To start off, Orpheus was a little disappointing for me at first simply because of how the myth was molded to fit the film. We were just talking about Orpheus' story in my Chaucer class and I never imagined there would be this kind of version to it. But, putting aside the fact that it was based on the myth, there were so many interesting concepts to this film!
My favorite idea is the thought that Orpheus was falling for Death, or playing with suicide. It was actually brought up in class and the more I think about it relating to the movie the more interesting it is to me. At the beginning Orpheus feels threatened by another poet, who is killed shortly after we meet him. This is the first time Orpheus is encountered by Death, he follows her and is entirely intrigued by her. As the movie progresses, he becomes more and more reclusive, interestingly enough confined to the vehicle in which Death travels while in the mortal land. He falls in love with her and seems willing to do anything for her. Orpheus showed little interest in his wife throughout the film until the very end, in which he had forgotten he had encountered Death at all. Even when he has the chance to go get his wife from the underworld, he is interested only in the chance to see Death again.
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I totally agree with you. I felt the film was a little disapointing because it did not completly follow the myth. I guess I envisioned it to be more myth like. I hated how Orpheus was willing to travel to the underworld to save his wife yet in reality he wouldn't give her the time day! I also loved the idea of Orpheous playing with his suicide, I blogged about that in my post too.
ReplyDeleteI also agree. I was disappointed that the movie didn't follow the myth more. I definitly did not want to see Orpheus fall in love with Death when he had enough problems with his own wife. I also didn't like how he was intrigued by her right off the bat and just through his wife to the side. I also agree with what you said about Orpheus playing with his suicide.
ReplyDeleteIf you were expecting the film to be a literal translation of the myth then yeah I can see how you could be disappointed. I thought it was interesting to see what Cocteau presented the film differently from the myth, allowing it to fit in a modern landscape as well as offering new interpretations on the well known myth. But I do agree that Orpheus seems more interested in Death than his wife, which is very different from the myth.
ReplyDeleteI may not have been disappointed but the differences between the myth and the film did make it more complicated to me. I think the idea of Orpheus flirting with death and masochism are what made the ending seem so fake to me. It feels like too radical a change from him in the rest of the film and that his previous feelings should be expressed in some way. Other than that though, I agree that the idea of him playing with suicide is intriguing and adds a deeper level of thought to the story.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure, ultimately, that Orpheus was suicidal. I think that the opposite was true--Death was his thrill ride, and a whole lot more fun than his life, because she brought him a lot close to danger.
ReplyDeleteCocteau's intention isn't a literal adaptation of the myth, as others are saying here, but rather a meditation on what it means to be a poet in his current age, with Orpheus as the traditional figure of heroic poetry.
I'd be interested to see you say more about Orpheus's rivalry with the younger poet. What is that about, do you think? Also, don't forget to bring the reading in!