Film still of Cinq et la peau (Five And The Skin) © RR
Cinq et la peau (Five and the Skin) in Cannes Classics, in memory of Pierre Rissient
Pierre Rissient passed away two days before the Festival opening, taking us all unawares, leaving us shocked by this sudden and unexpected event. 2018 was to have been his year, but hasn't every year been his for a long time already? At least the past fifty years. From Jane Campion to Clint Eastwood, to Lee Chang-dong, the famous "Mister Everywhere" was a talent-finder in distant lands and an enlightened cinephile, historian and director. A man in the shadows nicknamed the white wolf. He was preparing for the screening of Cinq et la peau (Five and the Skin) in Cannes Classics. This article was supposed to be an interview, and this grand orator would have been much better at talking about his "UFO film" than we are.
Set in Manilla, the story follows the wanderings of Ivan, a writer who is grappling with existential questions.
By making Cinq et la peau (Five and the Skin) in the Philippines, Pierre Rissient draws on a broad range of references, from classic Hollywood film to jazz, from poetry to Manilla. The fascinating megalopolis reveals itself, accompanied by the silent performance of Féodor Atkine, the Russian-Polish actor of Pauline à la Plage (Pauline at the Beach) (1983) and Dans la cour (In the Courtyard) (2014): "Pierre Rissient left me totally free as the creator of emotion, but he was intransigent, with no concessions with regard to his images."
In this film without dialogue, it is the inner world of the protagonist that assumes its full dimension. The spectator is guided by the voice-over in a viewing experience that is out of the ordinary, active and sensitive.
Pierre Rissient said himself about his magnetic work: “I created the framework for a kaleidoscopic film that would be simultaneously a personal journal, travelogue, portrait, pamphlet, and a poetic narrative, constantly shifting from one register to another.”
Released in 1982, Cinq et la peau (Five and the Skin) is Pierre Rissient’s second film. Restored thanks to TF1 and Carlotta Films, it will soon find its way back to French cinemas, and the memory of Pierre Rissient will continue to be with us on screen. In the meantime, this 71st Festival edition is dedicated to him.
A TF1 Studio presentation. 4K restoration from the original negative image and French sound tape in French by TF1 Studio, with support from the CNC and the collaboration of the director Pierre Rissient. Cinema distribution salles: Carlotta Films.
