Amazon.com: In 1962, after having completed only one failed feature, critic turned director Eric Rohmer embarked on an ambitious plan to shoot six films around a common theme and a similar plot. With only limited resources at his disposal, the first two of his Six Moral Tales are short works shot in 16mm black-and-white. "The Girl at the Monceau Bakery" is a 25-minute sketch that sets the basic premise of the series: a young man interested in one woman is briefly attracted to a totally different girl. Shot on the streets of Paris with an easy naturalism and dominated by the young man's voice-over thoughts, it sets the tone of the series with a deft style, unforced humor, and an ironic tone. "Suzanne's Profession" expands to over 50 minutes to explore the awkward triangle between two best friends and a generous, seductive young woman they both shamelessly take advantage of. The men are callow, the women rather exasperating, the talk isn't as enchanting as in later films--and the ending feels, in retrospect, like an early draft of My Night at Maud's with the roles reversed. If his later films are more compelling and assured, the ambiguity of relationships and mercenary behavior of the characters in this early effort reveal a harsh cynicism that later mellowed into a wry irony. --Sean Axmaker
Essential French cinema: Rohmer's 'La Boulangère de Monceau' and 'La Carrière de Suzanne.' Éric Rohmer (1920) challenged traditional Hollywood cinema with his French New Wave cycle of films, Six Moral Tales ("Contes moraux"). Inspired by F.W. Murnau's Sunrise, each "tale" follows the same basic story: a man is tempted a woman, but he ultimately resists the temptation.
Exploring the fickle nature of youthful desire, the first of the Moral Tales, The Bakery Girl of Monceau (La Boulangère de Monceau) (1963), is a simple, 23-minute black and white film about a law student (Barbet Schroeder) who--while stuffing himself with sugar cookies and pastries daily--hesitates between two women, a pretty brunette bakery girl and an "unknowable" young woman he has only observed from a distance. Schroeder's voice was dubbed by Bertrand Tavernier.
Suzanne's Career (La Carrière de Suzanne) (1963), a 60-minute short film, continues Rohmer's cycle with the story of a timid student, Bertrand (Philippe Beuzen), who admires a callous older friend, Guillaume, for his lack of selfconciousness, rude manners, and easy ways with women, until they both fall for the same free-spirited girl, Suzanne (Catherine See), turning this tale into an awkward love triangle.
Both films were shot in ragged black-and-white 16mm photography that offers a strong sense of 1960s Paris. For those willing to spend the extra money, Eric Rohmer's Six Moral Tales - Criterion Collection offers an improved digital transfer to DVD.
G. Merritt
Two Shorts Make Four Stars This DVD encompasses the first two (short) films in Eric Rohmer's Moral Tales series (there are four other films in the series, for a total of six -- the rest are feature length films).
In the first short, The Girl at the Monceau Bakery, a young man spots an attractive girl who is often seen walking by, and decides he will pursue her. His interest in her grows after he gets up the courage to talk to her one day. Suddenly, though, she goes missing from the streets of Paris. As the protagonist walks in search of his infatuation, he begins making habitual stops at a nearby bakery. After a few visits, he begins to notice the young girl working at the bakery, and decides she is pretty. He arrogantly decides he will flirt with her, even ask her out, as an alternate to his lonely searching for the other woman. From the voice-over, it is clear he wants nothing to do with her, at least in the end, but he continues his flirtation. When the Bakery Girl finally agrees to a date, the original woman re-appears, complete with an explanation of why she'd been missing the weeks before. Our young protagonist must then decide whether to go through with the date, or turn his attentions entirely to the first woman. This is an interesting short to watch, but you may find yourself with some questions when it ends. I found it somewhat dated/simplisitic in its treatment of women and dating/relationships.
The second film is much longer, and concerns two young men who meet a pretty young girl in a cafe (Suzanne). As the two get to know Suzanne, they begin to take her affection and generosity for granted. The protagonist's quiet dislike for her grows the more generous she becomes. He doesn't understand why she would let herself be 'treated' so badly, and assumes she is merely a passive woman who doesn't stand up for herself. Blindsided by their own arrogance, the two men fail to see that Suzanne may be holding some cards of her own. She may in fact be in complete control of her 'situation,' and living exactly the way she wants to, just 'like a man.' I liked this film more than the first one, and found myself cheering for Suzanne. The end brought a smile to my face.
The director (Rohmer) is fascinated with the beginning/early stages of relationships, and the choices that are made at that point. Serving as a sort of match-maker for his characters, he foresees One Suitable Mate for his Protagonist, and Only One. However, since he does not always make clear what is driving the Protagonist's choices, we are often left not really knowing the reasons for the Protagonist's depth of feeling (or lack thereof), and how he can be sure that his decision is the Right one. For example, at the end of the first film, the protagonist abruptly decides which of the two women will be best-suited for him for life (marriage). Yet we aren't shown any information about her but her appearance. Is the protagonist so shallow, or is more going on here that I missed? As the FIN abruptly burns onto the screen, you may find yourself sitting for a moment or two, with question-marks in your eyes, in wonder and confusion at the follies of love.
The DVD itself, while it presented no problem, was nothing special. As with the other films in the series, the subtitles were burned into the film itself, and so could not be removed. In Black & White. French Soundtrack and English subtitles. 3 1/2 to 4 stars.
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