“La Jetée,” a French science fiction masterpiece from 1962, directed by Chris Marker. The film stands as a pivotal work intertwined with the Left Bank artistic movement. Melding optically printed photos into a captivating photomontage, the film chronicles a post-World War III era where time travel experiments unfold, lasting a mere 28 minutes but etching an enduring mark on cinema. Its influence is manifest in subsequent films like “12 Monkeys” (1995) and “The Red Spectacles” (1987), which draw inspiration from its thematic resonance.
The plot of La Jetée
Set amidst the fictional aftermath of World War II, a man (portrayed by Davos Hanich) becomes a prisoner in a dystopian Paris. Sheltered in the subterranean Palais de Chaillot galleries, the remnants of society are fixated on a time travel experiment aimed at reshaping the present through the past and future. However, a lack of subjects capable of enduring temporal shocks proves problematic.
Ultimately, the protagonist, buoyed by a compelling yet nebulous memory from his pre-war youth, emerges as the chosen subject. This recollection, rooted in a woman (Hélène Châtelain) he glimpsed on the Orly Airport jetty, frames a cryptic incident involving a man’s demise.
After persistent endeavors, he ventures into the pre-war era, encountering the woman from his memory and kindling a profound romance. Successful leaps into the past beckon an attempt to propel him into a distant future. His interaction with the technologically advanced future inhabitants yields a power unit, potent enough to resurrect his fallen society.
Triumphantly returning to his original timeline, he confronts the stark reality of imminent demise at the hands of his captors. A lifeline emerges from the future, offering permanent escape. However, he yearns to revisit his pre-war childhood in pursuit of the elusive woman.
Poetically, life comes full circle
Per his request, he returns in time and arrives at the airport jetty. Here he realizes that the young version of himself might also be present. He succeeds in finding the woman. However, as he rushes to her, he sees one of his jailers has successfully followed him and that agent is ready to kill him. In his final moments, he understands that the incident he witnessed as a youth, which has tormented him ever since was indeed his own death.
La Jetée Movie Analysis
In its brief 28 minutes, “La Jetée” stamps an indelible mark on the cinematic psyche. Its distinctive photomontage technique captivates, rendering a seemingly static medium into a dynamic tapestry that captivates the audience.
Illusion of Movement
Through adept camera work and masterful editing, the film breathes life into stillness. Employing techniques such as fade-ins, fade-outs, and zooms, the photos imbue an illusion of temporal passage. This artful manipulation is exemplified in moments like the protagonist’s simulated time travel, where movement is intricately simulated within a static frame.
Portrayal of Death
“La Jetée” contemplates existence ensnared in a cyclical embrace. Birth, death, and time travel interlace, as the protagonist’s pursuit of the woman propels him into an inescapable loop. The film’s narrative embodies philosophical notions of predetermined destinies and the inexorability of fate. It is painted against a backdrop of brutal yet lyrical prose.
Power of Memory
Beyond its sci-fi facade, “La Jetée” resonates as an ode to memory’s potency, its capacity to shape lives and forge identities. A profound meditation on the redemptive and destructive facets of memory, it illustrates that we are vessels of our past, adrift in the ocean of eternity sans memories.
Here is a quote from this film that sums up most of our lives:
Half of him is here, the other half is in the past.
Narrator, La Jetée
