Andy Gillet is watched over in his sleep by Stéphanie Crayencour and Cécile Cassel in Eric Rohmer’s voluntary swan song, THE ROMANCE OF ASTREA AND CELEDON.
James Barrie’s play MARY ROSE, Alfred Hitchcock’s dream-project, lurks in that artist’s output. Reeves is also a figure for Powell, “direct- ing” the villagers on his screen and later directing Carter’s case and uniting its double narrative. Reeves’ dogs are in fact Powell’s. If Powell saw himself as a Prospero-like magician, it was unfortunately pro- phetic of his later career “exile” af- ter PEEPING TOM. Just as THE TEMPEST was Shakespeare’s final play, AGE OF CONSENT turned out to be Powell’s final feature and is the closest he got to filming Prospero’s tale. Bradley is his island’s aging, reclusive, creative wizard, with paintbrushes for wands, but he is a self-exile rather than a man be- trayed. Jones says Powell at one point wanted to end the film with Bradley turning to the camera and declaring that he’s given up paint- ing for photography in order to make films like this one, a gesture
that would certainly seal the iden- tification. Jones also points out that this last feature is an island film, as was the film Powell considered his personal debut, THE EDGE OF THE WORLD. It’s also a secret col- laboration with an uncredited Pressburger, whom Powell at least consulted. These movies make their US disc debut thanks to The Film Foundation, which released THE FILMS OF BUDD BOETTICHER a few months earlier. It would be churlish to complain that the Boetticher set had five movies while we’re still waiting for many other Powells; instead, we’re grateful that these restorations finally provide Yanks and other Region 1 types with lush copies of two films from the catalogue of a major film artist.
Martin Scorsese offers an intro for each movie. Other bo- nus segments only accompany the later title, for which a
making-of (17m) interviews unit manager Kevin Powell (Michael’s son), editor Anthony Buckley, and Sculthorpe. There are sepa- rate, charming interviews for Mirren (12m) and the Taylors (10m). The 1946 film is fullscreen while the later is presented in an- amorphic 1.85:1. Both offer English and French subtitles.
THE ROMANCE OF ASTREA AND CELADON
Les Amours d’Astrée et de Céladon 2007, Koch Lorber, $26.98, 109m 5s, DVD By Michael Barrett
This light curiosity from Eric Rohmer is based on Honoré D’urfé’s very long 17th century pastoral romance L’ASTRÉE, which contains elements that the packaging appropriately com- pares to AS YOU LIKE IT and A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM.
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