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| That Obscure Object of Desire | |
|---|---|
| Name | That Obscure Object of Desire |
| Director | Luis Buñuel |
| Producer | Serge Silberman |
| Writer | Luis Buñuel |
| Based on | The Novel by Pierre Louÿs |
| Starring | Fernando Rey, Carole Bouquet, Ángela Molina |
| Music | Georges Delerue |
| Cinematography | Ghislain Cloquet |
| Editing | Hélène Plemiannikov |
| Studio | Transatlantic Films |
| Distributor | Columbia Pictures |
| Released | 1977 |
| Runtime | 104 minutes |
| Country | France, Spain, United Kingdom |
| Language | French, Spanish |
That Obscure Object of Desire is a 1977 film directed by Luis Buñuel, produced by Serge Silberman, and adapted in part from a novella by Pierre Louÿs; the film represents Buñuel's final completed feature and blends surrealist narrative techniques with tragicomedy. The plot centers on an obsessive pursuit by an older man, portrayed by Fernando Rey, of a young woman alternately played by Carole Bouquet and Ángela Molina, and foregrounds themes of desire, power, and social satire. The film's unconventional use of dual actresses, elliptical editing, and symbolic mise-en-scène situates it within the trajectories of European art cinema, surrealism, and postwar cultural critique.
A wrinkled narrative voice recounts an obsessive tale involving a bourgeois railway worker-turned-aristocrat or merchant (played by Fernando Rey) who pursues a volatile young woman through settings including Paris, Madrid, and a Mediterranean ferry, while flashbacks to earlier episodes in Seville and hotel rooms reframe the chase; the protagonist's monologues and encounters with secondary characters such as a jealous rival echo episodes from Pierre Louÿs's writings and Buñuel's recurring motifs. Intercut scenes feature criminal incidents, quarrels in cafes reminiscent of Café de Flore gatherings, and a climactic altercation in a tavern that recalls cinematic set pieces from Alfred Hitchcock and social critiques evident in works by Jean Renoir and Federico Fellini. The film's narrative deliberately oscillates between realism and surreal incidents, including dreamlike intrusions that evoke associations with Surrealist Manifesto themes and cinematic strategies found in Buñuel's earlier films like The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie and Belle de Jour.
The principal cast includes Fernando Rey alongside two actresses sharing a single role, Carole Bouquet and Ángela Molina, an innovation resonant with performance experiments by directors such as Jean-Luc Godard and Pedro Almodóvar. Supporting performers feature Fernando Fernán Gómez, Julien Bertheau, and María Asquerino, whose careers intersect with institutions like the Comédie-Française and festivals such as the Cannes Film Festival. The ensemble also includes character actors from the Spanish and French repertory traditions who worked with auteurs such as Luis García Berlanga, Marco Ferreri, and Michelangelo Antonioni.
Produced by Serge Silberman for Transatlantic Films with financing linked to European co-production models involving France, Spain, and the United Kingdom, the film's production took place amid late-1970s film industry shifts exemplified by the collapse of studio-centric systems and the rise of auteur-driven financing. Principal photography employed cinematographer Ghislain Cloquet and location shooting in Paris, Madrid, and various Andalusian sites, echoing production practices used by Buñuel collaborators across Spanish cinema and French cinema. Casting of two actresses for a single character reflected Buñuel's collaboration patterns with casting directors who previously worked on projects for François Truffaut, Ermanno Olmi, and Andrei Tarkovsky. Composer Georges Delerue supplied the score, connecting the film to a lineage of European composers who scored films for François Truffaut, Jacques Demy, and Alain Resnais.
Scholars interpret the film through lenses including psychoanalytic theory associated with Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan, Marxist critique resonant with Karl Marx and cultural analyses in the vein of Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin, and feminist readings inspired by thinkers like Simone de Beauvoir and Julia Kristeva. The doubling of the female role invites comparisons to performative identity debates in writings by Roland Barthes and Judith Butler, while the protagonist's obsession evokes literary antecedents in works by Marcel Proust and Gustave Flaubert. The film's satirical treatment of bourgeois rituals links it to critiques found in plays by Molière and novels by Honoré de Balzac, and its surreal episodes are frequently read alongside manifestos and exhibitions curated by André Breton and Alexandre Rodchenko.
Upon release, critics at outlets such as The New York Times, Le Monde, and Sight & Sound offered divergent appraisals, with some praising Buñuel's late-period mastery and others questioning the film's tonal ambiguities; festival audiences at Cannes Film Festival and retrospectives at institutions like the British Film Institute and the Museum of Modern Art later reassessed the work. Contemporary film historians situate the film within Buñuel's oeuvre alongside Los Olvidados and Tristana, noting intertextual links to European art-house trends led by directors including Ingmar Bergman, Michelangelo Antonioni, and Robert Bresson. Academic symposia at universities such as Sorbonne University and University of California, Los Angeles have examined its formal innovation and political subtexts.
The film received accolades including the BAFTA Award nomination circuit and won the César Award for Best Foreign Film in some national contexts, and it earned Fernando Rey critical recognition that paralleled honors given by institutions such as the National Society of Film Critics and festival juries including those at Cannes Film Festival. Subsequent lifetime achievement recognitions for Buñuel from organizations like the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the European Film Academy have retroactively elevated the film's standing within award histories.
Category:1977 films Category:Films directed by Luis Buñuel Category:French films Category:Spanish films Category:British films