Extraordinary Popular Delusions

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

I'm all out of hope

So I finally got around to seeing that Billy Idol flick last night. Oh, sidebar in case you're not following...

Les Yeux Sans Visage means "Eyes Without a Face." And if you listen to the background chick in the song, she's singing "les yeux sans visage" during the chorus. Oh, another sidebar for a funny story...

Back in 1991, in a little bar on , I heard this song performed by a cover band that was actually surprisingly good. My only nitpick with their entire performance is that the back-up singer for this band (the drummer, I think) made his best stab at the lyrics... and got them wrong. He sang, "pleasure's always ours." Which, as you can see, isn't correct.

So now, we return you to your regularly scheduled sidebar.

So, the lyrics don't have much to do with the movie, except for lines like Don't call me on the phone to tell me you're alone. Or I'm all out of hope. Or Got no human grace. You're eyes without a face.

On second thought, maybe they do. Anyway, we return you to your regularly scheduled post.

So, at Molly's suggestion, I saw the movie last night. What a freak-ass flick. The blurbage inside the Criterion edition of the DVD says:

There is a moment in Eyes Without a Face -- you'll know it when you see it -- when, according to L'Express, "the spectators dropped like flies." At the Edinburgh Film Festival, seven viewers actually fainted...

"Really honestly fainted? Hmph. I wonder if I'll know it when I see it?"

Oh yeah. I did.

1959 black-and-white French horror flick. It's just as creepy as the name implies, and quite graphic for its time. Funky sort of dysfunctional-haunted-carnival music by Maurice Jarre (father of ). Costumes by Givenchy... at least Christiane's gowns were. Re-dubbed in English and released as The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus.

Considering that it had nothing at all to do with Faust, I can't imagine that was a good idea.

And this is the second French flick I've seen in a row that prominantly featured a Citroen. Except this one featured two: a 2CV and a SM. Or DS. Or S&M. Or whichever model they made that looked like a squatting catfish. Apparently the Genassiers were a Citroen kinda family.

Anyway... WOW. Just wow. I'm gonna have to have a movie night for you local folks and see what you think.

posted by Ben at 9:52 AM

2 Comments:

  • That is SO FUNNY because we watched it last night (before I knew you watched it). Which part do you think people fainted? (Since this was my 2nd time seeing it, I think I was a little jaded as to the really SHOCKING parts from the first time.)

    Disfunctinoal haunting carnival music rules. Our conversation re: same.

    Len: "They could've picked a better soundtrack."
    Molly: "No, it's cool, because it's like, weird and creepy and haunting and carnivale-esque and it's supposed to have that contrast. You know how sideshow freaky carnivals are."
    Len: "Hmmmprh. You're the one freaked out my clowns, not me."

    I am, in fact, the one freaked out by clowns.

    By Blogger Jax Peach, at 10:01 AM  

  • You're not the only one freaked out by clowns. And puppets. Magic is fun when you're dead, and all that.

    I don't know how to answer you without spoiling the scene for all two of my fans who haven't seen it yet, but it was graphic. You knew it was happening, but you didn't expect to see it. And keep in mind that this was decades ago, LONG before the things you can see on TV every week now.

    Is that enough hint?

    By Blogger Ben, at 10:12 AM  

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