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La Jetée

La Jetée

1962
Romance
Drama
Short Film
28m
Earth lies in ruin after a nuclear war. The few surviving humans begin researching time travel, hoping to send someone back to the pre-war world for food, supplies and maybe a solution to their dire position. One man is haunted by a vague childhood memory that will prove fateful. (imdb)
Your probable score
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La Jetée

1962
Romance
Drama
Short Film
28m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 76.48% from 2431 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(2431)
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Rated 31 Jan 2009
88
90th
I dislike most dramatic short films: superficial, pretentious with oh so clever twists. This is an exception. The stills presentation fits the dream like disorientation of the story and covers a lot of ground quickly. Mixing grand moments and intimate scenes it provides strong impact from tight constraints. Affecting and memorable.
Rated 20 Jun 2008
75
32nd
The story is interesting, but the still pictures experiment doesn't really work, I'm afraid. Some of the photographs are very beautiful, though - it would have made a fantastic comic book. As a film, however, it is rather boring. But you know, I can imagine a talented director could use "La Jetée" as an inspiration for an extraordinary film. Preferrably starring Bruce Willis.
Rated 17 Jan 2007
82
73rd
Forever linked with two bits of data: it's told entirely (except for about 4 seconds) in still images, and it's the inspiration for Gilliam's 12 Monkeys. I confess I was a bit less than impressed when I saw it about 7 years ago, now I'm more charmed by it. The still photography is a clever idea that makes it seem like a piece of history, a future archaeology. And the story is mysterious and engaging, with a kind of contemplative Resnais feel to it. Just the right length, too.
Rated 12 Dec 2007
88
90th
The film is entirely still images with a narration, but those images are so effective that it still feels as if you're seeing the action, kind of like when reading a good book you form pictures of what you're reading. Marker gives you some amazing images and an interesting narration while your mind completes the picture for you, it was incredibly effective. The story itself was also quite creative and even though I should have seen it coming, the ending was very good and caught me by surprise.
Rated 28 Apr 2010
61
69th
The story is fairly brilliant, something like a combination of Slaughterhouse Five and a dystopic sci-fi. The visual quality is really poor, though, not to mention the experimental film style, and it prevented me from being completely engaged by the film.
Rated 01 Mar 2010
88
88th
Very powerful stuff. The still shots really suit it, and it mixes some fantastic big ideas with wonderful intimacy.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
80
91st
If VERTIGO was the inaugurating moment when cinema began to reflect on the many-dimensional connections between memory, dream, desire and the mysteriousness of time, then LA JETÉE is the reinaugurating moment when this reflective constellation turns back on cinema (and VERTIGO) itself, at the same time propelling cinema forward and into what will be a sequence of great and fascinating films all of which spiral around each other, and the analysis of which remains as a work for the future.
Rated 11 Sep 2008
96
96th
This is the only time-traveling movie that makes sense, and a perfect fusion of form and function. Probably a perfect film (and a film almost entirely without motion! So much for that definition...). Blows my mind with every viewing.
Rated 18 Mar 2007
90
85th
Yet another great film about memories. The still image montage technique Marker uses here is appropriate to the point of genius. The plot is very clever and the "remembering = time travel" angle is cool, but personally I was more interested in the more earthly scenes with the main character and his dream woman. I'm all about those simple yet dreamlike pictures, and the beautiful, ghostly musical accompaniment.
Rated 06 Feb 2020
78
73rd
It's a captivating short film, sweet, dark, melancholy, unreal, a touch of the ephemeral.
Rated 26 Apr 2008
85
88th
I thought the idea of a film using still images to be some kind of art bullshit gimmick. However the effect is quite profound. It taps into something about the nature of time, and memories. It feels something like you are watching memories, which ofcourse you are. Set all Twelve Monkeys comparisons aside, the simliarities are superficial. It's more of an art piece that a piece of entertainment, not something that I usually look for, but at 20 minutes running time I can deal with that.
Rated 27 Mar 2008
9
90th
It's best sometimes not to read too much about a film, before exploring it; La Jetée caught me completely off guard, in good way of course. A story about time travel, society's survival and ultimately human experience, truly spellbinding.
