A Conversation About Moving Images Through the Ages
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
What Rules? What Game?
What is the meaning of the title of The Rules of the Game? What is the "game"? What are the "rules"? Who are the participants? How does one "win" the game? What are the penalties for breaking the rules?
At first the title The Rules of the Game makes it sound like there is going to cards, conmen and maybe a Monopoly board, but once the movie begins it is very obvious that is not what this movie is about. The “rules” of The Rules of the Game are the rules that must be followed by people cheating on their spouses in high society. One might think that people of high society would not cheat on their husband or wife because them seem to lead happy lives, but that is not the case. The rules portrayed in this movie are things like: its okay to cheat on your spouse, both spouses may know the other one is cheating, and the men have to punch their wife’s lover in the face, because the men tend to blame the man for their wife cheating, whereas the women blame their husbands for cheating. The “game” aspect of the film is the marriage and infidelity. Much of the time people spent with their lover is spent giggling, kissing and trying to hide from spouses. People were minimally concerned about actually having a real relationship that involves an emotional connection. The biggest rule is that people are not suppose to actually runaway with their lover and the penalty for doing so can result in death. These affairs are games that these bored, adults play, but like in any game it starts of lighthearted and eventually morphs into one person taking it too far so someone gets hurt.
The title The Rules of the Game implies two things: there is a game that is being played, and that there is a set list of rules to accompany it. In this movie, the game could be love, or even life itself. The participants are all the characters that are present in the movie. They all have the goal of finding someone to live their life with, someone to love. The rules include that once you find the person you love, you stay loyal to that person for as long as your relationship lasts. However, the characters all try to cheat this rule and all face consequences for it. They cheat the rule by committing adultery. Either they were having an affair with someone else, or they were aware that their lover is in another relationship and still stayed with the other person. For the consequences, some lost their trust in people. One person, Octave, lost his respect for himself and lost self-confidence. Andre, the aviator in love with a married woman, was even killed trying to stay with the woman he loved so much. One could have won by staying loyal to their significant others. If they had learned to appreciate their respected significant other or understood that the person they loved was in a relationship, then the consequences could have been avoided and one could’ve possible won the game. Winning the game would have ensured happiness for the winner. However, in this story, unfortunately there were no winners. So in the end, after all the affairs were out and alive and one person ended up being killed, no one was happy.
The title of this movie in my opinion is misleading. It makes the viewer assume that there will be some symbolically game in the plot, when in reality there does not seem to be. I say this because the movie is essentially a free for all of affairs and fights. The rule of this game is that there are no rules. Every single character in this movie participates in scandalous affairs, and nothing is stopping them. Most of the characters are married, and although marriage is thought of as a form of committing two people to each other, the rule of marriage is not considered. These characters freely hook up with each other, and when their significant others find out, chaos erupts. During a dinner party multiple fights occur. One of these fights includes a man freely shooting a gun throughout the house. Clearly no rules are set in place if a man can get away with aimlessly firing a gun, and the rest of the men face no consequence for brutally attacking each other. In the end, when a character named Andre is shot, the audience does not see any consequences. There is no justice in this circle of people. Characters get away with murder- literally, and knowing that, it is clear there were never any rules set in place to prevent them from acting like this. This idea of no rules might come from the people assuming that since they’re high society, they can control themselves and don’t need any guidelines for basic social skills.
