The Punishment (1962)
Directed by Jean Rouch
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Synopsis by Eleanor Mannikka
The format of this improvisational, 60-minute film by director Jean Rouch may put some viewers off: the director gives his non-actors a premise and they spontaneously act out the situation, and then the next premise is put forward until the end of the tale is reached. In the resultant story, a young teen is expelled for arriving late to class and subsequently wanders around Paris looking for something to occupy her time, preferably a "something" with a willing male. She meets a variety of men briefly but none of these encounters develops into the scenario she has in mind. Talkative and with long periods of exposition on feelings and moods, this method does have its drawbacks even when a certain spontaneity is obtained.