Rated 18 Apr 2015
85
91st
Highly transfixing and disorienting experience that ambitiously deals with time and memory by emphasizing the control of time in photography & editing. You could view the whole thing as gimmicky but I was thoroughly engaged all the way. One of the very few time-travel films that's almost believable in depicting the actual experience of it. There is something inherently cinematic about our relationship to memory and time.
Rated 24 Nov 2016
90
92nd
It's weird to me thinking about the "science fiction" genre (as if we need such labels but anyway) and what that usually means to viewer in terms of expectations. This movie basically inverts all those expectations and is a much more rewarding experience because of it.
Rated 08 Nov 2008
4
74th
It works. Unorthodox, but immensely enjoyable and quite beautiful. A wonderful blend of music and images.
Rated 12 Dec 2021
100
98th
A stunning work. Not a single wasted image.
Rated 31 Mar 2009
100
97th
Minimal, poetic, and wonderful.
Rated 24 May 2011
40
2nd
I have eclectic taste. I like many foreign, independent films, and those with personal expression by directors who have the guts to make films they want and have no concern about business, producers or even the audience. However, as high as most members here rated it, it came across to me as pretentious and boring. I am not criticizing the director nor am I saying other peoples opinion here are wrong. Check it out because it is different and maybe I just didn't have the ability to appreciate it.
Rated 09 May 2020
92
98th
A slow sequence of images that is barely moving in the sense of constituting a moving image, yet a much more compelling viewing experience than most so-called films of 24 frames/sec (or more). Not to forget the haunting narration, sound effects and music. While it's likely this technique would make for tiresome viewing over a long period of time, it makes for an enthralling 30 minute viewing experience. Science fiction film making at its best. One feels time differently while watching this.
Rated 18 Sep 2012
100
98th
In this exceedingly beautiful film the origins of cinema as a theatrical form is inverted; photograph to photograph are displayed belying the cinematic nature of motion, deceptively destroying the incantation of matter. Time is imprisoned in vials of amber as the finality of each somber image sets its last course. If there ever was a filmmaker who thoroughly imbued the spirit of auteur theory in every facet it would be Marker. Words cannot even begin to express the anguish of this visual poetry.
Rated 29 Nov 2008
86
88th
It's the film equivalent of reading a graphic novel, and what an interesting experience it is.
Rated 03 Dec 2014
90
80th
Not even really sure what happens in it, but the images are unforgettable.
Rated 25 Jul 2009
80
89th
Overall, I thought this was better than "Twelve Monkeys."
Rated 30 Jun 2008
90
81st
Much deeper than Twelve monkeys...
Rated 21 Oct 2010
91
95th
Half hour short film. Very apparent that 12 monkeys stole this film's idea, but I wouldn't hold it against Gilliam: after all most films are a copy, more or less. Apart from the great plot, La Jetée has something unique (potential wake-up call for every so-so director): Marker proves (with ease) that the beauty of the cinema can be said in a simple mix of style and voice-over. A storyboard like this and you will never fail. Look for movement; it's there. Plot is everything. Composition likewise.
Rated 15 Dec 2009
95
98th
Chris Marker's unusual shooting makes this sci-fi short feature one of the best movies of the 60s.
Rated 05 Jan 2012
5
91st
I don't know how to really explain in depth, but there's something absolutely haunting about the combination of beautiful stills and low-key music. And it's a killer premise for a story, told very efficiently. Causal loops are my shit.
Rated 18 Jun 2012
87
87th
Time travel at its finest.
Rated 14 Jan 2011
85
92nd
Haunting and beautiful at the same time. Telling the story with photos instead of moving images makes the experience more surreal, the viewer is kept at a distance and only short moments of time are understood, same as how the main character experiences his jumps through time. Great music as well.
Rated 14 Oct 2010
29
0th
Interesting experiment. Didn't work. I have now watched it twice and both times I nearly fell asleep. There's a reason why films are called motion pictures. Let's stick with that.
Rated 24 Nov 2012
85
94th
Even though I had already watched 12 Monkeys, this blew me away. One of my favorite short films.
Rated 01 Jun 2008
9
93rd
An awesome experimental short that blends images and music together beautifully.
