La Jetée (The Pier) (1962)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Greg S

  
  This thirty-minute "photo-roman" (series of narrated stills) tells the story of a man who's sent backwards, then forwards in time to try to find a way to avert a nuclear war, but spends his travels romancing a woman he saw once as a child whose image burned itself into… More
  This thirty-minute "photo-roman" (series of narrated stills) tells the story of a man who's sent backwards, then forwards in time to try to find a way to avert a nuclear war, but spends his travels romancing a woman he saw once as a child whose image burned itself into his memory. An interesting science fiction storytelling experiment about the nature of memory that's been extremely influential over the years (it inspired Terry Gilliam's 12 MONKEYS). There is one moving image in the film; blink and you'll miss it...

• Film C

  
  Well its the first short movie that i've seen using nothng else but still photographs in order to get the story across and although its an interesting idea, i personally don't think its works all that well. The great thing about an actual movie is that the actors are able to… More
  Well its the first short movie that i've seen using nothng else but still photographs in order to get the story across and although its an interesting idea, i personally don't think its works all that well. The great thing about an actual movie is that the actors are able to properly get across the emotions that their ment to fill across to the audience and although pictures do capture some of that emotion i feel its not as strong as watching a moving picture. Its watchable purely on the fact it is only 30mins long longer than that then i'd probably have a different opinion!

• Tsubaki S

  
  A fantastic experiment in narrative and visuals. Highly influential, i'm surprised this formula has not been used more often.

• Conner R

  
  Talk about an amazingly brilliant and original idea, I can't think of anything that I don't like about this truly bizarre film. It takes every expectation you have about film and storytelling and throws it out the window. Chris Marker's style really takes hold in this,… More
  Talk about an amazingly brilliant and original idea, I can't think of anything that I don't like about this truly bizarre film. It takes every expectation you have about film and storytelling and throws it out the window. Chris Marker's style really takes hold in this, where as in something like Sans Soleil it is not quite as apparent. The photography/cinematography is beautiful and rivals some of Roman Polanski's shots in Knife In The Water. I don't think anyone who sees this can not be inspired in some way.

• Randy T

  
  "The victors stood guard over a kingdom of rats." Experimental, avant-garde depiction of post-apocalyptic time travel told through a series of stills in slide-show progression. As odd as that sounds, the whole thing works very, very well.

• Anthony L

  
  I think being a big fan of photography helped me in enjoying this film as much as i did but to be honest, i did loose a little of my concentration before the film was over. That said, this film is a visual treat with a surreal dreamlike story that is both original and thought… More
  I think being a big fan of photography helped me in enjoying this film as much as i did but to be honest, i did loose a little of my concentration before the film was over. That said, this film is a visual treat with a surreal dreamlike story that is both original and thought provoking. Gilliam's version/remake is far more assessable but is a wasted opportunity when compared. Out of the two though, I'd watch 12 monkeys more often i think, but still, beautiful cinema!

• Cindy I

  
  An interesting little 1/2 hour of moviemaking...or maybe I should call it a storyboard. The entire film is made of still pictures of the various characters in poses following the narration. The story -- what there is of it -- involves the aftermath of WWIII. Paris has been obliterated… More
  An interesting little 1/2 hour of moviemaking...or maybe I should call it a storyboard. The entire film is made of still pictures of the various characters in poses following the narration. The story -- what there is of it -- involves the aftermath of WWIII. Paris has been obliterated and most of the survivors live underground to escape the radiation. One man is chosen as a test subject by mysterious scientists who send him into the past. I have to say that I saw the "shock" ending coming. This came across to me as a French Twilight Zone episode. The story was used, in a much expanded form, for the Bruce Willis sci-fi film 12 Monkeys.

• Michael G

  
  Visually stunning, but it just seemed to wander. I would've liked to have seen it expanded upon, but that's what 12 Monkey is for. And of course my DVR cut the end off so I don't know exactly how it ended. Ah well, maybe someday.

• Chris B

  
  "La Jetee" is a legendary science fiction film that is renowned for it's creativity and originality but is known all the more thanks to it being the inspiration behind Terry Gilliam's "Twelve Monkeys". The film is made up of all images with the exception… More
  "La Jetee" is a legendary science fiction film that is renowned for it's creativity and originality but is known all the more thanks to it being the inspiration behind Terry Gilliam's "Twelve Monkeys". The film is made up of all images with the exception of the woman blinking her eyes once during the film. The images are visually arresting and suit the film and along with the narration, create a truly unique and thought provoking film. The picture is only 28 minutes long but conveys more than most films do in 2-3 hours or more. The film is composed of black and white images each of which is a piece of art in it's own right but meshes together to form a meaningful and beautiful film that takes the viewer on a journey though time and space. This is a film like none you have ever seen before and is a truly unique watch that I think anyone who loves cinema will enjoy at some level!

• a b

  
  This is a really poised, dark sort of film. Despite the static images and general lack of color, it's got a beautiful human spark that drives it to the end. Photography students should have to see this--the plot and the method fit perfectly. I like to think about this one… More
  This is a really poised, dark sort of film. Despite the static images and general lack of color, it's got a beautiful human spark that drives it to the end. Photography students should have to see this--the plot and the method fit perfectly. I like to think about this one sometimes when I think about time travel. Which doesn't necessarily happen a lot. But it's much more memorable than a lot of other movies I've seen.

• Francisco G

  
  Very haunting and moody, frangmented to a fault but deliberatly so, La Jetée is still to this date one of the most fascinating sci-fi movies ever made either by the way it is presented to us or by the cautionary tale it's telling, never forgetting the humanitary value that is… More
  Very haunting and moody, frangmented to a fault but deliberatly so, La Jetée is still to this date one of the most fascinating sci-fi movies ever made either by the way it is presented to us or by the cautionary tale it's telling, never forgetting the humanitary value that is inherent to the genre.

• Buddy A

  
  If you're a fan of science fiction films and/ or time travel, and you think you've seen it all, check out this French film, known both for being cleverly made up almost entirely of still photographs and for being the inspiration for Terry Gilliam's "12… More
  If you're a fan of science fiction films and/ or time travel, and you think you've seen it all, check out this French film, known both for being cleverly made up almost entirely of still photographs and for being the inspiration for Terry Gilliam's "12 Monkeys." It's absolutely worth seeking out this short film; while its unique mise-en-scene takes a bit getting used to, it works contextually with the film's post-apocalyptic story elements, which were very much ahead of their time. Even if the movie's visual style doesn't interest you, it provides an intriguing narrative comparison to "12 Monkeys" for fans of that film; moreover, it doesn't matter in which order you watch these two masterpieces of dystopian post-apocalyptic time travel, as knowing what happens in one film will not ruin one's enjoyment of the other. On the contrary, viewing one will most certainly enhance the viewing experience of the other. Highly recommended, especially for science fiction fans, time travel fans, French new wave mavens and/ or seekers of films with unique cinematography, or Gilliam fans.

• John M

  
  Unique and different experimental short film which was the inspiration for Terry Gilliam's brilliant "12 Monkeys¨

• Tom S

  
  One of the more evocative pieces of film ever.

• Linda K

  
  This film is amazing. The way Marker uses still photography and narration makes the film alive even without any sense of movement whatsoever present.

Read all 15 featured audience ratings