Though this was Demy's first feature, it was the fourth one I saw. Prior to this I had already been amused by The Young Girls of Rochefort, baffled by Donkey Skin and absolutely taken by The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. As a result, I was already extremely familiar with many of Demy's thematic and stylistic tropes. While I do enjoy "growing old with a filmmaker" and getting to watching them evolve over time, viewing Demy's filmography in such a fractured manner allowed me the unique pleasure of getting to witness familiar flourishes in an extremely protian stage. For a filmmaker just starting out, his vision was so assured. He really new how to use that wide frame. And the cyclical structure is absolutely amazing! Though you have an idea how things are going to end, watching it actually fall into place is a thing of beauty. The final five minutes or so run like a Swiss clock that moves to a wonderfully jazzy beat by Michel Legrand. And of course Anouk Aimee is pretty easy on the eyes as well.
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