THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE

France, 1972, 105 minutes, Colour.
Fernando Rey, Delphine Seyrig, Stephane Audran, Jean- Pierre Cassell, Paul Frankour, Michael Piccoli, Bulle Ogier.
Directed by Luis Bunuel.

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie is Luis Bunuel at the age of 70. The surrealist experimentor of the 20s, the cinematic explorer of the 50s and 60s with the enclosed social and religious worlds of classics like Viridiana and The Exterminating Angel moved to a calmer, and more colourful approach to his explorations and satiric thrusts in films like Belle de Jour (1967). By Tristana (1970), there was even a serenity in his attacks on Spanish society and the Church and his presentation of infatuation, innocence lost and possessiveness. This present film follows from Tristana and is a clever piece of film-making indeed. It won the Oscar for the Best Foreign Film of 1972.

It begins realistically enough with an ironic title, soon moves into a lighter version of the entrapping situations of his previous films, attacks bourgeois society and religion and finally moves into a real/unreal world of dreams and working and a fashionable dance of death involving the main characters. Once again Fernando Rey is the main star, but several of the most talented of French actors and actresses join his cast.

1. The significance and irony of the title?

2. What are the principal themes of the film? (and their relationship to Bunuel's previous portrayals of such themes?)

3. The impact of the modern urban setting.. upper middle-class manners and style? what audience response does this setting evoke?

4. were the main protagonists interesting people? Worthwhile people? How significant were their lives? How representative of people in general were they? Were they worth satirising? Why?

5. How charming were they? What sequences illustrated this most tellingly?

6. How discreet were they? About what? What standards of behaviour and morality did they live by? How hypocritical were they in terms of appearances and reality?

7. Bunuel frequently studies a small, enclosed group, trapped in their own world, unable to get out, even when there are no physical barriers. Is this true here? How pessimistic a vision of life does this represent?

8. The people here seemed always to be eating or going to eat - was there any special significance in this?

9. The principal characters - as persons, as types? What did they represent? What was being satirised? Raphael - ambassador-style, South America drugs revolutionaries. the incident with the girl. Simone - fashionable. manners, affair with Raphael, the arrival of her husband, discretion. Florence -young arrogant. Simone's husband - older, drug-traffic, relationship with his wife? The Senechals - picture of married life, their love-making instead of meeting guests, meals, the Bishop, the army, drug-involvement.

10. Besides eating, the group seemed to make mistakes about dates and so on. The significance? e.g. the opening gathering, the meal at the cafe, the wrong cafe, the death, the visit to the Senechals, inviting Maurice the Chauffeur to illustrate the point about drinking, meals at the Senechals, the drug planning, running away from the police.

11. What was the significance of their walk along the country road (and the ending) - a dance of death in life?

12. The Bishop - his significance? Religion and the Church? A modern "worker bishop?" The reaction of the Senechals to him.. in and out of cassock? Why did he want to work in the garden? In the garden of the bourgeoisie -selecting his "working" area? His assimilation into the household and its discreet charm.

13. His story about his parents, the absorbing and forgiving the gardener for the murder? Why did he shoot him - the significance of words and feelings, religion and truth?

14. The afternoon tea, no tea or coffee? Significance?

15. The soldier's story - its meaning in itself, within the themes of the film, inserted at this point? The reaction and listening of the ladies?

16. The dreams - did this fit the style of the film? How did they begin to change the film and its meaning? As each dream began could you tell whether it was dream or reality? What was the significance of this?

17. The "surrealistic" styles of the dreams.

18. Senechal's dream of the dinner on the stage. Raphael's dream of shooting the Colonel. The policeman's dream of the Sergeant's day and the torture of the young man why did the policeman dream?

19. The soldiers the army and the charming bourgeoisie - the dinner, the manoeuvres - satirising what?

20. The soldier's dream - meeting the dead. what did it mean in itself, in this part of the film? The group listening to the story? Delaying the manoeuvres

21. The arrest - did you feel sorry for the bourgeoisie?

22. The manoeuvring for their release - politics and corruption? Holidays in Miranda?

23. The bourgeoisie walk on - what did the film finally say?

24. The film won the Oscar for 1972 - Why? Was this an important film? A great film? Why?