If not for The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, films like Splendor in the Grass (1961), La La Land (2016) and Past Lives (2023) might not exist. A classic is often defined by its influence. What makes this French musical even more influential is its comprehensive vision not only of a genre (goodbye to the chipper optimism of the American musical, hello to singing through the mundane) but also of film in general. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg introduces us to a world where accidental pregnancies and war emphasize raw reality while the production design reminds us of its fictional nature. The film underscores the cinematic fusion of two seemingly incongruous elements: reality and fiction.
When the film was screened at the 1987 Midnight Sun Festival, the catalogue cited writer-director Jacques Demy: ”We live and suffer and yet music is beautiful and colours are vibrant. Even though we struggle through our worst worries and tribulations, red is always exquisite, blue is always exquisite, and Mozart’s music is always beautiful… There’s conflict there, so why not use it?”
This year’s festival also screens another well-known musical from Demy, A Room in Town (1980) as a part of the Dominique Sanda series.
Kaisu Tervonen