The Reckless Moment

Dir: Max Ophüls

1949

****

Time has favored Max Ophüls' adaption of  Elisabeth Sanxay Holding's 1947 novel The Blank Wall, but in 1949 is was a huge box office failure. Strange really, considering the film stared the very popular Joan Bennett and James Mason who was making a name for himself in the US. Ophüls' Letter From an Unknown Woman did really well the previous year too, one can only imagine that the story didn't appeal to a 1949 audience although I find that hard to believe. As you'd expect from Ophüls, the visuals are stunning. Certain details in the story I found less attractive and I felt that much of the plot is skipped through at an unreasonable pace. The acting is superb but the characters themselves aren't always particularly believable but much of that is down to the fiction of the time. The film is both dated and timeless in many respects, the crux of the story is brilliant and has been very influential since, it's just ever so slightly let down by stereotypes and 'Gee whiz' characters. These are just niggles though, overall the film is stunning and perfect viewing for a rainy Sunday afternoon under a blanket. You have to feel bad for Ophüls though, after escaping Nazi Germany and making some stunning films in the US, he died many decades before he was regarded and remembered as being one of the greatest directors of all time (although many knew it when he was still alive). It was said that Ophüls seamless camera movements, complex crane and dolly sweeps and long tracking shots influenced the young Stanley Kubrick. Paul Thomas Anderson is also a huge fan and you can see his influence in both director's films. James Mason made two films with Ophüls and made a name for himself in the States as a result. He admired the director greatly and wrote a poem about his signature technique and love of long tracking shots and original camera movements. 

A shot that does not call for tracks

Is agony for poor old Max,

Who, separated from his dolly,

Is wrapped in deepest melancholy.

Once, when they took away his crane,

           I thought he'd never smile again.