THE MODEL SHOP

THE MODEL SHOP (1969)
Written, produced, directed by Jacques Demy
English dialogue by Carol Eastman
Music by Spirit

THE MODEL SHOP, written, produced and directed by Jacques Demy, is an interesting meditation on relationships and loneliness circa 1969. This low-budget reflection of contemporary California of the times tells the story of George, an unemployed architect disillusioned with the shallow competitive money-grubbing nature of his career, whose relationship with his live-in girlfriend Gloria, an aspiring actress, is falling apart. The two are professionally jealous of each other and bicker constantly.
Gloria is bitter that George quit his promising job at the prestigious architectural firm while he is either berating her attempts to audition for acting gigs or making her feel like a whore when she is asked to do scenes naked.
George’s car is being repossessed because he hasn’t made a car payment in 2 months, due to his unemployment. This construct humorously mirrors love itself, which can be “called back” or taken away at any time when it isn’t tended properly.
George drives around trying to borrow money from his friends for his overdue car payment. Remarkably enough, the second friend he visits is a musician in the real-life California psychedelic blues rock band Spirit.
Spirit composed and performed most of THE MODEL SHOP’s soundtrack. These excellent compositions featuring the lovely guitar virtuosity of Randy California are cleverly incidentally scattered throughout the movie. One Spirit song plays on a jukebox in a diner/pool hall. Another is playing on the radio as George drives around town. Spirit’s beautiful musical passages and songs definitely add another layer of cultural integrity to this complex film.
There is a rather long dialog passage, too, where music, art and philosophy are discussed by our protagonist and his musician friend. (These dialog scenes were written by Carol Eastman, who also wrote THE SHOOTING and FIVE EASY PIECES.) This discussion is very precious, tender and innocently idealistic in a way seldom portrayed in interchanges between males. George and his friend actually appear to be sensitive and communicating on a deeper level. It’s actually quite touching but very short-lived, because the musician starts yelling at his wife to quiet the baby directly after making a sensitive and understanding statement in a much-too-brief moment of clarity and observation. Life intrudes on the moment
After this scene, George begins following a woman (the beautiful actress Anouk Aimee) dressed all in white (the color of mourning in many non-Western cultures), out of boredom and lustful curiosity. He follows her to her workplace, where women are paid to model lingerie for amateur photographers in small private rooms with bright photographic lights. George is so intrigued by this emotionally-distant yet beautiful (and slightly older) French woman that he visits her twice at work and tries to convince her to have an affair with him. She is heartbroken, she tells him, and will never love anyone again.
Another very tender and revealing discussion, this time concerning love and relationships, idealized and actual, takes place between George and this mysteriously sad model Cecile/Lola. So much is revealed concerning the depths of loneliness, bitterness and despair that a wayward and vindictive lover can bestow upon his or her mate, leaving that person a hollow and empty shell, unwilling and perhaps incapable of ever experiencing such profound emotions again. To destroy a person so completely must stem from an utterly callous and irrational disregard for that person’s emotional well-being on any level.
George has never really experienced anything like the model’s grief and loneliness, but he tries to understand and show some compassion, nonetheless. He is facing his own difficult challenge – he must report for the draft (Vietnam) in 3 days. He convinces Cecile that they can help out each other.
THE MODEL SHOP is a very well-written, well-acted, well-directed story of complex interpersonal relationships, artistic ideals, and emotional devastation set against the turbulent backdrop of late 1960’s southern California. This low-budget classic is much more intelligent than it had to be and is almost Bergman-esque in nature, with so much revealed through private conversations. The music and sound design is great throughout. It is a beautiful, melancholy meditation on relationships and the human psyche.

-----Review by Anne Heller