can't really say that it is worth paying $25 for.