Rated 09 Jul 2018
80
72nd
Transcends the medium by simplifying the medium. As a viewer you sort of melt and animate the images yourself as they transition seamlessly through time. Burning themselves in your mind as though they were your own fleeting memories.
Rated 16 Feb 2012
68
72nd
Not sure if this could be called a 'move'-ie. Think of it more like one of those slide shows your creepy uncle Bruce would show you of his trip to random museums, airports, and the post-apocalyptic future.
Rated 02 Jul 2007
50
38th
It's an interesting experiment in time-travel sophistry, which fails, from a logical perspective, seeing as it presupposes a man outliving himself. You may say that this isn't the point, but then I wonder what is. The pretty still pictures as a narrative device are *just that*, and well, take away the gimmickry and nothing much remains here. Atleast 12 Monkeys has drama.
Rated 12 Jul 2013
88
95th
Sometimes, all you need to make an impression is 25 minutes. Or a few seconds. Or several hundred years. With a time machine, it pretty much adds up to the same thing.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
90
85th
One of the greatest shorts of all time.
Rated 22 Jun 2009
100
99th
The greatest sci-fi film ever made.
Rated 18 Dec 2012
87
93rd
Really beautiful story, shot beautifully too. The one moment of live-action is breath-taking.
Rated 03 Oct 2014
5
40th
Rather than a short film, this is a collection of photos and text with a narrator on top, which is something I had a hard time getting into. This apart, the story is very interesting, and deeper than it might sound at first.
Rated 09 Apr 2012
66
45th
Although I found it very difficult to get used to the slide-show style of the film, I must admit that in terms of executing the story, the filmmakers did a very respectable amount with very little. A fascinating precursor to 12 Monkeys that any fan of that movie should check out.
Rated 13 Sep 2007
80
52nd
I love the still image technique, and the concept of the story is right down my alley. The music is hauntingly beautiful.
Rated 10 Nov 2008
6
95th
In its way, more entertaining and coherent than 12 Monkeys at 1/4 the time.
Rated 01 Aug 2009
96
99th
Taught and stunning montage, using a dystopian narrative to explore the significance of memory. Worth watching again and again and again.
Rated 08 Jul 2008
4
34th
I'm not a big fan of the image montage, and while a lot of these pictures are beautiful and could probably fit nicely in an art gallery, I don't think it worked all that well on film. I can appreciate it but it's hard to enjoy.
Rated 10 Jun 2021
90
81st
Nolan, you bastard!
Rated 22 Dec 2010
96
97th
Once I have a better grasp on photography and cinema I'll try to explain exactly how it works. For now, it's enough that it does, and beautifully.
Rated 27 Mar 2023
78
55th
Perhaps inevitably cowers in the shadow of the more ambitious 12 MONKEYS, but this is still an interesting, even more idiosyncratic version of the same material (and the underground dungeon screams Gilliam). Complete reliance on still images is an offbeat conceit that largely works well, giving a real sense of captured memories frozen in time; less successful are the exposition dumps about the nature of its world, because the scenario is never given opportunity to develop down that path.
Rated 06 May 2010
85
96th
Really, really, REALLY good, and better than the "copy-cat" Twelwe Monkeys. The stills work very well at setting the mood.
Rated 21 May 2011
70
63rd
There were some issues with the copy I watched, I'll probably buy the Criterion La Jetee/Sans Soleil anyway. As for now, I liked it but was not blown away. To be fair I had pretty huge expectations, we'll see how it fares on a rewatch.
Rated 14 Sep 2022
100
99th
what a fucking film! "Nothing distinguishes memories from ordinary moments. Only later do they become memorable by the scars they leave." "...And he knew that this haunting moment he had been granted to see as a child, was the moment of his own death."
Rated 14 Feb 2019
80
73rd
I won't fault La Jetee too much for its unorthodox filming style, although I will say that it may have hindered certain storytelling aspects. What a fascinating and interesting plot, however: one that has survived much of science fiction culture and finds itself nestled in some of our favorite time travel flicks. La Jetee is no doubt an inspiration to many, and it's easy to see why. A thought-provoking short.
