Directed by Luchino Visconti
My rating: 3.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(YouTube)
Visconti's adaptation of the classic existential novel by Albert Camus is a moody, cerebral affair. Marcello Mastroianni is perfectly cast as the indifferent Meursault, who floats through life with no emotions or attachments. He buries his mother with little fanfare, raising the suspicions of the local Arabs. His girlfriend, the lovely Anna Karina, occasionally asks if he loves her, to which he always answers: "It doesn't matter, but I suppose not." He pals around with a known pimp, who is followed one day during their trip to the beach. Coincidence, and maybe a touch of the sun, leads to a shooting. On trial for his life, his indifference, especially to his mother's funeral, seems to be the most important consideration, rather than the facts of the shooting. The final conversation with a priest while awaiting execution is riveting. This film will probably never get a proper release due to suppression by the estate of Albert Camus, which is a shame, for I thought it did justice to the largely unfilmable novel.
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