Buffet Froid
Director: Bertrand Blier
Year Released: 1979
Rating: 2.5
Icy absurdness by Blier - three men live in an existential, abandoned Hell, and cannot control their murderous impulses. I understand that it's supposed to be as distanced as it is (the title translates to "cold cuts") and the main characters aren't to be liked or even understood, but I feel the glib irony is a wee much, and the film is easier to appreciate than to accept or even enjoy. The set design - which is heavy on primary colors and odd symmetry - reflects/highlights the characters' skewed thinking patterns and other-worldly logic, and there is a sense of humor at play (wow ... a black comedy that's actually humorous in parts), though it strikes me as being too 'Camus-lite' (mixed with some other French intellectuals as well as Beckett and Kafka for good measure).
