The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

I have only seen two Jacques Demy movies and I loved both of them. Here is the art of someone who is determined to find beauty in life even if he has to create it himself. His characters are rewarded for having dreams of a better life.

Umbrellas is, as far as I can tell, the only real tragedy he made. And it is significant that it is the tragedy of the mundane. The lovers in the picture above are not victims of a malignant universe, but instead of the simple transience of feelings. They fall out of love, it's as simple as that. Demy doesn't let it stand though, and in the final scene, as the ex-lovers walk away from each other forever with muted feelings, the beautiful score by Micheal Legrand plays on as if they were locked in a passionate embrace of eternal love. Demy believes in true love even if his characters don't, and the film, like all art, stands as the permanent expression of a temporary feeling.