Bluebeard (Barbe Bleue). Catherine Breillat, 2009.
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Edition screened: Strand DVD, released 2010. French language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 82 minutes.
Summary: Graphic decapitation of a duck.
Details: At 30:00 a living duck is decapitated by a cook who stands in front of a rack displaying three skinned rabbits. The headless duck flaps and convulses on the ground for 45 seconds. The scene ends with a long, stagnant shot of the dying headless body.
This prolonged scene is exceptionally graphic. While an artistic purpose does not justify such violence, there is formal significance to the scene that adds meaning to the larger structure of the film, in that: 1) Bluebeard’s young wife witnesses the beheading; 2) The camera lingers on the death for an extended time. A viewer thus informed could skip the duck slaughtering scene and still appreciate everything the film has to offer by noting and remembering the two points above. Unrelated to that subject, Bluebeard has none of the sexual content often integral to Breillat’s work.