Customer Reviews

Model Shop

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

 

 

Sony marketing calls its new DVD presentation of The Model Shop a "martini movie" -- the implication being that the "movie" ought to be laughed off as a camp curiosity. Don't believe it. Jacques Demy's 1969 The Model Shop is important and influential. Its arrival to DVD is cause for celebration.

With forty years' hindsight, we can see The Model Shop's enormous debt to Antonioni's L'avventura, that great 1960 landmark: Both films take place in desert locales. Both focus on disillusioned architects grasping for meaning and direction. Both architects profess admiration for the emotional fullness of Baroque architecture. Both men betray their girlfriends -- and both in the arms of tawdry exhibitionists. The list goes on and on.

But where L'avventura makes the most of its excellent black and white photography, The Model Shop goes one better by deploying vivid color to convey mood and thought and feeling -- and does so with the same canny impact as in the best color art photography (the esteemed William Eggleston comes to mind). When in the final frames, the film's action renounces color and cuts to the blackest black, the dramatic edit conveys unsettling truths about the lead character's dilemma. In this one bold move, The Model Shop distills and outperforms Antonioni (and seems to have provided the template for the "Paint it Black" ending to Stanley Kubrick's 1987 Full Metal Jacket.) This and its lead character's emotional predicament at film's end also appear to have influenced the memorable ending to Quentin Tarantino`s 1997 Jackie Brown.

Throughout The Model Shop's deceptively simple story are poetic clues to its own self-knowing intentions (all of those oil wells, want ads, and so on are all well-placed and all there for good reason). In our own time of digital histrionics, The Model Shop's quiet engagement with human feeling and human imperfection comes across as fresh and alive. Its photorealist-worthy portrayal of West LA buildings, streets, and parking lots makes the Southern California cityscape as integral to the film's strength as the Mediterranean island views in L'avventura. And if the sheer unspeakable beauty of Los Angeles has ever been put on film with more loving attention than in The Model Shop, would someone please hurry up and tell me where?

The Model Shop is unforgettable cinema. A sincere thank you to Sony for making it available at last.

Now. About that "martini" marketing...

French director Jacques Demy made his mark with the critically acclaimed "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" (1964), which was nominated for three Oscars in 1966. He apparently had fond memories of California, as evidenced in "Model Shop," a delightful and honest film that not only tells a story, but also gives us a fascinating glance at the Los Angeles from the late sixties.

George Matthews (Gary Lockwood) is an unemployed young man that lives with beautiful Gloria (Alexandra Hay), who apparently cares about him. George is not a happy fellow. As Gloria rightfully tells him, he refuses to commit to anybody or anything. Unbeknown to him, his life will take a dramatic turn when he is informed that his beloved car will be taken away if he doesn't make a one-hundred dollars payment. Having no job, he is forced to hit the streets in search of money, and, while doing so, he meets Lola (Anouk Aimée), an attractive French model, which whom he is quickly infatuated. At the same time, he receives his draft notice, which would mean that he will have to go to Vietnam. All these situations complicate George's already confused existence, and he will have to make some serious choices.

Even though "Model Shop's" story seems light at times, Demy fills it with unforgettable shots of the Los Angeles of those years. George spends a lot of time driving through its streets, and for us, who live in this fascinating city, is a trip to see how it has changed with time. In addition, you just can't take your eyes away from Anouk Aimée, an actress that certainly exuded beauty and sensuality. I think that it is also remarkable that Demy addressed, in such a smart way, the controversial draft, which terrified so many young people at the time. All these elements stay with you for a while. (France/USA, 1969, color, 97 min.)

[...]

Jacques Demy's hope, when he first made LOLA, the character (and same actress Anouk Aimee) who reappears in MODEL SHOP, was to create his own Comedie Humaine....beginning with characters from LOLA reappearing in BAY OF ANGELS, and then on to UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG where one reappearing actor sings about another character he was in love with in LOLA. It would have continued into YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHFORT but Nino Castelnuovo was not available and so it was rewritten and moved out of line as Part IV. In 1968 Demy closed the circle with MODEL SHOP. Initially Demy wanted a new young actor, Harrison Ford, to play the lead, but Columbia felt a name would be better for the lead and Gary Lockwood had just done 2001. The music, done by SPIRIT, was Demy's second choice, as he had become friendly with a new rock group from UCLA, THE DOORS, but by the time the film was ready THE DOORS were world famous and time limited. However, SPIRIT created a score that compliments Demy's impressionistic view of Venice CA, W. Hollywood and Beverly Hills in the late 60's. Not as visually intense as UMBRELLAS, but as psychologically insiteful as LOLA and BAY OF ANGELS, MODEL SHOP offers the viewer a moment in time, caught in amber. For trivia enthusiasts, the actor playing Alexandra Hays' boyfriend, the actor/model Tom Fielding, left acting and became a film writer/director....PSYCHO II, CLOAK AND DAGGER, FRIGHT NIGHT, CHILD'S PLAY and a handfull of TV films of Stephen King novels.

The film is an interesting look at a very American time and place as seen by a French Americaphile film maker.