Rated 16 Feb 2022
90
89th
Every frame a photograph. Poetic science fiction tale told in 60s in a very interesting way. It's a wonder what the mind does between frames-photos. The narration is very dated and I can see the script written on a typewriter. Interesting, but a bit hard to follow as language (or French to English translation) is somewhat peculiar.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
85
76th
This is the film upon which 12 Monkeys is based. It's very dark and choppy, but it's also very artful and interesting. Really good!
Rated 01 Mar 2008
92
87th
# 169
Rated 18 Aug 2010
70
90th
Perfect story. I'm not sure the running time was enough to get immersed properly. The stills aren't the problem though; they work like magic. I need to mention the future people too. They were a trip.
Rated 05 Mar 2016
81
56th
A potent sleeping pill.
Rated 13 Mar 2012
83
88th
Pretty successful story with just photos, music and a voiceover. The narrative was also good with nice ending.
Rated 04 Aug 2010
85
80th
An amazing short, told in an abnormal way. The still photos work really well though, almost every one being a thing of beauty, and it ties into the "obsession of images" thing the movie has going for it.
Rated 12 Aug 2010
50
14th
Not that interesting honestly, atleast it's short. Inspired Twelve Monkeys (which is way better than this) so some points for that.
Rated 20 Jul 2012
90
95th
You can clearly see how this haunting featurette inspired 12 Monkeys.
Rated 18 Jan 2013
90
90th
The film being made up almost entirely of still images is most definitely not a simple gimmick but is essential to the film's effect as it both makes what you see seem either like something out of a memory or seem disorientating depending on the context of the scene. Beats out the later adaptation of La Jetee, Gilliam's Twelve Monkeys, with Marker's film being more ambitious, audacious, beautiful, captivating, thought-provoking and dreamlike.
Rated 23 Apr 2013
60
51st
Not bad but highly over rated
Rated 08 Dec 2019
80
68th
Non-Kubrick '60s futurism is hard to take seriously, but the past stuff is really good.
Rated 07 Aug 2020
90
98th
"sıradan anları hatıralardan ayıran bir şey yoktur. ne zaman ki o anların açtığı yaralar sızlar, hatıra değeri kazanır."
Rated 09 Nov 2008
74
48th
The story leaves much to be asked, with cryptic narration it is set up to fail with no cohesive visuals. I have to say, though, if you were going to pull off a movie with only still images, you'd have to excel in every other way, which this does not.
Rated 13 Mar 2014
83
81st
When your film uses stills, you have to make absolutely sure you get all you can out of them, which Marker accomplishes flawlessly. I'm a sucker for time travel stories anyway, and this is one that handles the genre in a surprisingly simple and innovative way.
Rated 08 Oct 2013
44
75th
Great film. Should be seen by everyone.
Rated 25 Feb 2022
65
68th
groundbreaking in its way of conveying the story. it has an original premise, though it's pretty raw. it built the foundations of both 12 monkeys and fallout almost 35 years later. in a way, way ahead of its time.
Rated 24 Jan 2017
90
85th
I have never seen a film like this, especially a short film. It's made of still images that are connected through sequence and narration. It took me a second to adjust, but then I didn't look back. It's a wonderful, devastating short film.
Rated 16 Mar 2024
60
26th
Narrator: "Nothing distinguishes memories from ordinary moments. Only later do they become memorable by the scars they leave."
Rated 12 Jun 2009
60
39th
Enigmatic time travel story in the wake of WWIII.
Rated 23 Sep 2010
8
80th
One of the better shorts I have seen. Stills combined with music doesn't get much better than this.
Rated 21 Aug 2011
92
88th
Still minimalism is best minimalism.
Rated 18 May 2020
60
18th
I watched Twelve Monkeys and I watch this short film only 1 time. Maybe I need to watch it more, lol. Yes it's a good idea and it's a new expression technique for the cinema but I did not enjoy what I watched.
Rated 01 Aug 2014
93
93rd
brilliant. brilliant. brilliant. i am speechless. so stunning, breathtaking, engaging and chilling. so visually and narratively poetic, this short collection of still images conveys so much with so little. a perfect paradigm for any filmmaker who wants to discover the true essence of filmmaking.
