Mauvais Sang (1986)

The second film in his so-called Alex trilogy, Leos Carax's Mauvais Sang might be the most ecstatic entry in the French auteur's sparse oeuvre. A movie brimming with giddy excess and hopeless romanticism, Mauvais Sang makes no apologies for privileging sentiment over sense. The improbable sci-fi plot is perfunctory pulp; it's nothing more than an excuse to string together exhilarating bursts of movie-drunk moments. As in the other installments of the trilogy, Carax casts the remarkable Denis Lavant as his lead and alter ego, Alex (Carax's given name). Young and impulsive, Alex is the quintessential Carax protagonist: a brooding and romantic obsessive searching restlessly for pure -- and hence, fleeting -- love. Paralleling this obsession is Carax's own passion for cinema. If his whimsy and earnestness are redolent of silent film, his exploration of the expressive possibilities of the medium recalls the early French New Wave. The movie's elliptical cutting, stylized mise-en-scéne, and sound-stage look cohere into a lyrical, pop-infused view of the world. Perhaps no scene encapsulates the movie's spirit best than a rousing musical interlude. Carax's tracking camera follows Alex as he staggers, limps, and finally breaks into a sprint on a deserted city street to David Bowie's "Modern Love." Anticipating a similar musical epiphany in his next film, The Lovers on the Bridge, the scene also captures the liberating audacity of Carax's cockeyed romanticism. ~ Elbert Ventura, All Movie Guide