Mr. Klein is a rather eerie exploration into the French national guilt for their treatment of Jews during the occupation and Vichy government. Early on we see a couple of ugly examples; in the first, a doctor measures physical characteristics of a Jewish woman as if she were an animal, with her naked and demeaned in every sense, and in the second, a nobleman (Alain Delon, playing the title character) bargains unfairly with a Jewish man desperately trying to raise money by selling a Dutch painting. Later there are other examples, such as the wealthy laughing at a stereotypical Jewish character in a stage performance, and a haunting depiction of the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup, the mass arrest of thousands of Jewish people by the French police, complicit with the Nazis, for shipment to Auschwitz.
So there is a processing of shame taking place here, something which in and of itself merits credit. What makes the film intriguing is Mr. Klein getting mixed up with a Jewish character of the same name, and sensing the danger in that, trying to track the other man down. The nightmare which follows feels like instant karma, Kafka style, as he can never quite get hold of the full situation, or his full family records to prove his own Catholic lineage. At one point in Mr. Klein's quest, he runs into his double's lover, played by Jeanne Moreau (who I wish we had seen more of). At another he starts believing that his double, a member of the Jewish Resistance, is deliberately trying to frame him, but the police have their doubts. In a bitter irony, soon he's the one seeking false papers to flee the country.
We certainly shouldn't feel more for this character than the Jews in danger for their lives, since he's preyed on them and is rather unlikeable. Perhaps he represents France losing its national identity (or its way) in some sense during this ugly period, or perhaps through him we're meant to see how arbitrary, senseless, and dehumanizing it all was. Measurements with calipers of facial dimensions to determine "Semitic" characteristics, or not having one's full set of records from one's grandparents is enough to doom a person, while others go about their lives, continuing to eat well and going to parties. It's all madness, though I'm not sure I needed this character to see that.
What stopped me from truly loving the film was its storytelling, which is often too ponderous and rather opaque. Its slow pace I suppose is in keeping with Mr. Klein's nightmarish descent, but I think it would have been more effective at 90 minutes instead of 123. While the main gist of the story is understandable, details in scenes are sometimes unnecessarily confusing. However, it kept me engaged, wondering what would happen, and it ended strong. Last note - how ironic is it that this film was also produced by Delon, who would later align himself with the far-right (and anti-Semitic) National Front in France?
So there is a processing of shame taking place here, something which in and of itself merits credit. What makes the film intriguing is Mr. Klein getting mixed up with a Jewish character of the same name, and sensing the danger in that, trying to track the other man down. The nightmare which follows feels like instant karma, Kafka style, as he can never quite get hold of the full situation, or his full family records to prove his own Catholic lineage. At one point in Mr. Klein's quest, he runs into his double's lover, played by Jeanne Moreau (who I wish we had seen more of). At another he starts believing that his double, a member of the Jewish Resistance, is deliberately trying to frame him, but the police have their doubts. In a bitter irony, soon he's the one seeking false papers to flee the country.
We certainly shouldn't feel more for this character than the Jews in danger for their lives, since he's preyed on them and is rather unlikeable. Perhaps he represents France losing its national identity (or its way) in some sense during this ugly period, or perhaps through him we're meant to see how arbitrary, senseless, and dehumanizing it all was. Measurements with calipers of facial dimensions to determine "Semitic" characteristics, or not having one's full set of records from one's grandparents is enough to doom a person, while others go about their lives, continuing to eat well and going to parties. It's all madness, though I'm not sure I needed this character to see that.
What stopped me from truly loving the film was its storytelling, which is often too ponderous and rather opaque. Its slow pace I suppose is in keeping with Mr. Klein's nightmarish descent, but I think it would have been more effective at 90 minutes instead of 123. While the main gist of the story is understandable, details in scenes are sometimes unnecessarily confusing. However, it kept me engaged, wondering what would happen, and it ended strong. Last note - how ironic is it that this film was also produced by Delon, who would later align himself with the far-right (and anti-Semitic) National Front in France?