L'Eclisse-Monica Vitti (1962)

Monica Vitti's languid beauty is what fills L'Eclisse, we wait to see her on screen. As Vittoria she is cool, bored, troubled, impetuous and intelligent. She goes from laughing to seriousness in seconds, and this creates a reality to a film that is often dream like in it's stark beauty. It is she who displays the emptiness and boredom of modern day life, the sense that there might be something better but it is unattainable in a society that is fixated on the material. The people around Vittoria are obsessed with consumerism, with wealth, in contrast Vittoria takes pleasure from the small things in life, the wind rattling a fence, people walking in the streets, photographs, things that seem to go unnoticed by the fast paced style of living adopted by her contemporaries. Stylistically Vitti is often filmed from behind, so that we see her world, but do we ever truly see her? Perhaps not, but her dissatisfaction with life, though unspoken, is certainly relatable in this day and age.

Plein Soleil (1960)

Watching Plein Soleil (Purple Noon) I was struck by how beautiful the cinematography was. It is a perfect mixture of fantastic beauty, and natural realism. The film is concerned with the little details, which is fitting as Tom's life becomes overtaken by these small details. His life is hinged around what will and will not leave a trail. I apologise this is such a picture heavy post, but it is such a visual film. Much like Alain Delon's later film, La Piscine, in Plein Soleil you can feel the summer sun, taste the salt water, and hear the noises of the markets.