Jean-Luc Godard’s Le mépris: Conventional film music in an unconventional guise | Intellect Skip to content
1981
  1. Home
  2. A-Z Publications
  3. Soundtrack, The
  4. Volume 13, Issue 1
  5. Article
Volume 13, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 1751-4193
  • E-ISSN: 1751-4207

Abstract

Godard revisits in (1963) the Hollywood genre of the melodrama which enjoyed a large popularity in the 1950s. For this self-conscious reflection upon the genre of the melodrama, Godard hired Georges Delerue to write the music. Due to the involvement of the powerful mainstream cinema producers Carlo Ponti and Joseph E. Levine, grew into a sizeable Hollywood-style production. Under the looking glass of these producers, Godard was expected to abandon his eccentric small-film budget habits and to comply with standard film production procedure. Pertaining to the music (and against his usual modus operandi), he conceived, together with Delerue, a detailed musical concept, spotted the film with Delerue present, integrated each and every cue Delerue composed into the film and respected the placement of the music cues as discussed with the composer. Nevertheless, behind the back of his producers, he was frequently tempted to diverge from the accepted norms and played with audience expectations. He introduced unexpected twists into the placement of the cues, which invite the audio viewer to question the established film music standards. Despite the rigid brief Godard received from his producers, he managed to dissect – with the assistance of Delerue’s lush, Hollywood-style score – the worn-out mechanics of the cinematic apparatus. The over-emphatic, idiomatic and stereotypical symphonic score inspired him to break the illusion of the artificially staged narrative.

