Alphaville (film)
A tech noir fusion of dystopia and film noir.
Alphaville (subtitled Une étrange aventure de Lemmy Caution, "A Strange Adventure of Lemmy Caution") is a 1965 French New Wave film written and directed by Jean-Luc Godard. It blends dystopian science fiction with film noir, using real Paris locations instead of futuristic sets. The film won the Golden Bear at the 15th Berlin International Film Festival.
Quick Facts
- Director
- Jean-Luc Godard
- Producer
- André Michelin
- Starring
- Eddie Constantine
- Anna Karina
- Akim Tamiroff
- Cinematography
- Raoul Coutard
- Editing
- Agnès Guillemot
- Music
- Paul Misraki
- Studio
- Chaumiane Productions; Filmstudio
- Distributor
- Athos Films (France); Filmstudio (Italy)
Facts from the source article.
Plot
Lemmy Caution, a secret agent with code number 003 from the Outlands, enters Alphaville in his Ford Mustang, which he calls a Ford Galaxie. Posing as journalist Ivan Johnson for the Figaro-Pravda newspaper, he searches for missing agent Henri Dickson, aims to capture or kill Alphaville's creator Professor von Braun, and seeks to destroy the city's dictatorial computer, Alpha 60. Alpha 60, a sentient computer system, has outlawed free thought, love, poetry, and emotion, replacing them with contradictory concepts or eliminating them. People showing emotion or refusing to adapt are executed by machine-gunning into a swimming pool, stabbing by women, or electrocution in an execution theater. A Bible in every hotel room is actually a dictionary, continually updated as emotional words are banned. Images of E = mc² and E = hf appear to represent the scientism underpinning Alphaville. Caution passes through the Grand Omega Minus, from which brainwashed people are sent to other galaxies to start strikes, revolutions, family rows, and student revolts. Alphaville plans to invade the outer countries. Caution's old-fashioned machismo conflicts with the puritanical computer, and dissidents' opposition to logic is represented by faux quotations from Paul Éluard's Capitale de la douleur.
Production
Alphaville was filmed entirely in and around Paris with no special sets or props. The Electricity Board building served as the Alpha 60 computer centre, and Le Grand Hotel was also used. Eddie Constantine came to the film through producer André Michelin, who had him under contract. Constantine had become popular in France and Germany playing tough-guy detective Lemmy Caution in earlier films. Godard subverted this stereotype, and Constantine reportedly said he was shunned by producers after Alphaville's release; he did not play Lemmy Caution again until Panic Time in 1980. The opening sequence includes an unedited four-minute take of Caution walking into his hotel, checking in, riding an elevator, and being taken to his room. Cinematographer Raoul Coutard recalled that the elevator shot was achieved using two glass-walled elevators side by side, but required multiple takes due to the difficulty of synchronizing the old lifts.
Influences on the film
Caution references Louis-Ferdinand Céline in the taxi, saying 'I am on a journey to the end of the night' (Voyage au bout de la nuit, 1932). The use of poetry to combat Alpha 60 echoes attitudes in Céline's works. When interrogated by Alpha 60, Caution answers 'the immediate data of consciousness' (Essai sur les données immédiates de la conscience, 1889) when asked his religion, referencing Henri Bergson's rejection of idealism. Caution tells Alpha 60 that when it solves his riddle it will become 'my like, my brother,' echoing Charles Baudelaire's 'To the Reader' in Flowers of Evil. Jean Cocteau's 1950 film Orpheus influenced Alphaville: parallels include Orphée's search for Cégeste and Caution's for Henri Dickson, the poems on the radio and Alpha 60's aphoristic questions, and Orphée's victory over death through poetry versus Caution's use of poetry to destroy Alpha 60. When Alpha 60 is destroyed, people stagger like inhabitants of Cocteau's Zone de la mort, and Caution tells Natacha not to look back, which Godard compared to Orphée's warning to Eurydice. The voice of Alpha 60, performed by a man with a mechanical voice box, was inspired by Dr. Mabuse's disembodied voice in The Testament of Dr Mabuse (1933).
Legacy
The film inspired the name of German synth-pop band Alphaville. An affluent suburb outside São Paulo, Brazil, also bears the name Alphaville. Robert Palmer's debut album cover from 1974 was influenced by the film. Danish director Christoffer Boe co-founded the production company Alphaville Pictures in 2003, naming it after the movie. Haruki Murakami's 2004 novel After Dark includes a love hotel named Alphaville. Kelly Osbourne's 2005 music video for "One Word" pays homage to the film, recreating its black-and-white look, costumes, sets, and specific shots. Jazz bassist William Parker titled his 2007 album Alphaville Suite after the film.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who stars in Alphaville (film)?
Alphaville stars Eddie Constantine, Anna Karina and Akim Tamiroff.
Who composed the music for Alphaville (film)?
The music for Alphaville was composed by Paul Misraki.
How long is Alphaville (film)?
Alphaville has a running time of 99 minutes.
More in French Science Fiction Drama Films
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced