Time Regained Review
by "Steve Rhodes" (Steve DOT Rhodes AT InternetReviews DOT com)August 10th, 2000
TIME REGAINED
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2000 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): *
Read the book. See the movie.
And the corollary to this rule, in the case of TIME REGAINED (LE TEMPS RETROUVÉ), is that if you haven't read the seven volume set of novels called "Remembrance of Things Past" by Marcel Proust, the movie will probably be completely impenetrable.
(Actually, I'm not so sure that those who have read the full set will be able to follow TIME REGAINED, written and directed by Raúl Ruiz, but I'm willing to give the film the benefit of the doubt and assume that anyone who has invested the time to read the entire seven volume set will love the film. Maybe this explains why well-respected critics have differed so widely on their evaluation of the film, with some giving it their absolute best rating and others their absolute worst. At any rate, this review will apply only to those who haven't read the books.)
As the story opens, the dying Proust is lying on his bed, barely able to breathe, and is dictating his memoirs to his assistant. Looking through a large magnifying glass, he views photographs of his old friends. The rest of the movie consists of random vignettes from his life. Watching these snippets feels like one is seeing a twenty-plus episode soap opera which some maniacal editor has hacked up and reassembled into something one tenth of the original size. The result is a confusing and obtuse mess.
The collage of clips leaves us with many questions, chief among them: Who are all of these characters? What relationship do they have with each other? How does this scene fit in with any of the other scenes? And why should we care?
The more time and energy we devote to the story, the less we care. Only the production has much to offer. Some scenes are like beautifully faded picture postcards from a bygone era. As the music comes up, others appear to be the introduction to grand opera, except that the diva never quite breaks into her aria. Finally, many scenes appear to be something out of a Peter Sellers comedy in which all of the funny lines have been removed.
The movie has a strong cast, including Catherine Deneuve and Emmanuelle Béart. The less said, however, about John Malkovich's performance as a sadomasochistic baron, the better.
The movie is not without its treats. We learn that, in pre-World War I France, strawberries dipped in ether was a delicacy and adultery was punished by a 100-Franc fine and a few days in jail.
TIME REGAINED runs an extremely long 2:35. The film is in French with English subtitles. It is not rated but might be PG-13 for adult themes and would be acceptable for teenagers.
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