© 2022 (2021) Intellect Ltd
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1386/ts_00014_1
2021-10-01
2024-04-20
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Adams, Ross Exo. ( 2012;), ‘ Foreground, background, drama: The cinematic space of Le Mépris. ’, in C. MacCabe, and L. Mulvey. (eds), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 14–28.
     [Google Scholar]
  2. Aprà, Adriano. ( 1964;), ‘ Le mépris e Il disprezzo. ’, Filmcritica, 151:152, pp. 611–13.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. Aumont, Jacques. ( 1990;), ‘ The fall of the gods: Jean-Luc Godard’s Le Mépris (1963). ’ (trans. P. Graham,), in S. Hayward, and G. Vincendeau. (eds), French Film: Texts and Contexts, London and New York:: Routledge;, pp. 217–28.
     [Google Scholar]
  4. Autera, Leonardo. ( 1963;), ‘ Le Mépris (Il disprezzo). ’, Bianco e Nero, 24:12, pp. 66–68.
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Baumgartner, Michael. ( 2022), Metafilm Music in Jean-Luc Godard’s Cinema, New York:: Oxford University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  6. Bergala, Alain. ( 1999), Nul mieux que Godard, Collection Essais/Cahiers du cinéma 256, Paris:: Éditions Cahiers du cinéma;.
     [Google Scholar]
  7. Bergala, Alain. ( 2006), Godard au travail: Les années 60, Paris:: Éditions Cahiers du cinéma;.
     [Google Scholar]
  8. Bersani, Leo, and Dutoit, Ulysse. ( 2004), Forms of Being: Cinema, Aesthetics, Subjectivity, London:: British Film Institute Publishing and Bloomsbury Academic;.
     [Google Scholar]
  9. Besnard-Scott, Laurence. ( 2015;), ‘ Filming translation: Subtitling and adaptation in Jean-Luc Godard’s Contempt. ’, Journal of Adaptation in Film & Performance, 8:3, pp. 183–93.
     [Google Scholar]
  10. Biancorosso, Giorgio. ( 2007;), ‘ Melodrama, anti-melodrama and performance: Rereading Le mépris. ’, in E. Dagrada. (ed.), Il melodrama, Rome:: Bulzoni;, pp. 263–322.
     [Google Scholar]
  11. Bordwell, David,, Staiger, Janet, and Thompson, Kristin. ( 1985), The Classical Hollywood Cinema: Film Style and Mode of Production to 1960, New York:: Columbia University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Brown, Royal S.. ( 1980;), ‘ Music in Vivre sa vie. ’, Quarterly Review of Film Studies, 3, pp. 319–33. Reprinted in Brown, Royal S. (1994), Overtones and Undertones: Reading Film Music, Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, pp. 188–200.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. Cerisuelo, Marc. ( 1989), Jean-Luc Godard, Collection spectacle/poche 4, Paris:: Éditions des Quatre-Vents;.
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Conley, Tom, and Jefferson Kline, T.. (eds) ( 2014), A Companion to Jean-Luc Godard, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;.
     [Google Scholar]
  15. Delerue, Georges. ( 2001), Le mépris: Bande originale du film de Jean-Luc Godard, Écoutez le cinéma!, Paris:: EmArcy;.
     [Google Scholar]
  16. Delerue, Georges,, Duhamel, Antoine, and Godard, Jean-Luc. ( 2018), Le mépris, Pierrot le fou, Paris:: Universal Music France and Decca Records France;.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Delerue, Georges, and Piccioni, Piero. ( 2014), Le mépris: The Complete Original Soundtrack, 2 vinyl LPs, DOC101, n.p.:: Doxy Cinematic;.
     [Google Scholar]
  18. Freud, Sigmund. ( [1913] 1958;), ‘ The theme of the three caskets. ’, in J. Strachey. (ed. and trans.) in collaboration with A. Freud, The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud, vol. 12The Case of Schreber, Papers on Technique and Other Works, London:: Hogarth Press and the Institute for Psychoanalysis;, pp. 289–301.
     [Google Scholar]
  19. de Gaudemar, Antoine. ( 2009), Il était une fois … Le Mépris, Paris:: Folamour, INA, TCM and France 5;. Included on (2016), The Essential Godard, Blu-ray region B/2, France: Studiocanal and (2010), Le mépris (Contempt), Blu-ray region A/1, USA: Lionsgate.
     [Google Scholar]
  20. Gimello-Mesplomb, Frédéric. ( 1996;), ‘ La musique dans le cinéma de la Nouvelle Vague: Esthétique, forme, montage. ’, master’s thesis, Bordeaux:: University of Bordeaux;.
     [Google Scholar]
  21. Gimello-Mesplomb, Frédéric. ( 1998a), Georges Delerue, une vie, Hélette:: J. Curutchet;.
     [Google Scholar]
  22. Gimello-Mesplomb, Frédéric. ( 1998b;), ‘ Entre tradition et modernité: La musique dans le cinéma de la Nouvelle Vague. ’, Positif, 451, pp. 78–84.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Godard, Jean-Luc. ( 1963;), ‘ Le Mépris. ’, Cahiers du cinéma, 25:146, p. 31.
