Model Shop (1969) Director: Jacques Demy Watched: May 2018 Rating: 5/10 An "A" for effort, Proves Demy should stick with French, Not co-writing this. George refuses work, Loves a girl he hardly knows, Fears the draft and death? Abysmal acting, Especially Hays who has No language excuse! Aimée plays "Lola", With far less dazzle this time, Though still beautiful. Props for nostalgic L.A., "Spirit" band, life insight quotes. #HaikuSonnet #PoemReview #French ---- Haiku Sonnets are comprised of 4 3-line haiku plus a couplet of either 5 or 7 syllables, totaling 14 lines, the same number of lines found in a sonnet. (5-7-5, 5-7-5, 5-7-5, 5-7-5, 7-7/5-5) The perfect pairing of Asian and Western poetry?

Gary Lockwood cuts an amusingly masculine presence on the screen: dressed in T-shirts and blue jeans, chain-smoking and driving a revamped jalopy--his hair combed down over his forehead like a teenage car mechanic--he's like a walking centerfold out of Tiger Beat. Lockwood plays an unemployed denizen of Los Angeles who follows peculiarly glamorous Anouk Aimée one afternoon down the city street and into a model shop (where men can photograph girls--look but don't touch). She's a French immigrant who'll be returning home soon (something to do with her papers), and he's been drafted and about to have his car repossessed. Certainly a one-night-stand is all these two lovelies can afford, but the things they talk about, the connection they make, may last a whole lot longer. Director Jacques Demy seems to have fallen in love with late-'60s L.A., and much of the movie is spent just following Lockwood around from place to place. It isn't right to say the picture meanders (it hasn't got agenda enough to actually meander), though it does feel mighty thin. Films based upon character discussion are apt to tire some viewers' patience, but those in the mood for a low-keyed, would-be love story could certainly do worse. Lockwood is cut from the same cloth as Adam Roarke or Robert Forster: boyish but solemn, perhaps a loner, and of very few words. Still, he connects with the audience right away on an intrinsic level (you trust him) and his final scene on the telephone is a winner. **1/2 from ****

Two somewhat lost souls are studied in this ambling, low-key film, covering a 24-hour period. Lockwood plays a 26 year-old architect student who's left his job because things aren't happening quickly enough for him and he's disenchanted with the time it takes to really make a mark in the field. He lives with his actress girlfriend Hay who, while maybe not soaring to the top, is at least on a track to someplace, unlike him. With money scarce, his car is about to be repossessed unless he can cough up $100. Aimee plays a remote, austere French woman who catches his eye and who he practically stalks in order to meet. Their simultaneously simple, yet complex, existences collide briefly with each giving the other a portion of what's missing in his or her life. Lockwood (who's looking very fit and hunky here) tries to give his often-expository dialogue a realistic, unaffected touch, but often he's defeated by the contrivance and occasional pontificating nature of his lines. He's understated to the point of near disinterest at times. However, he's intriguing enough to hold attention most of the movie. Hay is clearly trying, but she just doesn't have the acting skill or ease of manner to put her character across without seeming forced and unnatural. Top-billed Aimee, who actually has a smallish role, is appropriately jaded and mysterious (and compelling looking), but is almost a little too vague to really grab hold of the viewer. This was director Demy's only Hollywood film and his lack of grasp with the language translates to his cast. It's clear that he didn't have the security with English in order to help his actors massage the dialogue and make it sound as comfortable and as dynamic as it needed to be. Too frequently, lines are delivered with the wrong words emphasized and this bleeds away some of the impact of them. The film does afford a priceless view of Los Angeles in the mid-60s and fans of vintage automobiles ought to have a field day ogling the many, many cars of the era that Lockwood drives alongside in his frequent sojourns on the road. Music in the film vacillates between songs by the group Spirit and classical selections, all of which, in a very odd decision, appear to come from the very same radio station in Lockwood's car!! Cultural touchstones such as rock music and underground/independent newspapers (as well as a seedy model-for-hire joint) provide some moments of interest amid the soul-searching and almost dreamlike meandering of Lockwood. This is definitely not a film for everyone, but for those inclined it's worth a look.

Jacques Demy has one hell of a sense of humor; he took Anouk Aimee to California and signed up a team of Sequoias to play opposite her, in support of Gary Redwood (oops, sorry, Lockwood). This has to set some kind of record for the most wooden screen acting EVER. By comparison Lola, the earlier Demy film featuring Aimee as the same character, was a masterpiece to rank alongside Citizen Kane. Actually Lola was a pretty good 'small' movie and it's nigh on impossible to believe that Model Shop is the work of the same man. Aimee is, of course, a fine actress and was well established at the time she made Lola but here it's a case of one filet mignon and a handful of low-grade hamburgers. Don't waste your time.