The Rules of the Game is an emotional rollercoaster of a film. I agree with Christina in the sense that the game, in the sense of the movie, is infidelity without a second thought. The Marquis, Christine, and Lisette, 3 of the 4 married characters in the film (along with Schumacher), all have flings with other people, as they seem to try to escape from their dreary day-to-day lives. I also agree with Alex on the rules, as to me it seems as if the only rule is that there are no rules. Essentially, every single character seems to be able to do whatever he/she wants, freed from the restrictions and bounds placed on them in typical marriages/relationships. For instance, with the Marquis, everyone seems to know that he has a relationship on the side with Genevieve, and yet no one seems offended or even to care. Additionally, when André professes his love for Christine on the radio, not even the Marquis bats an eye at another man loving his wife. When Schumacher finds out Lisette has been cheating on him with Marceau, not once is Lisette reprimanded, as Schumacher completely turns his attention to defeating Marceau. It seems as if these people who are cheating can get away with anything they want, because in their highbrow style of life this is the norm. That is what makes them such willing participants in this game, because while these people’s lives seemed so settled from the outside, not one of them is truly happy. I don’t think there is ever a winner to the game, because it just seems like an endless cycle. Christine professes her love to three different men in the movie, first the Marquis, then André, and finally Octave. It is clear by the end of the movie that she doesn’t truly love any of them, and none of them end up with her. At the end of the day, every single person ends up alone because there can never be a true winner with all the infidelity going around. However, the way to break the rules in this game is to fall in love with someone else, and actually care for them. This seems to be the flaw with André, who deeply cares for Christine, and he ends up being shot. In the film, it pays to indifferent, because no one ends up together.
After watching the film, the title “The Rules of the Game” seems to me to mean that there are no rules. All’s fair in love and war. Throughout the film, the laws of marriage are constantly broken and the “rules of engagement” seem to have no meaning. Almost every character, in addition to being married, has a slice on the side. Robert, while being married to Christine, is secretly shacking up with Genevieve. Christine herself has had an affair with Andre and at the end reveals her feelings for Octave as well. Lisette has been seeing Octave behind Schumacher’s back and when Marceau comes into the picture, she immediately clings to him. The only true devotion seems to come from Andre’s feelings directed at Christine, and Lisette’s feelings towards Christine as well. The fast paced, emotionally charged movie is filled with hush-hush romance and dramatic confessions. Jealousy sparks and blood is shed. The actual rules of “The Rules of the Game” are sparse to non-existant. In fact, the only real rule that the movie sets up is one can never be actually faithful. Andre is the only character to remain entirely pure in his affection towards Christine, and he is only rewarded in death. The film runs counter to the common conception of marriage and may have been commentary on the French culture of the time.
The significance of the title could be one regarding the interactions of class portrayed in the movie, or it could be the gender roles of men and women also displayed, but, the title in its most cliché fashion and likely fashion is in regards to love and romance. The central theme of the plot is the relationships between the men and women that are in the chateau on holiday, and what romance begins to stir and brew. Relationship and marriages are tested and frequently interrupted by the sharp prick of some new catalyst. The game in its most simple sense is the game of romance; how to attract and how to hold onto those attracted. In more Darwinian terms, how to find a mate. The rules that the title implies are all about preserving image. The men and women displayed in this film are all upper class, not including the servants and groundskeepers, and are prone to gossip. They realize that harmful gossip can hurt their image and subsequently high stature in society. Due to that nature of interaction amongst the rich, Andre, Christine, Octave, Genevieve, and Robert must be very careful with the public displays of these interactions. This theme is not so common amongst the servants such as Lisette, Marceu, and Schumacher, who are not so concerned with image. The winners of the game seem to be the ones who can find mutual love and actually preserve it without completely disrupting their image in society. Those who suffer the penalties are those who do not adhere to the rules of preserving ones illustrious and pristine condition.
While the title of the film, The Rules of the Game, sounds as if the subject is a child’s board game, in fact, the word “game” means hunted animals. In the early parts of the film, the meaning of the title was unclear. Until the poaching scene, there was no indication of what type of game was being referred to. In the poaching scene rabbit after rabbit is shot down. This is accompanied by a sudden change in the pace of cuts. This scene was the first indication of game of any kind, yet it referenced a different type of game than expected. The game referred to in the film as defined by Dictionary.com is, “wild animals, including birds and fish, hunted for sport, food or profit”. The idea of the wild animal is also reflected in the bestial attributes of the characters. The majority of characters in the film are constantly giving into their desires, switching from one lover to the next. The animalistic tendencies are also reflected in the natural bellicosity of the characters. Fights are common occurrences in the film and are often seen as ironic because many of the participants are not particularly capable combatants. The comparison between the animals and the human characters becomes even more apparent after the murder of André. The way in which André fell to his death is similar to the way the rabbits died as seen earlier. This similarity helps to make apparent the bestial qualities reflected in the characters and their actions.
