Hail Mary (Je vous salue, Marie) [NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.0 Import - Australia]

Australia released, PAL/Region 0 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: French ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), English ( Subtitles ), SPECIAL FEATURES: Interactive Menu, Scene Access, Short Film, Trailer(s), SYNOPSIS: Condemed by the Pope and banned across Europe and the US, Jean-Luc Godard's notorious retelling of the birth of Christ is the great French director's most daring cinematic work. In Godard's contemporary twist on the story of the Virgin, the Virgin Mary is a Swiss gas station employee, and Joseph her tax-driving boyfriend. Mary is a beautiful yet ordinary teenager who plays basketball; but who vows to maintain her chastity. Following a warning from an avuncular angel, a confused Mary unexpectedly falls pregnant and is forced to wed her besotted Joseph. He in turn must love his virgin bride from a distance, revering her without touching her. Hail Mary's lush cinematography captures 'ravishing shots of pure luminosity', while the haunting score - with music from Bach, Dvorak and John Coltrane - highlights the richness and poignancy of Godard's controversial classic. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: Berlin International Film Festival, ...Hail Mary ( Je vous salue, Marie )

Hail Mary provocatively combines sexual politics with religion, analyzing the complex, nearly sadistic relationship between Marie (Myriem Roussel) and Joseph (Thierry Rode) as a result of Marie's unexplainable virgin birth. An angel, escorted in Marie's boyfriend Joseph's taxicab, brings news of her upcoming challenge, while she's working at her father's gas station. Joseph, appalled at the idea that the baby isn't his, witnesses her pregnancy and, even after marriage, is not allowed to kiss Marie or see her nude, for Marie's fear that she will curse the child. The passive gender role often assigned to Virgin Mary is overturned as Marie controls Joseph with his own desires. A side-plot in which a Science teacher (Johan Leysen) and his student, Eva (Anne Gauthier), consider human evolution, reminds the viewer of the literal absurdity of a Virgin Birth while honoring its poetic mystery. Godard clearly respects this Biblical story, as he presents a multi-faceted view in this contemporized re-telling. Sophisticated cinematography features heavenly shots of sunbeams shining through clouds. Also on this DVD is The Book of Mary, a short film by Godard's collaborator, Anne-Marie Miéville, describing yet another ultimately doomed relationship between a couple (Bruno Cremer and Aurore Clément) who temporarily stay together as a sacrifice for their daughter, Marie (Rebecca Hampton). Questioning the judgment of those who remain together for the wrong reasons, this short amplifies Joseph's dedication in Hail Mary, adding depth to his character, both in the film and in the original, sacred version. --Trinie Dalton