     [Google Scholar]
  24. Godard, Jean-Luc. ( 1972;), ‘ 96: Le Mépris. ’, in J. Narboni, and T. Milne. (eds), Godard on Godard, New York:: Viking Press;, pp. 200–01.
     [Google Scholar]
  25. Godard, Jean-Luc. ( 1985;), ‘ Le Mépris. ’, in A. Bergala. (ed.), Jean-Luc Godard par Jean-Luc Godard, vol. 1: 1950–1984, Paris:: Cahiers du cinéma;, pp. 248–49.
     [Google Scholar]
  26. Jousse, Thierry. ( 2000), Les écrans sonores de Jean-Luc Godard, CD, France:: France Culture;.
     [Google Scholar]
  27. Korte, Walter. ( 1974;), ‘ Godard’s adaptation of Moravia’s Contempt. ’, Literature/Film Quarterly, 2:3, pp. 284–89.
     [Google Scholar]
  28. Macaux, Emily. ( 2014;), ‘ A postmodern consideration of Jean-Luc Godard’s Le Mépris. ’, in T. Conley, and T. Jefferson Kline. (eds), A Companion to Jean-Luc Godard, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 128–42.
     [Google Scholar]
  29. MacCabe, Colin, and Mulvey, Laura. ( 2012), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;.
     [Google Scholar]
  30. Manubens, Anna. ( 2012;), ‘ Godard’s lingering camera from Le Mépris to Passion and back. ’, in C. MacCabe, and L. Mulvey. (eds), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 208–24.
     [Google Scholar]
  31. Marie, Michel. ( 2006), Comprendre Godard: Travelling avant sur À bout de souffle et Le mépris, Armand Colin cinéma, Paris:: Colin;.
     [Google Scholar]
  32. Martin, Richard. ( 2012;), ‘ “So what am I supposed to do?” Thoughts of action and actions of thought in Godard’s Contempt. ’, in C. MacCabe, and L. Mulvey. (eds), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 157–67.
     [Google Scholar]
  33. Mulvey, Laura. ( 2012;), ‘ Le Mépris (Jean-Luc Godard 1963) and its story of cinema: A “fabric of quotations”. ’, in C. MacCabe, and L. Mulvey. (eds), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 225–37.
     [Google Scholar]
  34. Paige, Nicholas. ( 2004;), ‘ Bardot and Godard in 1963 (historicizing the postmodern image). ’, Representations, 88:1, pp. 1–25.
     [Google Scholar]
  35. Perrot, Vincent. ( 2002), B.O.F. Musiques et compositeurs du cinéma français, Paris:: Édition Dreamland;.
     [Google Scholar]
  36. Piccioni, Piero. ( 2003), Il disprezzo, CD, Pescara:: Digitmovies;.
     [Google Scholar]
  37. Reeder, Jake. ( 2012;), ‘ The signature of the French New Wave (Godard’s Le Mépris). ’, in C. MacCabe, and L. Mulvey. (eds), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 63–70.
     [Google Scholar]
  38. Silverman, Kaja, and Farocki, Harun. ( 1998), Speaking about Godard, New York:: New York University Press;.
     [Google Scholar]
  39. Stabb, Walter. ( 2012;), ‘ Producing Prokosch: Godard, Levine, Palance, Minnelli and a lament to lost Hollywood. ’, in C. MacCabe, and L. Mulvey. (eds), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 179–89.
     [Google Scholar]
  40. Stenzl, Jürg. ( 2010), Jean-Luc Godard, Musicien: Die Musik in den Filmen von Jean-Luc Godard, München:: ET+K Edition Text + Kritik;.
     [Google Scholar]
  41. Ungar, Steven. ( 2014;), ‘ Totally, tenderly, tragically … and in color: Another look at Godard’s Le Mépris. ’, in T. Conley, and T. Jefferson Kline. (eds), A Companion to Jean-Luc Godard, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 143–55.
     [Google Scholar]
  42. Viney, William. ( 2012;), ‘ “Not necessarily in that order”: Contempt, adaptation and the metacinematic. ’, in C. MacCabe, and L. Mulvey. (eds), Godard’s Contempt: Essays from the London Consortium, Chichester:: Wiley-Blackwell;, pp. 148–56.
     [Google Scholar]
  43. Baumgartner, Michael. ( 2022 [2021];), ‘ Jean-Luc Godard’s Le mépris: Conventional film music in an unconventional guise. ’, The Soundtrack, 13:1, pp. 17–41, https://doi.org/10.1386/ts_00014_1
     [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.1386/ts_00014_1
Loading
Jean-Luc Godard’s Le mépris: Conventional film music in an unconventional guise
Soundtrack, The 13, 17 (2021); https://doi.org/10.1386/ts_00014_1
/content/journals/10.1386/ts_00014_1
/content/journals/10.1386/ts_00014_1
Loading

Data & Media loading...

  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): Georges Delerue; Hollywood film music; Jean-Luc Godard; Le mépris (Contempt) (1963); narrativity; non-Hollywood film music; self-reflexivity

Most Cited Most Cited RSS feed

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a success
Invalid data
An error occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error