While the title of the movie “Rules of the Game” implies that there will be some sort of order throughout the film; however, the film is filled with chaos. From the opening scenes it becomes obvious to the viewer that they are in for a non-stop thriller filled with adultery and violence. The “Rules” that are showcased are the rules of the upper class, where marriage carries little to no weight and most husbands and wives are having affairs. The wives are forced to accept the fact that their husbands will be cheating on them. There is nothing the wives can do to stop it. The husbands however reserve the right to become angry at the men their wives are in an affair with. In numerous occasions the husband confronts the “other” man and attempts to beat and kill him. Society accepts this right of the husband and allows it to happen. When the huntmaster kills the pilot, because he believes the pilot is having an affair with his wife, the others dismiss the action as an accident. The time spent with ones lover is portrayed as the only time the characters are truly happy. Whereas when one is actually with their spouse all their time and energy is spent trying to undine suspicion and get away from them and back to their lover. Though one of the biggest rules is that you will never publicly promote ones love for your lover and try to run away with them. The penalty for attempting to break this rule was death. Overall the society shown in the film is turbulent and filled with half-filled relationships.
The “game” mentions in the title of Rules of the Game is the social game played by the upper class. The point of the game is that there are no rules, “every man for himself” so to speak. It is played through rumors, lies and deceit. There is no real goal to the game. It is just a creation by the wealthy, meant to make the social elite’s usually boring lives more exciting and entertaining. This usually meant having affairs without being caught by your spouse. An example of this is Robert. Even though he is married to Christine, he still has something on the side with Genevieve. The problem comes when Genevieve thinks that their relationship means something more to Robert than just a fling. As part of the game, the social elite do not have relationships based on love, it is just something to fill the time of boring married life. This becomes a problem for those of the lower classes who get unknowingly pulled into the game threw affairs and being elevated social. This is what happens to Andre. He believes the romance with Christine is true-love not just a fling, which lead him to chase after her even though she is married. He causes even more trouble when he tries to do the honorable thing. Andre does not follow the example of others and lie. Rather her tries to honest and open about what he is doing. Although this is not the reason he actually dies, if he had been allowed to live, the whole game would have been shaken up. For the status quo to be maintained, Andre had to be disposed of.
The title The Rules of the Game sounds like a children's movie concerning a board-game rather than a competition for love. However, in the movie, the true game being played is the latter. In this french upper-class society, cheating is socially accepted and actually seems to be the norm. Thus, the game being played is essentially characters going around and cheating on one another. No one really sees a problem with, as apparently marriages weren't seen as that serious of a commitment. In this game, the rules appear to be very, very limited. Characters go to extrordinary means for other's love in the movie. For example, Andre, a famous pilot, somehow manages his way to a party hosted by his lover's husband, the Marquis. The Marquis seems to know about the pilot's love for his wife, but doesn't say anything since he is accepting of his role in the game. Although there are limited rules, I do think that at the end of the day the one rule of the game is that you don't escape with someone else's significant other. Both Octave and Andre try to escape with Christine, but Andre ends up being shot, and Octave immediately flees the scene. Those scenes show that even though the game is incredibly odd and puts almost no importance on true love, the real world implications of two married people running away is just too much. If you break the rule of the game, you end up heartbroken like Octave or dead like Andre. At the end of the day, it is just a game being played at the household of the Marquis, and nobody wants for it to extend over into the real world.
In the film "The Rules of the Game", the "game" is a reference to France's society at the time. A common thing in France at the time was for men and women to participate in an affair. This comedy took shots and the craziness and despair people encounter during the affairs. The rules in this movie and very hazy at times, as it seems that there are none. Towards the end, it seems that one rule that seems to triumph love and lust, is friendship. No one in the movie lets their lust for another character get in the way of their friendship with characters of the same sex. Characters have moments of animosity, but in the end it seems the friendship, even through despair, prevails. The most common answer for breaking the rules of friendship would be death, but I do not think that is the case. We really do not know what the consequences are for breaking the rules. No one truly breaks the rules of friendship and gets caught. It is mostly the women who break this rule. Also, it does not seem that anyone can win at this game as well. The only way you can win at this game, is not to play. However, even when a character who seems true to his word such as Andre, doesn't play in these love games, he pays the ultimate price. It seems that the game being played is all one big lie, just as every character was, and almost every relationship was. It is Andre who says it best, "Thats also part of the times, today everyone lies."
