Subway [DVD]

I didn't know what to expect when I watched this excellent Columbia TriStar - Gaumont DVD transfer of "Subway", although I knew the movie had been nominated for thirteen Cesar Awards (winning three.) Mon Dieu! - I was bowled over by the manic energy in its directing, cinematography and editing, the deadpan humor from the wonderful actors portraying numerous eccentric characters and its superb, scintillating soundtrack (how about Rickie Lee Jones singing "A Lucky Guy" during one scene?!) In fact, this genre-bending movie (with a nod to Godard) is mostly about the music (especially in one thread of its various plot lines); before the film starts, the following quotes appear on the screen: 'To be is to do' - Socrates, 'To do is to be' - Sartre, 'Do be do be do' - Sinatra. If you love that, you'll love this film!

Great French movie directed by Luc Besson with outstanding French actress Isabelle Adjani and Christopher Lambert.

I looked into the film Subway (1985) because I was interested in other work done by Luc Besson, director of such films like La Femme Nikita (1990) and Léon: The Professional (1994). Now I realized from the outset this film was going to be more of an avant-garde affair based on the reviews (many tout style over substance), but what I didn't realize was just how boring and pointless it was going to be...the film stars Christopher Lambert (Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, Highlander), whose in the process of making yet another Highlander film titled Highlander: The Source (2005)...talk about milking something for all its worth...along with Isabelle Adjani (The Tenant, Ishtar). Also appearing is Richard Bohringer (The Cook the Thief His Wife & Her Lover), Michel Galabru (La Cage aux folles), Jean-Hugues Anglade (Taking Lives), and Jean Reno (Mission: Impossible, Ronin).The film begins with a pretty exciting car chase as a character we later come to know as Fred (Lambert), decked out in white, spikey hair and a tuxedo, speeds away from a group of men intent on getting his attention by playing a high-speed game of bumper tag. The chase ends near a subway, to which Fred utilizes to escape from his pursuers, making his way into the dark labyrinth of steel and concrete. Apparently Fred (described as a `hipster' thief on the DVD case) had been attending a party, one host by a millionaire and his beautiful wife named Helena (Adjani), stole some important documents, and is now holding them for ransom. Problem is, Fred finds himself falling for Helena, which only serves to complicate matters. These scenes are mixed in with various scenes of all the different and interesting folk Fred meets underneath the subway (sadly, there are no mole men), many of which have absolutely nothing to do with the story whatsoever but help fill out an hour and forty minute running time. So what does Fred intend to do with this money once he gets it? How about starting a band with the various underground (literally) musicians he's since met while hiding out from the cops and hired thugs?First of all, one should be wary as there are numerous DVD releases of this film, some much worse than others, and Amazon has mixed the reviews for these various releases together in a cross-linkage nightmare (good job guys). The one I watched, and am now reviewing is the Columbia/Tristar Studios DVD (ASIN: B00005OSJO) release with Lambert holding a neon light and features blue graphics on the cover (it also appears to be the more expensive version). The version to avoid is the one with the two shot of Adjani and Lambert where it appears Lambert is sliding his hand into Adjani's shirt. Getting back to the film itself...as I mentioned before, many reviewers have commented on element of style over substance with regards to this film, but I felt it had little of either, which brings up another question...are all French directors required to produce one ` New Wave' film during their career? I've got nothing against New Wave cinema as I enjoy films like Alphaville (1965) and Repo Man (1984), but the aspects consistent with that style of film didn't really come through here for me. That's not to say they wouldn't for someone else, though, as it comes down to ones own interpretation...the movie just seemed plodding and pointless with little symbolistic and/or abstract conceptual present, two of the elements supposedly prevalent over the more traditional aspects like plot, defined characters, narrative i.e. an actual story. Also, what little there appears to be of the former seems to be what it is only on a very superficial level...I know there's no formula for determining this kind of thing, but if you're going to go this route, then jump in with both feet and give the audience something to chew on...that' just my opinion...really well done avant-garde works one different levels in that, on the surface it can entertain, while also maintaining a depth for those whose wish to explore further and develop their own ideas with regards to underlying themes and their significance. I will say even though there was a prevalent sense of boredom throughout for me, the film did look good as Besson, if nothing else, knows how to set up a shot. Another positive aspect about the film is the music, much of it composed by Eric Serra, who actually appears in the film as Enrico, the bassist. Serra has since gone on to score any number of films including La Femme Nikita (1990), GoldenEye (1995), and Rollerball (2002). I did think the idea of people living and existing beneath the subway an interesting idea, but not completely original as I've seen it before in the 1972 film Death Line aka Raw Meat, although that was a story about cannibals living beneath the London subway, surviving off the occasional passenger snatched from the platform. One thing I did learn from this film is the subways in Paris are reasonably clean and remarkably free of vermin like rats and roaches, something generally prevalent in the belly of metropolitan mass-transit beasts.The widescreen anamorphic (2.35:1) picture on this DVD look decent, but isn't without some very minor flaws, ones most viewers will be able to live with in slight age defects. The Dolby 2.0 audio comes through cleanly enough. It's odd as the DVD seems to be set to play the English dub along with the English subtitles, but this can be changed. I would recommend the original French track with English subtitles (the English dubbing is pretty lousy). There are a couple of extras in the way of filmographies for some of the cast and crew, along with trailers for Léon: The Professional (1994), The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999), and The Big Blue (1988). No trailer for this film, though...Cookieman108

Back in the 80s, so many elements of this film were fresh and new, in particular the editing.Because these techniques are now standard, the film has lost that edge. The 'wow' factor is gone. It doesn't hold up well, but it's really fun to see the early roles for some of the now famous actors like Jean Reno.It is the story of a woman that married for money and security, and the man from her past that is still obsessed with her.He crashes back into her life by stealing incriminating papers from her shady dealing husband, who sends both her and his goons to retrieve the documents.Wish it were subtitled instead of dubbed.

Because I really enjoyed "The Professional," (It's got some violence so if you can stomach it, SEE THIS great set of performances/action) by Luc Besson, I thought I'd like all his work.WRONG!If you're young and think you'll live forever, go ahead and waste another hour or so of your life with "Subway." No real plot. No character you care about. A nightmare of almost absolutely nothing interesting happening.I can't write more. I'm getting upset again thinking about it.Besson does have a more interesting/not great film called, "Angela O."Some also liked a futuristic, sci-fi of his starring Bruce Willis (can't remember the title....... it's late......... but I wasn't crazy about it.Luc! Get it together man!

Perfect