Rated 10 Nov 2011
90
93rd
The music, mood, and subject matter are outstanding.
Rated 19 Dec 2008
92
84th
158
Rated 29 Nov 2017
90
86th
The way this film is told (using only still images, with music and voice overs) keeps being avant-garde even today. Based on that i guess we could say this is an experimental film, and it's a damn good one on that. The images may be still on this film, but Chris Marker still manages to make you feel emotions, and that is a great achievement. It's like this film came out from a different timeline, a timeline where movies are near perfection. If you haven't seen this yet, please do.
Rated 10 Nov 2020
80
98th
I saw that ending coming from a million miles away. Still a great piece.
Rated 29 Jun 2010
78
84th
I actually think 12 Monkeys improved upon the idea, but this one holds up pretty well on its own.
Rated 24 Sep 2010
100
94th
You've never seen anything like it.
Rated 21 Aug 2012
85
76th
a beautiful short "photo-roman" that inspired 12 Monkeys
Rated 14 May 2009
72
44th
Pretty cool silent movie, but I enjoyed the re-make a lot more.
Rated 15 Nov 2009
90
93rd
Funky little short. Comprised only of stills, it's the story of a man watching his own death, that later inspired the excellent 12 Monkeys.
Rated 29 Apr 2016
79
87th
The story is just amazing. Absolutely wonderful combination of sci-fi, romance, nostalgia, etc. The experimental nature of the stills really bugged me at first, but it grew on me by the end. Sort of added weight to the cinema verite feel. But, I still really have a problem with the actual photography, which was pretty poor (even though it may have inspired the Meet the Beatles album cover).
Rated 01 Oct 2019
8
86th
Such a genius Chris Marker is to use like 1% of the normal amount of frames. He took a step back from the whole moving images thing which has been holding cinema back for years. Might be my favorite short film, such a wonderful and imaginative 26 minutes. Shout out to Mega Rub for having the second best short film ever, "Mr. Shasugar's Death."
Rated 04 Feb 2018
100
94th
I was skeptical going into this knowing it was just stills, but it's enthralling.
Rated 19 Jul 2011
85
87th
Probably my favorite short ever, and not just because it was what 12 Monkeys was based on. The style is very unique as it's just photos with music and a voice-over instead of the normal moving cinema. Hearing that you'd think it might detach the viewer, but it's actually incredibly compelling.
Rated 13 May 2010
90
95th
Great story (which btw inspired Terry Gilliam to do '12 Monkeys') with an interesting "film" style. It cannot really be called a moving picture, but rather a filmed graphic novel. However, a very unusual experience. Try it.
Rated 27 Jul 2020
86
89th
Sophism as a fate in disguise.
Rated 20 Nov 2009
96
97th
The gorgeous and haunting stills work beautifully partly because of the film's relatively short length. This length slightly hampens the story, but only slightly.
Rated 06 Aug 2021
70
45th
7?
Rated 17 Mar 2012
72
54th
3. dünya savasi, zaman yolculugu, ask, (adam fotograftan film yapmis, oyunculuk yok, fotograf kareleri var. hikayeyi dis ses anlatiyor, finali iyi)
Rated 16 Dec 2009
75
36th
Interesting idea with the still photographs. Overall, highly original.
Rated 20 Jan 2021
60
19th
Boring...
Rated 04 Mar 2010
50
28th
I liked the story, but I definitively didn't like the way they told it. The still pictures aren't that bad, but the mix with that omnipresent narrator looks extremely pedant and tedious. I watched it because of '12 Monkeys', and there are quite a few things I didn't like about that 'remake', but not a single one was better in the original, and '12 Monkeys' add a few interesting ones to this.
Rated 29 Jan 2024
85
94th
Short, clear, in advance on its time
Rated 02 Aug 2010
100
99th
The still images are so bold and honest, holding immense intimacy. Beautiful and memorable stuff.
Rated 19 Jul 2009
85
76th
A powerful, albeit unusual, method of storytelling. The stills are very effective at setting the mood, but some of them look a little amateurish and there are too many shots of the guy with the mask over his face.

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