Several people have reviewed this film from an "artsy" standpoint. It wasn't widely released when it first came out, and it was eventually considered as an "art house" movie in more recent years, enjoying a limited release in west coast movie houses that tended to cater to foreign and limited release films.

If you want a more technical review, which justifiably compliments the director, actors, story line, etc., then please read some of the other reviews that have been posted. In my opinion, it was a good and rather unique movie, and that is how I will review it.

I grew up in the 1960s, and I watched young men get drafted and then disappear into the abyss of the Vietnam war. As high school graduation approached, I watched the males in the classes ahead of me become increasingly concerned as their time for being drafted rapidly approached. Many of them knew that Vietnam would be a one-way ticket, where they would stand a good chance of returning either broken in body or mind, if they returned at all. Even for the most patriotic, the rapidly approaching reality of the draft began to consume them, whether they were in high school or graduating from college, and they knew that they were going to experience a life-changing event which they probably didn't want, leaving all their friends, family, and their entire life, behind.

The movie captures this sense of desolation in the face of inevitability. The main character has been drafted and only has few days before he will leave everything he knows, behind. He clings to his beloved car (which gets reposessed) as the only constant in his life. Meanwhile, everyone around him acts as if nothing is going to happen to him. His girlfriend pressures him to get married, his friends lend him money expecting that he'll be around to pay him back.

And then he meets a woman who works in a "Model Shop," where men pay to take picture of them in various states of undress (lewd for the time). In a sense, she's already in her own version of Vietnam - stuck in a country (the USA) where she doesn't quite belong, doing things she doesn't want to do, constantly trying to get back home to her beloved France. The two of them connect for a short period of time and talk about running away together, but neither belongs in the other's world. In the end, the main character finally loses his beloved car (which he would never have physically fit in if the covertible top had been up) and leaves for Vietnam, but he also leaves money for the woman so she can get out of her own "vietnam" and return to her beloved France.

The photography (particularly now that it has been restored to its original brightness) is reminiscent of the 1960s, when color film use became widespread. The colors are sharp - sharper and more intense, in some ways, than they are today, since color was a selling point back in those days, and film makers made it a point to stick with bright, sharp primary sorts of colors (no pastels or plaid, here). It is more of a psychological film - there are no car chases, fights, or explosions, just the endless monotony of an oil pump which is almost another character - churning in the background, and the most action occurs when the main character speeds up and down and around the curving city roads seeming to not care if he does crash, because that would end it all before the real horror started.

But I always liked the movie because it was different. It showed a side of the 1960s that many men went through due to the draft. And the movie itself was excellently photographed and a work of art in itself. I highly recommend it.

The reviews here are wildly split, with some loving & some loathing this remarkable little film. I largely agree with those praising it, as it does delve beautifully & even compassionately into the emptiness of contemporary culture -- in particular the existential dread of the young American male facing not only the draft & Vietnam, but a world that seems vacuous, tawdry, devoid of any real meaning & depth. George (a very good Gary Lockwood) embodies this figure superbly, forever driving nowhere through a glittering but tacky world, Sisyphus in a sports car.

Still, the French art film & the American zeitgeist are sometimes an uncertain fit. Anouk Aimee is mysterious & compelling, of course -- how could she be otherwise? -- but the gap between her worldview & George's is immense, even though he seems to think he can bridge it. Granted, that's partly the point. But I often got the sense of two incompatible films overlapping but never quite splicing together properly.

Even so, the film's virtues finally outweigh those caveats. It was bold of Jacques Demy to attempt such a film in the first place, and he succeeds more often than he falters, as far as I can see. The photography truly captures the endless but empty light that lays bare the shallowness of the city & its inhabitants. The acting is uniformly strong, all the more affecting for being so understated. It may not be a masterpiece, but it's very good & well worth the attention of the thoughtful viewer.

Recommended!

I only bought this for Spirit. That's it. I've gotten the Model Shop mono soundtrack and like it a lot. I liked seeing the music where it was intended to be used. I'll agree that some of the long cinematography is great. The 60's scene is history on film. $3 to fill your MG? Guys give you fake records? Cheeseburger and coffee 65 cents.

The fun part for Spirit fans was the small part they got in the film. Randy never stops smiling. He was 18 maybe when this film was made? I'd be smiling too if I was in a "major motion picture with an acclaimed director." Jay Ferguson has the extended acting part here, and does a good job for a non-actor. Was this worth the price of the entire film? No. Was it key to the plot? Musician friend "doing well" gives $100 to lead actor. Thin device at best.

The meat of this film is driving. Lots of driving. Driving driving driving. The car is the star. Gary Lockwood plays an underemployed, post college underachiever. The film gets going after he learns he's drafted and going to Nam. Oh yeah, this was the late 60's, so add in that plot device. It's hard to be critical of the main character after this point as the film then becomes about, well, that. I'd imagine that feeling must be the worst, forced to do something you don't agree with, no choice, no way out.