The “Rules of the Game” is a puzzling storyline about the pursuance of a single girl. I believe that the story itself is very confusing because although they are all playing the game, no one seems to win. Characters end up turning on each other because throughout their pursuance jealously becomes an issue due to the multiple affairs. There are no rules when playing the game therefore friendships and relationships are compromised because of the overpowering neediness for Christine. The participants in the game are the guys and the prize is her. I believe that because of her uncertainty it causes the game to become un-winnable. Christine leads each guy on and says she loves them but in actuality she doesn’t love them, she loves the attention she gets from them. Because she does this with each participant, this brings the guys closer together because although frustrated, they understand each other and how hard it is to keep Christine for their own. The people who also suffer during this game are the spouses of the participants. Being faithful doesn’t exist during the movie and although they want to trust their significant others, the undeniable truth is that you can’t. I believe this movie teaches the point that you never really know someone fully. Putting faith in others can backfire and you should trust yourself before believing in others. Marriage is supposed to be a pact that is never to be broken. When people get married they are putting faith that there significant other is and will forever be committed to them and them only.
I believe the "The Game" in "The Rules of the Game" has two meanings. It signifies the game as in hunting game, as well as the game of love. Animals that are hunted are referred to game and I think that the director wanted these hunted animals to be examples of the characters of the story. The game of love includes the lovers, who can be seen as the rabbits/quail, and jealousy, who can be seen as the hunters. Not only are these two games correlated figuratively, but they relate in the way that they both have shooting victims; the hunt had animals as victims, and the love/jealousy game had Andre as a victim. The "rules" of the games are minimal: only pick one lover/animal, and if not lie about it or steal. Andre is honest and open about his love of Christine and he is shot for it. The poacher broke the rules of the hunting game by stealing the rabbit and setting traps and he got caught and lied to get out of trouble. Every other person who has an affair in the movie are not open about it and they get away all hunky-dory. The penalties of breaking the rules of the hunting game are far less severe than the penalties of breaking the rules of the game of love. To ultimately "win" the game, one must obey the rules and only then will they not suffer consequences. The participants of the game are anyone hungry for food/love.
The "game" in the title of "The Rules of the Game" refers to the social norms of French bureaucracy, and more specifically, the adultery. Because we use words like "cheating", which is usually used in a gaming context, it's clear that marriage is the "game" in French culture. There are rules and norms and specific things that you have to do in order to "win" or "play" the game but avoid being caught "cheating". There are ways to be secretive, like in a game of poker, to hide your side fling, and when those rules are broken, people get hurt. The players in “The Rules of the Game” all come from different backgrounds, but all play the game in similar fashion, attempting to secretly hide their past, present, and future affairs. Because Christine sees Genevieve and Robert together, the rules of the game are broken, and slowly every act of adultery and every affair become discovered. The irony, of course, is that despite the rules being broken, everyone (sans Andre) ends up in the same situation. I believe it’s a testament to the culture of the time, and how everything can be forgotten with a kind word and a kiss.
In the film, "The Rules of the Game", the title seems to puzzle many when the movie starts. The audience would expect some sort of large gambling movie or something to do with an actual game, instead it is based off of couples cheating on each other, which leads to the conclusion that there aren't any rules actually. The game would be sneaking around cheating on your spouse while you are being cheated on like a giant love triangle. In society today the number one rule for marriage is no adultery, but in this film there are no rules, leading to adultery being the whole game. Everyone in the film is a participant of the game, but very few follow the no rules policy by trying to keep their spouse from cheating on them, like Mr. Shoemacher. No one really wins the game as everyone seems to go back to their original spouse, except Andre who was killed by Mr. Shoemacher because he was one of the only ones who followed the rules of today's society. Since there are no rules there is no winner of the game, making it impossible to be winnable for everyone. But there are losers, Andre and Showmacher since they don't end up with their lovers.
