PURPLE NOON
A film review by David N. Butterworth
Copyright 1996 David N. Butterworth/The Summer Pennsylvanian
Directed by Rene Clement Rating: *** (Maltin scale)
Miramax Zoe pictures in collaboration with film preservationist Martin Scorsese have chosen to re-release distinguised French director Rene Clement's 1960 suspenser PLEIN SOLEIL (loosely translated as PURPLE NOON) at a time when deliberate, carefully-crafted movies are uncommon.
PURPLE NOON does not boast the multi-million dollar budgets of some of this summer's wide-eyed extravaganzas but it does boast the Tom Cruise of its day in Alain Delon, almost perfectly handsome with his dark hair, straight nose, firm chin, and soulful, expressive eyes.
Looks are important here because although PURPLE NOON is a singularly thrill-less thriller, it is lovely to look at.
Based on Patricia Highsmith's "The Talented Mr. Ripley," the plot of PURPLE NOON is deceptively simple: Tom covets everything of his playboy friend Philippe--his money, his yacht, and his girlfriend--that he plans to murder him and assume his identity.
Tom Ripley (Delon) has been promised $5,000 by a wealthy American, Mr. Greenleaf, for the safe return of his errant son Philippe (played by Maurice Ronet), currently savoring the good life in Italy. Along for the ride is Philippe's fiancee, Marge (Marie Laforet), for whom Phillipe's impressive sloop is named.
Although the first part of the film takes place aboard Philippe's sailboat, the film does not create the sexual tension of similar loony-on-board psychodramas, such as DEAD CALM or Polanski's KNIFE IN THE WATER. Instead, Clement's film builds slowly, intensifying the brooding relationship between the two men, with Laforet's role reduced to little more than cabin crew. Delon and Ronet are an imposing screen pair, and they handle themselves well in a movie that, although not nail-bitingly suspenseful or even very clever, is a textbook exercise in subtle malevolence.
But the real star of the film is cinematographer Henry Decae, whose use of saturated color and monster close-ups make PURPLE NOON a visual treat. Decae bathes the actors in color: the often shirtless Ronet is positively bronze, as if he's been glazed by the Mediterranean sun; Delon is lovingly photographed with the same kind of respect as one might give, say, Ingrid Bergman; and the pouty, very French Laforet shimmers in her stripey tees and tricolor deck garb.
In addition to the beautiful people, Decae also captures the complementary hues of the surrounding topography; the pastel-painted haunts of Rome, Taormina, and Mongibello, with their red clay roofs, bright shutters, and ornate marble tiles. Likewise, the interiors of these dwellings are asplash with a splendid variety of tints and shades.
And, of course, there's the blue, blue sea.
Rene Clement is often credited with providing inspiration for the French New Wave and this film confirms that assertion. Buoyed along by a vibrant Nino Rota score, stunning photography and solid lead performances, PURPLE NOON is worth a look any time of day.
-- David N. Butterworth
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