That said, the "love" story between him and Anouk seems lightweight. At 1 hour and ten minutes in, it still was slow moving. "Art House" indeed. A very well shot art house film that is generally a drag to watch and acting that varies from pretty decent to "wet paper bag". I gave it three stars for what it is. A slice of 60's life for the non-rich and famous living under the hopeless feeling that the end is tomorrow. If you're a Spirit fanatic like me, gotta get this for Randy's "look ma, I'm in a movie" smile.

Model Shop is love story in smoggy LA, very interesting story and legendary 60's/ 70's rock band Spirit soundtrack makes everything more interesting and moody. Interesting view of the hippie scene, sincere acting and great music makes this a good DVD choice!

I note the three laudatory reviews here and the general tone of those on imdb is similar. I'm sorry, but don't make me laugh! This is a stinker from the word go, that is unless you want to overlook the two most basic elements of film story-telling, to wit: (1) a coherent and preferably imaginatively dialogued script and (2) competent acting. As a follow-up to the brilliant "Lola" and the virtually undisputed masterpiece "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" -- in the sense that all three films have characters in common -- this is shocking. I think perhaps it will suffice to say that Jacques Demy (who is not only director but co-writer) was not exactly comfortable with the English language at the time he made this, his only American film. The same can obviously said of Anouk Aimee, giving a perfectly ludicrous performance (the "model shop" scene, especially, where she gets into supposedly alluring poses for her client's camera must be seen to be believed). Alexandra Hay, however, has no such excuse. She is simply dreadful. As George Cukor unflinchingly said of co-star Aimee, "The lady simply can't act." But I have given this film two stars, and there are two reasons. One: co-star Gary Lockwood (really the top star, though second billed; there is not a frame of the film in which he does not appear), though not a very skilled actor, tries his best, and watching his stuff flop around in his tight jeans (no underwear, as is made clear when he puts his pants on in the first scene) is at least something to concentrate on. He also has a very, very cute butt and looks damn good with his shirt off as well (two scenes). If that is enough for you, then you may enjoy this film. The other reason is that an excellent late 60's rock band, Spirit, not only wrote the soundtrack (supplemented by a number of Classical selections), but appear in the film in one brief scene. They can't act, either, but it's a nice documentary moment, catching them just as they were making their mark. It's rather endearing. My final complaint: Sony's insulting packaging -- super ugly, too.

First, the marketing of this DVD as a "Martini movie" is misleading. Second, as a huge fan of Jacques Demy's early films, including the great Lola, of which Model Shop (terrible title) is a sequel of sorts, I was really looking forward to this DVD release. However, it was painful and boring to watch this film.

The basic problem, I think, is that it tries to be two things at once and fails at both: a portrait of late 1960s L.A. (with references to Vietnam, marihuana, hipster culture) and a Demy-style (and very "French") love story (a melancholy young guy with artistic aspirations meets a beautiful stranger, stalks her, and they fall in love). I think Demy failed to capture whatever "poetry" he saw in LA (the two leads point out that they see beauty in a city that everyone else regards as ugly) and I really didn't care about the love story (after having connected emotionally with the ones in Demy's previous films).

The other major problem is the casting of the male lead. Gary Lockwood, as the unemployed George, is really awful (he looks good in tight pants and with his shirt off, though). In fairness, the character itself is implausible, coming off as a dumb jerk (I didn't believe that he hung out with late 60s L.A. hipsters), and I doubt that even the original choice (Harrison Ford) would have pulled it off. Alexandra Hay, as his girlfriend, is even worse (I wouldn't be surprised if people laughed at their "emotional" scenes together). Anouk Aimee as Lola is still beautiful, but not as charming as in the original. She looks jaded, like she belongs in another, much better film, and it takes a lot of "suspension of disbelief" to buy that Lola would fall in love with or even feel sorry for George (the male lead), who first stalks her and then keeps insulting her.

In short, I suggest you skip this film and stick to the original, which showcases both Jacques Demy and Anouk Aimee at their best. Lola is one of the most charming French films of the 1960s. Towards the end of Model Shop, Lola (the character) fondly looks at pictures from the original film and lovingly remembers. It was the only scene I truly connected with.

If you weren't depressed when you started this film, you will be when it finishes. There is nothing redeeming in this over-long, angst-ridden, descent into voluptuous self-pity. The principles do a good job with little material to work with, but that is no reason to invest this much of your life, into a cinematic detour that leaves you pretty much where you were when it started. Very much like getting on a bus, going around in a circle, and then getting off exactly where you first boarded it. The film is about a man who uses his girlfriend by living in her house (next to an oil rig), while he sleeps around. Even though he is an architect, he quit his last job because the firm didn't give him anything important to do. He hasn't worked since--at anything--and just doesn't know what he wants to be when/if he grows up. His car is being repossessed, everything is his parents' fault, and he lives in a demi-monde populated by women of easy virtue, parking lot attendants, and malcontents--and he owes most of them money. He has obviously gotten by on cuteness as the baby of the family. He is rude, unmotivated, and an archetypal user. Can you spell L-O-S-E-R. The saving grace is the jerk just got drafted, or the film would never have ended. Still want to see it? Masochist.