"La pieuvre" or "The Octopus" is an almost 90-year-old documentary about the animal in the title. It is silent and black-and-white and unfortunately intertitles are (too) rare in here, so this one does not have a lot of educational value. But that does not keep it from being an interesting watch. I always found octopuses fascinating, even if they are not cute at all. Back in 1928, animals were seen frequently in films, but usually (like in the "Our Gang" series) it was for reasons of cuteness or comedy value and they were really never the star of their films. Painlevé takes it to a completely different level and this film is one example why he is so highly regarded as an early nature documentary filmmaker. Some of his films have the problem of being too scientific, but this is absolutely not the case here. I enjoyed the watch and Painlevé must have enjoyed making this 13-minute film too as he made another one on these animals several decades later when he could use color and sound. I recommend "La pieuvre". Thumbs up.
2 Reviews
Not a Nice Person
boblipton28 August 2018
The octopus crawls over sleeping women and out of open windows. It lurks in trees. At the bottom of the sea, it plays with the skulls of dead men. Brrr! Painlevé's first movie may have been made for the lecture class, but this was made for general release by a man who had appeared in Bunuel's UN CHIEN ANDALOU as "Chief Ant Handler."
After that rather sinister beginning, the audience gets a more scientific view of the creatures, but it's certainly a heck of a beginning. It remains an interesting, even admirable creature, but certainly not a sympathetic one.
I had never heard of Jean Painlevé before poking around the France section of Filmstruck. Born in 1902, he was the son of the mathematician and French Prime Minister Paul Painlevé. He entered film with Michel Simon and made the first of his films, mostly about undersea life, in the 1920s. Wikipedia claims he directed over 200 films. The IMDb just over 40. Twenty-three were released in dvd by Criterion in 2009 as SCIENCE IS FICTION.
After that rather sinister beginning, the audience gets a more scientific view of the creatures, but it's certainly a heck of a beginning. It remains an interesting, even admirable creature, but certainly not a sympathetic one.
I had never heard of Jean Painlevé before poking around the France section of Filmstruck. Born in 1902, he was the son of the mathematician and French Prime Minister Paul Painlevé. He entered film with Michel Simon and made the first of his films, mostly about undersea life, in the 1920s. Wikipedia claims he directed over 200 films. The IMDb just over 40. Twenty-three were released in dvd by Criterion in 2009 as SCIENCE IS FICTION.
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