Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles ★★★★★

I mean, yeah.

Even before the Sight-and-Sound-ening of a few months ago, enough had been written on this that finding new things to say had become nearly impossible (to the point where people began to mass-hallucinate that she drops a potato, for some reason). A busier slow cinema than the things it would inspire, except in specific spots, where it weaponizes a total lack of motion. Most of this comes on the third day, of course, although I’m not sure the last shot fully qualifies: that light, the blue light that filters through the window the whole film, finally turned into a kinetic driver of emotion where it’s resided in the back the whole time. But the lack of anyone else in the frame is significant. The son isn’t there. Nobody else is there. You could view this as the first moment where she’s alone of her own accord. 

Pretty dazed, but I’m pretty sure the praise is earned, is all I can concretely say. Also that I don’t think that matters.

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