Dave Kehr devotes a lot of ink in his latest New York Times' DVD column to Criterion Collection/Eclipse's “Chantal Akerman in the Seventies,” which offers five films by the estimable Belgian director. In tandem, his column and most essential blog jogged my memory a bit, reminding me of a charming Akerman film that tends to come in under the radar.The movie is 1996's "A Couch in New York"/"Un divan à New York" which is essentially a superior version of Nancy Meyers' "The Holiday," predating the Meyers romcom by 10 years. You know, the one about two people who switch residences - in the case of the Akerman film, Juliette Binoche, a Parisian woman feeling pressured by all the men in her life, and William Hurt, a New York psychotherapist tired of his patients and their problems.
So, they swap places - and, by extension, lives. Yes, both also become involved in the other person's life, with Binoche actually counseling Hurt's patients and Hurt being pursued by one of Binoche's jealous boyfrinds. When he finally gets fed up, Hurt moves back to New York, meets up with Binoche and, to paraphrase the old song, something gives.
What sounds like a generic, formulaic sitcom turns into something quite magical in Akerman's hands. She deftly targets the hapless transfer of people to different places as something not just playful but potentially unstable and dangerous. Relationships usually take one into uncharted territorty and that's what Akerman toys with so cynically here.
What makes her two difficult people seem so wrong for each other is exactly what makes them so exactly perfect for one another.
Not surprisingly, "A Couch in New York" has the kind of foreign fizz that's an acquired taste, especially for American audiences who are too easily put off by anything even remotely alien. The film may be Akerman's most accessible and commerical to date, but its distinctive technique is pure Chantal, resplendent with tiny bits of business and hugely observant.
No comments:
Post a Comment