Releases
'The Devil, Probably,' Directed by French Master Robert Bresson, Opens Exclusive San Francisco Engagement August 3 at SF Film Society Cinema
One of Bresson’s Greatest, and Least-Seen, Movies, Paints a Dark Picture of Wasted Youth and Beauty; New 35mm Print
7/9/2012
A new 35mm print of The Devil, Probably (Le diable probablement, France, 1977), directed by Robert Bresson (Akira Kurosawa Award, SFIFF 1988), a revered figure of cinema, opens an exclusive San Francisco engagement August 3 at San Francisco Film Society Cinema (1746 Post Street).
Constructed as a flashback from news reports of a young man’s suspicious suicide, Robert Bresson’s splenetic 1977 drama puts the post-1968 world on trial and judges it unlivable. Charles (Antoine Monnier), a quietly imperious sensualist of blazing intelligence, lives idly in a bare garret and does little but brazenly chase women. Essaying the gamut of modern pursuits—politics, religion, education, drugs, psychoanalysis—he finds them all pointless, and his despair is deepened by atrocious documentary footage of dire pollution that he watches at the home of the writer and environmentalist Michel (Henri de Maublanc), whose girlfriend he steals. Bresson’s chilling visions of daily life—including a brilliant sequence aboard a bus that depicts the mechanical world as a horror—suggest its hostility to the passions of youth. The film, however, offers a near-parody of the tamped-down spiritual universe of Bresson’s earlier work: these children of the revolution tremble with uncertainty, and their loose gestures and shambling ways conflict with his precise images. Both the world and Bresson’s cinema are in disarray, and the signs of his inner conflict are deeply troubling and tremendously moving.—Richard Brody, The New Yorker
Written by Robert Bresson. Photographed by Pasqualino De Santis. With Antoine Monnier, Tina Irissari, Henri de Maublanc. In French with subtitles. 95 min. Distributed by Film Desk.
Showtimes 3:00, 5:00, 7:00, 9:00 pm
Tickets $9 for SFFS members, $11 general, $10 senior/student/disabled. Box office opens July 12 online at sffs.org and in person at SF Film Society Cinema.
To request screeners contact bproctor@sffs.org.
For photos and press materials visit sffs.org/pressdownloads.
At SF Film Society Cinema, the stylish state-of-the art theater located in the New People building at 1746 Post Street (Webster/Buchanan) in Japantown, the San Francisco Film Society offers its acclaimed exhibition, education and filmmaker services programs and events on a daily year-round basis. For complete up-to-date information on all SFFS Cinema programming, including buying tickets, visit sffs.org/cinema.
More upcoming San Francisco Film Society programs
Continuing on consecutive Saturdays through July 21: The Story of Film: An Odyssey
Through July 12: Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present
Opening July 13: Ballplayer: Pelotero
Also opening July 13: Bonsái
July 14 only: The Storytellers Show
July 19 only: Dark Horse Filmmaker Todd Solondz in Person
Opening July 20: A Burning Hot Summer
July 20–August 11: KinoTek: Nate Boyce
Opening July 27: Sacrifice
Opening August 10: The Moth Diaries Mary Harron’s modern gothic thriller, based on the novel by Rachel Klein, skirts the line between horror film and psychological study while making full use of the atmospheric possibilities of its boarding school setting.
Also Opening August 10: Battle Royale If the plot about a group of teen-agers murdering each other in a gladiatorial contest sounds familiar, just be aware that this film came out eight years before Suzanne Collins wrote The Hunger Games.
August 11 only: Special Family Screening of James and the Giant Peach
Opening August 17: Love in the City
August 24: Master Class: Les Blank on Documentary
September 15–October 20: KinoTek: Brent Green, sculpture and animation
December: KinoTek: Kota Ezawa, animation
San Francisco Film Society
Building on a legacy of more than 50 years of bringing the best in world cinema to the Bay Area, the San Francisco Film Society is a national leader in exhibition, education and filmmaker services.
The Film Society presents 365 days of exhibition each year, reaching a total audience of 130,000 people. Its acclaimed education program introduces international, independent and documentary cinema and media literacy to more than 10,000 teachers and students and presents more than 100 classes and workshops annually. Through Filmmaker360, the Film Society’s filmmaker services program, essential creative and business services and funding totaling millions of dollars are provided to deserving filmmakers of all levels.
