''Hélas pour moi'' ( English: ''Alas for Me'' or ''Oh Woe Is Me'') is a 1993 French film directed by

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as ...

and starring Gérard Depardieu. This film is inspired by the legend of

Alcmene In Greek mythology, Alcmene ( ; ) or Alcmena ( ; ; ; meaning "strong in wrath") was the wife of Amphitryon, by whom she bore two children, Iphicles and Laonome. She is best known as the mother of Heracles, whose father was the god Zeus. Alcmene ...

and

Amphitryon Amphitryon (; Ancient Greek: Ἀμφιτρύων, ''gen''.: Ἀμφιτρύωνος; usually interpreted as "harassing either side", Latin: Amphitruo), in Greek mythology, was a son of Alcaeus, king of Tiryns in Argolis. His mother was named ...

and attempts to show the desire of a god to experience the truth of human desire, suffering and pleasure.

Plot

Abraham Klimt arrives in a small Swiss village to investigate an incident that occurred on July 23, 1989 involving Rachel and Simon Donnadieu, a local couple. He interviews several of the townsfolk and enlists the aid of a poet, Aude Amiel. In flashback, the story of Rachel and Simon unfolds. Per the Greek myth on which the film is based, God, or a god, comes to earth with his assistant, Max Mercury. He decides he wants to possess Rachel Donnadieu, so he takes the form of Simon Donnadieu when Simon leaves home on a business trip. God-as-Simon returns to Rachel while Simon is away, and the two have an encounter. Or not. Rachel is not talking about the incident, and Simon, in a brief encounter with Klimt at the end of the film, denies that it happened. The evidence provided by the flashbacks is contradictory. Ultimately, Klimt concludes, "There is nothing left to say concerning Simon and Rachel. The rest occurs beyond images and beyond stories."

Cast

* Gérard Depardieu as Simon Donnadieu * Laurence Masliah as Rachel Donnadieu * Bernard Verley as Abraham Klimt * Aude Amiot as Aude Amiel * Roland Blanche as The drawing teacher * Jean-Louis Loca as Max Mercury *

Louis-Do de Lencquesaing Louis-Do de Lencquesaing (born 25 December 1963) is a French actor and film director. He has a daughter with cinematographer Caroline Champetier, the actress Alice de Lencquesaing. Filmography As an actor *''Les dernières heures du milléna ...

as Ludovic * Fabienne Chaudat

Background

Cinematographer Caroline Champetier said that the original scenario began with God riding a train through France and Switzerland, observing all the battles of humanity through the window. This sequence required expensive special effects and Godard finally gave up on the idea after visiting a company that demonstrated for him the effects they achieved for Jean-Pierre Jeunet's ''Delicatessen''.

References

External links

* French fantasy comedy-drama films Films directed by Jean-Luc Godard 1993 films 1990s French-language films 1990s French films {{1990s-France-film-stub