Psychology was one of the most important aspects in the plays of Arthur Schnitzler, Vienna's most brilliant and best-known fin de siècle dramatist. German director Max Ophüls knew this of course, still, in my opinion he didn't put psychology first in his very drama-like film version of Schnitzler's play Der Reigen. Ophüls lays quite a lot of weight into the appearances of the mysterious `showmaster', which makes the film rather dark and a little bit spooky, although it is in fact about perfectly ordinary people and their instincts.
The actors are French and speak French (although the setting remains Vienna). The language makes the film a little more pathetic than it should be: `l'amour' has completely different qualities than `Liebe' or `love'.
6 out of 10.
The actors are French and speak French (although the setting remains Vienna). The language makes the film a little more pathetic than it should be: `l'amour' has completely different qualities than `Liebe' or `love'.
6 out of 10.