That Obscure Object of Desire

That Obscure Object of Desire

D: Luis Buñuel (1977); with Fernando Ray, Carole Bouquet, Angela Molina, Julien Bertheau. This was Buñuel's last film and a culmination of the surreal, if the surreal can indeed culminate. Based on a book by Pierre Louys (and on many a male fantasy about the heartless nature of women), the object of desire in question is the beautiful and seductive Conchita. A rich French businessman succeeds in winning her for a mistress, only she refuses to sleep with him. A relentlessly cruel saga of bribery and pleading on his part, modesty and manipulation on hers, the story of their love affair (devoid of both sex and love) unfolds in a city plagued by terrorist attacks. Cars are forever blowing up, radios updating us on the latest declarations by the terrorist group "The Revolutionary Army of the Infant Jesus." Most interesting, though, is the fact that Conchita is played by two different actresses, who alternate scenes, a testament to the chameleonic nature of the female persona (or something like that). Fun party game: Watch this film with someone who doesn't know Conchita is played by two women and see how long it takes them to realize something's up.