Official Synopsis:
Director Jean-Jacques Beineix launched the Cinema Du Look movement with this stylish cult thriller that remains as innovative today as when it premiered in 1981. Jules (Frederic Andrei), a young postal carrier, illegally tapes a concert of a reclusive opera singer (American soprano Wilhelmina Wiggins Fernandez). Jules' attempts to woo the diva are interrupted when Taiwanese bootleggers come after the recording. His problems worsen when a prostitute slips another tape, one that incriminates a police chief, into his bag. Jules must escape the police chief, the cop's henchmen and the bootleggers to keep both precious tapes safe - and to stay alive. Featuring critically acclaimed cinematography and a celebrated chase through the Paris Metro, Diva earned Cesar Awards for Best Music, Best Cinematography and Best Directorial Debut.
  
Our Take:
Diva is a very interesting film that discusses the function of art, namely opera, and the relationship between the artist and art lovers.  A rather simple thriller plot device moves along the story; our protagonist unknowingly receives a much sought-after tape from a woman soon before she is killed.  This Hitchockian device sets into motion a cat and mouse game that is not nearly as riveting as the actor-fan dynamics being examined in the film. 

Our cast of characters includes an artist, her biggest fan, the hitmen after the tape, and two ruthless Taiwanese businessmen.  All of these characters represent a different group of people whose lives touch art.  The artist here, an opera singer, refuses to record a CD because she feels strongly that each performance is a single special experience for both herself and her audience.  Sure, that sounds highly pretentious, but amazingly, Wilhelmenia Fernandez sells it as genuine and only a little self-righteous.  Then there is our protagonist, our biggest fan, who we are introduced to as he secretly records the Diva’s performance.  I was surprised to see piracy play such a large role in a film from 1981.  The fan also steals the diva’s dress from backstage.  Surprisingly though, this type of extreme fan is rewarded in Diva as something honorable because he gives back everything he takes and his level of devotion is not viewed as a psychotic threat (see: Selena), but a form of love.  These two characters stand in stark contrast to the hitmen and businessmen.  A running gag throughout the film is the more ruthless hitman constantly saying how he does not like various things from Beethoven to elevators.  This idea that people who do not love art or life in general are evil is certainly intriguing.  In a sense, Diva is condemning the so-called “philistines” long before Noah Baumbach came along to do so in The Squid and the Whale.  The businessmen looking to get our protagonist’s pirated copy of the diva’s performance represent the “business” side to art in the extreme sense that people who profit off the art rather than the artist in fact care nothing about either the art or the artist.  This is also seen in the role of the diva’s manager who chastises her about not cutting an album. 

This study of the relationship between an artist, their art, and those who involve themselves with it is a thoroughly interesting one explored in the form of a standard thriller.  The way the thriller part of the film works itself out is all rather standard fare.  It is also worth noting that the music in the film, which is primarily opera, is not only beautiful, but also creatively only utilized as diegetic sound.  In fact the opening sequence of the film is quite jarring since opera is not often used as diegetic sound as we track a character driving on a moped.  This flair for the inventive and fusion of high art analysis with a genre thriller is truly a wonderful work of art by Jean-Jacques Beineix.

Lionsgate has provided the following bonus features on this single disc release of Diva:

* Scene specific audio commentary with Director Jean-Jacques Beineix.

* Searching for Diva – a collection of interviews as follows:

o        Introduction by Professor Phil Powrie & Erice Grinda (6 minutes)

o        Vladimir Cosma (11 minutes)

o        Dominic Besnehard (7 minutes)

o        Frederic Andrei (6 minutes)

o        Anny Romand & Dominique Pinon (12 minutes)

o        Richard Bohringer (7 minutes)

o        Jean-Jacques Beineix – Holding Ground (11 minutes)

o        Jean-Jacques Beineix – In the Café (9 minutes)

o        Philippe Rousselot (6 minutes)

o        Hilton McConnico (7 minutes)

Diva is a fascinating film that may be enjoyed either for its intellectual theorizing on art or simply as a fun genre thriller.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Overall Picture:
Movie: A
DVD: B+

- Matthew Orlando
Staff Writer