"For the Movie Lover" Director Arnaud Desplechin: There is no superiority or inferiority in movies [Director's Interview Vol. 468]

A love letter to film that anyone who loves film will sympathize with. It takes the form of a biography of Paul Dedalus, played by Mathieu Amalric in Arnaud Desplechin's film Like a Woman (1996), and depicts the film career of Paul, who could be considered Desplechin's alter ego. A cinema essay that talks extensively about the history of masterpieces from the birth of film to the present day, and the appeal of film. What was director Arnaud Desplechin's intention when he created "For All You Love?" We spoke to him.

Synopsis of "To You Who Loves Movies"

The first time he went to the cinema when he was 6 years old and his grandmother took him. When he was 14, he pretended to be 16 and sneaked into the cinema. A screening in the film club during his school days. He remembers studying film at university when he was 22. At the age of 30 and at a crossroads in his life, Paul watched Truffaut's " The 400 Blows " (59) at the cinema and decided to change careers from being a critic to being a film director.

Index

• Interview about his thoughts on the film
• There is no superiority or inferiority in movies.

Interview about his thoughts on the film

Q: This film is filled with Director Desplechin's passion for film.

Desplechin: I love movies on TV, and TV is very important to me. There is a scene in this film where a little boy is watching a movie on TV, and I have learned a lot from movies that I watch on TV. I watched the movie " Roma " (2018) directed by Alfonso Cuarón on Netflix, and it was such a shock that it changed my life. Now, the times have changed from TV to streaming, and we can gain more from it. Of course, there are some things that can only be obtained at the movie theater. That is the size of the screen. Each of us lives a small life, but I think experiencing life projected on the big screen of a movie theater is irreplaceable.

"For the Movie Lover" © 2024 CG Cinema / Scala Films / Arte France Cinema/ Hil Valle

Q: In between scenes, various people of all ages and genders talk about their thoughts on the film, like a documentary. What kind of communication did you have during filming?

Desplechin: To film this scene, we gathered people from a variety of backgrounds. We wanted not only cinephiles, but also people who only watch entertainment movies, to talk about their thoughts in front of the camera. To draw that out, we asked them many questions, such as, "Where is your favorite seat in the movie theater?", "What movie made you cry, and what movie made you laugh?", "What movie enriched your life?", and "How many times have you seen each movie?"

The stories that everyone answered were so interesting that we used a long 19-minute section in the film. It was a shame to cut them out, so it was difficult to shorten them.

Q: As a director, I'm sure you learned a lot from what they said.

Desplechin: They were really ordinary people, and we were meeting and talking for the first time on the spot, so filming was very tiring (laughs). Among them, one person's story left a strong impression on me. When asked, "What was the scariest movie you've ever seen?", the person answered, " The Battle of Algiers " (1966). He had experienced the Algerian conflict. It made me think.

There is no superiority or inferiority in movies.