The Love of Jeanne Ney

The Love of Jeanne Ney

Director: G.W. Pabst

Starring: Edith Jehanne, Brigitte Helm

The Love of Jeanne Ney is another film from the German Silent era, by G.W. Pabst.

Jeanne Ney is a French woman who returns to France after her father is killed while being a political observer in Crimea (Russia), post-World War I. While in France she works for her uncle, is excited when the Bolshevik she loves comes to France and seeks her out, and her blind cousin gets involved with a scoundrel.

The sad part about this movie, is what I just wrote makes much more sense than the movie.

The script is all over the place, with many things happening at uneven pacing. There is no clear plot, theme, story or subplot. This is not an experimental or esoteric film, it is presented as a linear narrative, just not a good one.

What is going on in this film is never quite clear. What is also muddled is if Jeanne knows the man she loves killed her father. I say yes, which makes things more confusing.

The filming and style of the movie is solid. The acting is passable, with only Brigitte Helm delivering any real quality.

G.W. Pabst fails to make a compelling film with Jeanne Ney, instead allowing the film to fall into the darkness of the noir he tried to invoke.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Thoughts hurt here.

RATING: 4.5