Blue is the Warmest Color was my most anticipated film screening at the 49th Chicago International Film Festival. I attended a pre-festival press screening for the French film last week ago, and it met my expectations… but also let me down in a number of ways (the review will be up this weekend). Controversy has swirled around the film’s graphic, sometimes exploitative sex scenes between the two leads, Lea Seydoux and Adele Exarchopoulos, and their frosty relationship with director Abdellatif Kechiche. In spite of the controversy, the film was also awarded the Palme d’or, Cannes Film Festival’s highest award, as well as becoming the only film in Cannes history to award the Palme d’Or to both the director and lead actors.
In a talk with The Independent, Seydoux elaborated on her feelings over the aforementioned sex scenes and how they had her “feeling like a prostitute”:
“Of course it was kind of humiliating sometimes, I was feeling like a prostitute. Of course, he uses that sometimes. He was using three cameras, and when you have to fake your orgasm for six hours…,” the actress said. “I can’t say that it was nothing. But for me it is more difficult to show my feelings than my body.”
In response, Kehiche justified the multiple cameras and rumored dozens of takes:
“Concerning the love scenes, I didn’t ask for anything other than the expression of a form of passion. I felt like showing this carnal and passionate love, entirely guided by desire. […] For me, the scenes as they are in the film don’t go far enough. It’s true that we did start them over often, but for very evident reason. I couldn’t ask Adele and Lea to make desire last, they had to want to do the scene.”
Blue is the Warmest Color will generate a lot of buzz upon its release. If you have the time, I strongly urge you to catch its only Chicago International Film Festival screening this Saturday, October 12tmh at 6:30pm. If you can’t swing it, the film will receive a very limited theatrical release on October 25th..
[The Independent, via The Playlist]