Tavernier Triple Feature

I watched three Bertrand Tavernier films at the end of June. Tavernier died recently (in March) and the Criterion Channel put a bunch of his films up for us. 

A Sunday in the Country (Un Dimanche à la Compagne) (1984) is understated and lovely.

Daddy Nostalgie (1990) is smart and slow and sad. It's Dirk Bogarde's last performance, and I love that man so much, so this is a pleasure in many ways. It's also a very interesting character study. Jane Birkin's character is constantly getting angry for no reason, or rather, there's something in her character that prompts her to quick rages. It's a very, very interesting film.

And then there is La Vie et Rien d'Autre (Life and Nothing But) (1989), which is plainly Bertrand Tavernier's masterpiece. This is an incredible, moving antiwar film set in the year following WWI. Tavernier's focus on the dead, on the absolute and total loss of life is extraordinary, humane, and almost unbearable. I loved this film. Philippe Noiret and Sabine Azéma are wonderful.