The Film Society seeks to elevate all aspects of film culture, offering a wide range of activities that engage emotions, inspire action, change perceptions and advance knowledge. A 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation, it is largely donor and member supported. Patronage and membership provides discounted prices, access to grants and residencies, private events and a wealth of other benefits.
For more information visit sffs.org.
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Constructed as a flashback from news reports of a young man’s suspicious suicide, Robert Bresson’s splenetic 1977 drama puts the post-1968 world on trial and judges it unlivable. Charles (Antoine Monnier), a quietly imperious sensualist of blazing intelligence, lives idly in a bare garret and does little but brazenly chase women. Essaying the gamut of modern pursuits—politics, religion, education, drugs, psychoanalysis—he finds them all pointless, and his despair is deepened by atrocious documentary footage of dire pollution that he watches at the home of the writer and environmentalist Michel (Henri de Maublanc), whose girlfriend he steals. Bresson’s chilling visions of daily life—including a brilliant sequence aboard a bus that depicts the mechanical world as a horror—suggest its hostility to the passions of youth. The film, however, offers a near-parody of the tamped-down spiritual universe of Bresson’s earlier work: these children of the revolution tremble with uncertainty, and their loose gestures and shambling ways conflict with his precise images. Both the world and Bresson’s cinema are in disarray, and the signs of his inner conflict are deeply troubling and tremendously moving.—Richard Brody, The New Yorker
Written by Robert Bresson. Photographed by Pasqualino De Santis. With Antoine Monnier, Tina Irissari, Henri de Maublanc. In French with subtitles. 95 min. Distributed by Film Desk.
Showtimes 3:00, 5:00, 7:00, 9:00 pm
Tickets $9 for SFFS members, $11 general, $10 senior/student/disabled. Box office opens July 12 online at sffs.org and in person at SF Film Society Cinema.
To request screeners contact bproctor@sffs.org.
For photos and press materials visit sffs.org/pressdownloads.
At SF Film Society Cinema, the stylish state-of-the art theater located in the New People building at 1746 Post Street (Webster/Buchanan) in Japantown, the San Francisco Film Society offers its acclaimed exhibition, education and filmmaker services programs and events on a daily year-round basis. For complete up-to-date information on all SFFS Cinema programming, including buying tickets, visit sffs.org/cinema.
More upcoming San Francisco Film Society programs
Continuing on consecutive Saturdays through July 21: The Story of Film: An Odyssey
Through July 12: Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present
Opening July 13: Ballplayer: Pelotero
Also opening July 13: Bonsái
July 14 only: The Storytellers Show
July 19 only: Dark Horse Filmmaker Todd Solondz in Person
Opening July 20: A Burning Hot Summer
July 20–August 11: KinoTek: Nate Boyce
Opening July 27: Sacrifice
Opening August 10: The Moth Diaries Mary Harron’s modern gothic thriller, based on the novel by Rachel Klein, skirts the line between horror film and psychological study while making full use of the atmospheric possibilities of its boarding school setting.
Also Opening August 10: Battle Royale If the plot about a group of teen-agers murdering each other in a gladiatorial contest sounds familiar, just be aware that this film came out eight years before Suzanne Collins wrote The Hunger Games.
August 11 only: Special Family Screening of James and the Giant Peach
Opening August 17: Love in the City
August 24: Master Class: Les Blank on Documentary
September 15–October 20: KinoTek: Brent Green, sculpture and animation
December: KinoTek: Kota Ezawa, animation
San Francisco Film Society
Building on a legacy of more than 50 years of bringing the best in world cinema to the Bay Area, the San Francisco Film Society is a national leader in exhibition, education and filmmaker services.
The Film Society presents 365 days of exhibition each year, reaching a total audience of 130,000 people. Its acclaimed education program introduces international, independent and documentary cinema and media literacy to more than 10,000 teachers and students and presents more than 100 classes and workshops annually. Through Filmmaker360, the Film Society’s filmmaker services program, essential creative and business services and funding totaling millions of dollars are provided to deserving filmmakers of all levels.
The Film Society seeks to elevate all aspects of film culture, offering a wide range of activities that engage emotions, inspire action, change perceptions and advance knowledge. A 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation, it is largely donor and member supported. Patronage and membership provides discounted prices, access to grants and residencies, private events and a wealth of other benefits.
For more information visit sffs.org.
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