The theme is beauty vs. death, image vs. reality, agency vs. dependency. There are mirrors everywhere and she deludes herself that as long as she has beauty, she will be fine. The story plays out in real time and the viewer is frequently reminded of the time. The strangers, friends, and acquaintances she interacts with cause her to reevaluate her life.
Cleo from 5 to 7 is ranked second on the BBC Culture’s 100 greatest films directed by women. I have seen only nine of them, The House is Black (1963) the lone film covered here. I hope to pick a few more off the list, definitely more Agnes Varda, who appears six times. The Piano (1993) was number one if you were curious.
There is a lot going on with this seemingly simple film, more than I feel qualified to cover. Subtitles have the unfortunate effect of distracting the viewer away from the cinematography, much of the story is there. But, again, more. Cleo deserves a second viewing. AMRU 4.
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