At first the title The Rules of the Game makes it sound like there is going to cards, conmen and maybe a Monopoly board, but once the movie begins it is very obvious that is not what this movie is about. The “rules” of The Rules of the Game are the rules that must be followed by people cheating on their spouses in high society. One might think that people of high society would not cheat on their husband or wife because them seem to lead happy lives, but that is not the case. The rules portrayed in this movie are things like: its okay to cheat on your spouse, both spouses may know the other one is cheating, and the men have to punch their wife’s lover in the face, because the men tend to blame the man for their wife cheating, whereas the women blame their husbands for cheating. The “game” aspect of the film is the marriage and infidelity. Much of the time people spent with their lover is spent giggling, kissing and trying to hide from spouses. People were minimally concerned about actually having a real relationship that involves an emotional connection. The biggest rule is that people are not suppose to actually runaway with their lover and the penalty for doing so can result in death. These affairs are games that these bored, adults play, but like in any game it starts of lighthearted and eventually morphs into one person taking it too far so someone gets hurt.
ReplyDeleteThe title The Rules of the Game implies two things: there is a game that is being played, and that there is a set list of rules to accompany it. In this movie, the game could be love, or even life itself. The participants are all the characters that are present in the movie. They all have the goal of finding someone to live their life with, someone to love. The rules include that once you find the person you love, you stay loyal to that person for as long as your relationship lasts. However, the characters all try to cheat this rule and all face consequences for it. They cheat the rule by committing adultery. Either they were having an affair with someone else, or they were aware that their lover is in another relationship and still stayed with the other person. For the consequences, some lost their trust in people. One person, Octave, lost his respect for himself and lost self-confidence. Andre, the aviator in love with a married woman, was even killed trying to stay with the woman he loved so much. One could have won by staying loyal to their significant others. If they had learned to appreciate their respected significant other or understood that the person they loved was in a relationship, then the consequences could have been avoided and one could’ve possible won the game. Winning the game would have ensured happiness for the winner. However, in this story, unfortunately there were no winners. So in the end, after all the affairs were out and alive and one person ended up being killed, no one was happy.
ReplyDeleteThe title of this movie in my opinion is misleading. It makes the viewer assume that there will be some symbolically game in the plot, when in reality there does not seem to be. I say this because the movie is essentially a free for all of affairs and fights. The rule of this game is that there are no rules. Every single character in this movie participates in scandalous affairs, and nothing is stopping them. Most of the characters are married, and although marriage is thought of as a form of committing two people to each other, the rule of marriage is not considered. These characters freely hook up with each other, and when their significant others find out, chaos erupts. During a dinner party multiple fights occur. One of these fights includes a man freely shooting a gun throughout the house. Clearly no rules are set in place if a man can get away with aimlessly firing a gun, and the rest of the men face no consequence for brutally attacking each other. In the end, when a character named Andre is shot, the audience does not see any consequences. There is no justice in this circle of people. Characters get away with murder- literally, and knowing that, it is clear there were never any rules set in place to prevent them from acting like this. This idea of no rules might come from the people assuming that since they’re high society, they can control themselves and don’t need any guidelines for basic social skills.
