Pont du Nord, Le (1981) review

Having (supposedly) completed a stint in prison, Marie (Bulle Ogier) is back on the streets of Paris where she keeps running into quirky Baptiste (Pascale Ogier) - who regularly slashes the eyes out of posters when not practicing her karate skills - and arranges to have make out sessions with her lover Julien (Pierre Clémenti), but once Marie and Baptiste swipe Julien's briefcase and discover mysterious documents inside, they find themselves in a bizarre version of the "Game of the Goose" (which was originally intended for children to play).  Casting a real-life mom and daughter (they both contributed to the screenplay) is fun and adds immediate chemistry between their characters and there are some oddball touches in there one could only get from Rivette (such as a "fire breathing dragon," several men named Max and that hilariously absurd conclusion), it does feel like they're "making it up as they do along," which is a let-down.  It also lacks any genuine sense of "urgency" (although I'm not sure that's a concern for the director), so it's basically two people sauntering around the City of Lights ... which, to be honest, isn't the worst way to spend your time (that is, unless you have a hit out on you).