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Few films can claim to be as influential to the course of cinema history as Chronicle of a Summer. The fascinating result of a collaboration between filmmaker-anthropologist Jean Rouch (Moi, un noir) and sociologist Edgar Morin, this vanguard work of what Morin would term cinéma verité is a brilliantly conceived and realized sociopolitical diagnosis of the early sixties in France. By simply interviewing a group of Paris residents in the summer of 1960—beginning with the provocative and eternal question “Are you happy?” and expanding to political issues, including the ongoing Algerian War—Rouch and Morin reveal the hopes and dreams of a wide array of people, from artists to factory workers, from an Italian émigré to an African student. Chronicle of a Summer’s penetrative approach gives us a document of a time and place with extraordinary emotional depth.

Description

*This listing is for the standard edition version and does NOT come with a limited edition slipcase!* In 1965, young producer Barbet Schroeder supplied a 16mm camera, along with color film stock, to six friends and asked them to each make a short film about a Parisian neighborhood. The resulting films were shot quickly, with low budgets, improvised takes, and live sound. According to the Chicago Reader, “the Rouch, Chabrol, and Rohmer segments shouldn’t be missed,” and The New Yorker says Rouch’s film is “one of the greatest short films ever made.” Gorgeously restored in 2K, these six vignettes offer captivating and varied glimpses of the City of Lights: "Saint Germain des Prés" by Jean Douchet "Gare du Nord" by Jean Rouch "Rue Saint Denis" by Jean-Daniel Pollet "Place de l'Étoile" by Éric Rohmer "Montparnasse et Levallois" by Jean-Luc Godard "La Muette" by Claude Chabrol Bonus Features: 1. 1965 interviews with Barbet Schroeder, Jean Rouch and Éric Rohmer. Originally aired on Swiss TV.