ReplyDeleteThe Rules of the Game is an emotional rollercoaster of a film. I agree with Christina in the sense that the game, in the sense of the movie, is infidelity without a second thought. The Marquis, Christine, and Lisette, 3 of the 4 married characters in the film (along with Schumacher), all have flings with other people, as they seem to try to escape from their dreary day-to-day lives. I also agree with Alex on the rules, as to me it seems as if the only rule is that there are no rules. Essentially, every single character seems to be able to do whatever he/she wants, freed from the restrictions and bounds placed on them in typical marriages/relationships. For instance, with the Marquis, everyone seems to know that he has a relationship on the side with Genevieve, and yet no one seems offended or even to care. Additionally, when André professes his love for Christine on the radio, not even the Marquis bats an eye at another man loving his wife. When Schumacher finds out Lisette has been cheating on him with Marceau, not once is Lisette reprimanded, as Schumacher completely turns his attention to defeating Marceau. It seems as if these people who are cheating can get away with anything they want, because in their highbrow style of life this is the norm. That is what makes them such willing participants in this game, because while these people’s lives seemed so settled from the outside, not one of them is truly happy. I don’t think there is ever a winner to the game, because it just seems like an endless cycle. Christine professes her love to three different men in the movie, first the Marquis, then André, and finally Octave. It is clear by the end of the movie that she doesn’t truly love any of them, and none of them end up with her. At the end of the day, every single person ends up alone because there can never be a true winner with all the infidelity going around. However, the way to break the rules in this game is to fall in love with someone else, and actually care for them. This seems to be the flaw with André, who deeply cares for Christine, and he ends up being shot. In the film, it pays to indifferent, because no one ends up together.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching the film, the title “The Rules of the Game” seems to me to mean that there are no rules. All’s fair in love and war. Throughout the film, the laws of marriage are constantly broken and the “rules of engagement” seem to have no meaning. Almost every character, in addition to being married, has a slice on the side. Robert, while being married to Christine, is secretly shacking up with Genevieve. Christine herself has had an affair with Andre and at the end reveals her feelings for Octave as well. Lisette has been seeing Octave behind Schumacher’s back and when Marceau comes into the picture, she immediately clings to him. The only true devotion seems to come from Andre’s feelings directed at Christine, and Lisette’s feelings towards Christine as well. The fast paced, emotionally charged movie is filled with hush-hush romance and dramatic confessions. Jealousy sparks and blood is shed. The actual rules of “The Rules of the Game” are sparse to non-existant. In fact, the only real rule that the movie sets up is one can never be actually faithful. Andre is the only character to remain entirely pure in his affection towards Christine, and he is only rewarded in death. The film runs counter to the common conception of marriage and may have been commentary on the French culture of the time.
ReplyDeleteThe significance of the title could be one regarding the interactions of class portrayed in the movie, or it could be the gender roles of men and women also displayed, but, the title in its most cliché fashion and likely fashion is in regards to love and romance. The central theme of the plot is the relationships between the men and women that are in the chateau on holiday, and what romance begins to stir and brew. Relationship and marriages are tested and frequently interrupted by the sharp prick of some new catalyst. The game in its most simple sense is the game of romance; how to attract and how to hold onto those attracted. In more Darwinian terms, how to find a mate. The rules that the title implies are all about preserving image. The men and women displayed in this film are all upper class, not including the servants and groundskeepers, and are prone to gossip. They realize that harmful gossip can hurt their image and subsequently high stature in society. Due to that nature of interaction amongst the rich, Andre, Christine, Octave, Genevieve, and Robert must be very careful with the public displays of these interactions. This theme is not so common amongst the servants such as Lisette, Marceu, and Schumacher, who are not so concerned with image. The winners of the game seem to be the ones who can find mutual love and actually preserve it without completely disrupting their image in society. Those who suffer the penalties are those who do not adhere to the rules of preserving ones illustrious and pristine condition.
ReplyDeleteWhile the title of the film, The Rules of the Game, sounds as if the subject is a child’s board game, in fact, the word “game” means hunted animals. In the early parts of the film, the meaning of the title was unclear. Until the poaching scene, there was no indication of what type of game was being referred to. In the poaching scene rabbit after rabbit is shot down. This is accompanied by a sudden change in the pace of cuts. This scene was the first indication of game of any kind, yet it referenced a different type of game than expected. The game referred to in the film as defined by Dictionary.com is, “wild animals, including birds and fish, hunted for sport, food or profit”. The idea of the wild animal is also reflected in the bestial attributes of the characters. The majority of characters in the film are constantly giving into their desires, switching from one lover to the next. The animalistic tendencies are also reflected in the natural bellicosity of the characters. Fights are common occurrences in the film and are often seen as ironic because many of the participants are not particularly capable combatants. The comparison between the animals and the human characters becomes even more apparent after the murder of André. The way in which André fell to his death is similar to the way the rabbits died as seen earlier. This similarity helps to make apparent the bestial qualities reflected in the characters and their actions.
