A series on Éric Rohmer’s films of the 1980s closes with THE GREEN RAY (1986), winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and one of the best-known films in his Comedies and Proverbs series.

When her fiance calls off their summer vacation, Delphine is left adrift, bouncing from apartment to summer home to atelier in the hope she can quell her loneliness. Her baggage makes her feel like a burden to friends and strangers. At the same time, she feels most vulnerable in solitude, leaving her stranded between her desire to be loved and her self-persecution – until she learns of the green ray, a solar phenomenon that could help her reveal her true emotions to herself (and maybe the person she’s meant to love).

In this discussion, we pick apart the film’s slow build, unrelenting sympathy, myopic scope, and how it differs from the other films in the Trylon’s Rohmer series.

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Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Outro music: Credits music from THE GREEN RAY soundtrack.

Timestamps

0:00 - Episode 150: THE GREEN RAY (1986)

1:27 - The episode starts

3:23 - A note on French vacation culture

10:29 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary

11:24 - Jason’s thoughts

18:49 - Cody’s thoughts

23:25 - Harry’s thoughts

33:37 - Aaron’s thoughts

38:28 - How a smaller scope highlights the distances between people

44:48 - Delphine’s sense of self-persecution

49:58 - What history misunderstands about THE GREEN RAY

55:13 - Why THE GREEN RAY works as an empathy piece

58:25 - What the green ray means to the superstitious Delphine

1:06:16 - Final thoughts

1:11:15 - Cody’s Noteys – Trylibs: Rohmerian Grab Bag (themed madlibs)