#104 - The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)

Now, I have used the English title here, since here in England the U.S. of A. that's what we squawk speak, but the French title uses the word "parapluies", which happens to be one of my favorite words.  I feel like our word for "umbrella" is the least exciting of all languages.  I mean, who wouldn't want to ask someone to pass him his bumbershoot?

Anyways, on to the film: it holds a distinction of being quite experimental in that it is a non-musical with only sung dialogue.  One thing that is immediately apparent is that the purpose of the sung dialogue is to elevate the situation above the mundane: the lovely Catherine Deneuve is a young woman who works in her mother's umbrella shop (yes, an umbrella shop), and the very pretty Nino Castelnuovo is a mechanic, and they're both so in love and wanting to get married.  Awww.  And both of them (and Deneuve's mother) all have very nice voices. Of course, it is funny to hear dialogue like "Bonjour" and "Pourquoi?" sung, but that's part of the whole mood.

As you watch the film, there are several inevitabilities, and when they occur, there is a duality of "I knew that was going to happen" and "Yet, I liked the way the film handled it".  The acting is terrific, and it has to be, since the dialogue is a little more basic (it can't be too complicated due to the singing), and the acting and singing work together very completely.  Though the film seemed a bit hokey at first, it really grew on me as it went.

Score: 9/10