Les Carabiniers

Director Jean-Luc Godard flirts with the classics in Les Carabiniers.

All of the main character’s names in this film relate to Roman history. Ulysses and Venus come from Roman myth. Michelangelo is a world-renowned sculptor and painter from Rome. Cleopatra is intricately connects to Roman history because of her affairs with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. It is the distortion of how they are portrayed that creates a sense of intrigue in this film.

Like Ulysses of Roman Mythology Godard’s Ulysses is involved with war. They both lead troops, however, the latter portrays a more brutal persona. This is because Godard seems to be trying to illustrate the true aspects of war: cold-graphic executions and senseless justifications of war. Michelangelo is the most distorted character.

The Michelangelo of Rome is one of the most world-renowned artists of the high renaissance period. His talents closely place him in virtuoso status. Goddard’s portrayal shows Michelangelo as a bona fide moron right down to the his mannerisms. This is ironic because Michelangelo of Rome is also referred to as mannerist. The closest form of art that Godard’s Michelangelo comes close to is attempting to feel-up a woman taking a bath on a film screen. Although it has not escaped me that during the period of the High Renaissance that artist would dig up human bodies in order to perfect their compositions. Could this mirror the vain reasoning of Godard’s character Michelangelo?

Like Cleopatra of Egypt, Godard’s was involved with two men of military backgrounds (in this film’s case they are Ulysses and Michelangelo). She also comes across as having a thirst for power but has very little physical involvement in the acquisition. However, she does not exude the power and intelligence as the former.

Godard’s Venus seems more complicated to deconstruct. Considering the Venus of Roman mythology is the Goddess of love, and Les Carabiniers is a film about War and its appetite for spoils, Godard’s Venus seems to portray what happens when love goes wrong. However maybe this is the most accurate depiction translated to a different period for a different purpose. I do not recall very many Roman myths related to Venus that involved beautiful endings.