‘La Jetée, The Fifth Shot’: DOK Leipzig Review

Dir: Dominique Cabrera. France. 2024. 104mins

Regardless that it’s primarily composed of pictures as a substitute of transferring photos, Chris Marker’s science fiction quick La Jetée (1962) continues to enthrall filmmakers and cinephiles alike. Living proof: La Jetée, The Fifth Shot, an enchanting but in addition considerably rambling new documentary function about only one shot —or fairly {photograph}— within the quick. Issues kick off when an aged French man appears to recognise himself as a baby within the titular fifth shot, which units in movement a meandering investigation by director Dominique Cabrera (Corniche Kennedy).

Most interesting for cinephiles on a conceptual degree.

La Jetée, The Fifth Shot performs in DOK Leipzig competitors; maybe not coincidentally the pageant that awarded Marker’s 1963 opus Le Joli Mai, which was shot similtaneously La Jetée and which can be abundantly excerpted right here. Cinematheques and cinephile broadcasters might wish to give this a glance.

While visiting the Cinémathèque Française together with his grownup daughter Camille, Jean-Henri thinks he recognises himself because the little boy standing on the railing of the jetty — the well-known Jetée of the title — at Orly Airport close to the start of Marker’s quick. Jean-Henri comes from a household of so-called pieds-noirs, folks of European descent who had been born in Algeria throughout the 130-odd years of French rule. Many moved to France across the time Algeria turned unbiased in 1962, though some had by no means set foot on this “motherland”  (as was the case for Jean-Henri’s household). As is defined within the movie, these migrants would come to Orly to observe different flights from Algeria arrive, within the hope they’d recognise somebody from residence. 

Because it occurs, Jean-Henri comes from a big household of image-makers and photographers and his cousin, Dominique Cabrera, is a filmmaker who directs this documentary concerning the investigation into a particularly unlikely coincidence. Cabrera’s first intuition is to attempt to work out if Jean-Henri is admittedly the boy within the grainy black-and-white shot. We see him standing subsequent to his mother and father who, like him, are staring forward, little question a airplane coming in. However with all of their backs turned to Marker’s digital camera, it’s arduous to establish them with 100% accuracy. A number of different relations in addition to photographic proof from private archives are introduced in to attempt to construct a case. 

A lot of the motion occurs in what seems like a dimly-lit modifying suite, the place researchers and editors are at work whereas Cabrera talks together with her topics. The conversations are casual, actually because she’s talking to relations however, even so, the way in which wherein the director lays out info shouldn’t be all the time instantly understandable. But a throughline of enthusiastic about photos and their which means, concerning the doubles which can be created when capturing actuality, does maintain issues intriguing. 

Certainly, the movie is most interesting for cinephiles on a conceptual degree. One of many themes of the unique La Jetée, for instance, is time journey. Cabrera’s movie, made 60-odd years after La Jetée however with individuals who performed a job within the quick a lot youthful variations of themselves, can’t assist however mess around just a little with the idea too. And moreover precise clips from different Marker movies, there are a whole lot of winky inclusions that seek advice from the enduring filmmaker’s oeuvre. The household historical past, nonetheless, appears to be extra fascinating for the characters than for viewers. And that is doubly the case for international audiences who aren’t no less than just a little bit conscious of French colonial historical past.  

Enhancing, courtesy of Sophie Brunet and Dominique Barbier, might have additionally used a bit extra rigour, because the movie does outstay its welcome at 104 minutes — nearly 4 occasions the size of Marker’s quick. Because the movie was co-produced by Franco-German broadcaster Arte, maybe a shorter model for tv is already within the works.