ReplyDeleteWhile the title of the movie “Rules of the Game” implies that there will be some sort of order throughout the film; however, the film is filled with chaos. From the opening scenes it becomes obvious to the viewer that they are in for a non-stop thriller filled with adultery and violence. The “Rules” that are showcased are the rules of the upper class, where marriage carries little to no weight and most husbands and wives are having affairs. The wives are forced to accept the fact that their husbands will be cheating on them. There is nothing the wives can do to stop it. The husbands however reserve the right to become angry at the men their wives are in an affair with. In numerous occasions the husband confronts the “other” man and attempts to beat and kill him. Society accepts this right of the husband and allows it to happen. When the huntmaster kills the pilot, because he believes the pilot is having an affair with his wife, the others dismiss the action as an accident. The time spent with ones lover is portrayed as the only time the characters are truly happy. Whereas when one is actually with their spouse all their time and energy is spent trying to undine suspicion and get away from them and back to their lover. Though one of the biggest rules is that you will never publicly promote ones love for your lover and try to run away with them. The penalty for attempting to break this rule was death. Overall the society shown in the film is turbulent and filled with half-filled relationships.
ReplyDeleteThe “game” mentions in the title of Rules of the Game is the social game played by the upper class. The point of the game is that there are no rules, “every man for himself” so to speak. It is played through rumors, lies and deceit. There is no real goal to the game. It is just a creation by the wealthy, meant to make the social elite’s usually boring lives more exciting and entertaining. This usually meant having affairs without being caught by your spouse. An example of this is Robert. Even though he is married to Christine, he still has something on the side with Genevieve. The problem comes when Genevieve thinks that their relationship means something more to Robert than just a fling. As part of the game, the social elite do not have relationships based on love, it is just something to fill the time of boring married life. This becomes a problem for those of the lower classes who get unknowingly pulled into the game threw affairs and being elevated social. This is what happens to Andre. He believes the romance with Christine is true-love not just a fling, which lead him to chase after her even though she is married. He causes even more trouble when he tries to do the honorable thing. Andre does not follow the example of others and lie. Rather her tries to honest and open about what he is doing. Although this is not the reason he actually dies, if he had been allowed to live, the whole game would have been shaken up. For the status quo to be maintained, Andre had to be disposed of.
ReplyDeleteThe title The Rules of the Game sounds like a children's movie concerning a board-game rather than a competition for love. However, in the movie, the true game being played is the latter. In this french upper-class society, cheating is socially accepted and actually seems to be the norm. Thus, the game being played is essentially characters going around and cheating on one another. No one really sees a problem with, as apparently marriages weren't seen as that serious of a commitment. In this game, the rules appear to be very, very limited. Characters go to extrordinary means for other's love in the movie. For example, Andre, a famous pilot, somehow manages his way to a party hosted by his lover's husband, the Marquis. The Marquis seems to know about the pilot's love for his wife, but doesn't say anything since he is accepting of his role in the game. Although there are limited rules, I do think that at the end of the day the one rule of the game is that you don't escape with someone else's significant other. Both Octave and Andre try to escape with Christine, but Andre ends up being shot, and Octave immediately flees the scene. Those scenes show that even though the game is incredibly odd and puts almost no importance on true love, the real world implications of two married people running away is just too much. If you break the rule of the game, you end up heartbroken like Octave or dead like Andre. At the end of the day, it is just a game being played at the household of the Marquis, and nobody wants for it to extend over into the real world.
ReplyDeleteIn the film "The Rules of the Game", the "game" is a reference to France's society at the time. A common thing in France at the time was for men and women to participate in an affair. This comedy took shots and the craziness and despair people encounter during the affairs. The rules in this movie and very hazy at times, as it seems that there are none. Towards the end, it seems that one rule that seems to triumph love and lust, is friendship. No one in the movie lets their lust for another character get in the way of their friendship with characters of the same sex. Characters have moments of animosity, but in the end it seems the friendship, even through despair, prevails. The most common answer for breaking the rules of friendship would be death, but I do not think that is the case. We really do not know what the consequences are for breaking the rules. No one truly breaks the rules of friendship and gets caught. It is mostly the women who break this rule. Also, it does not seem that anyone can win at this game as well. The only way you can win at this game, is not to play. However, even when a character who seems true to his word such as Andre, doesn't play in these love games, he pays the ultimate price. It seems that the game being played is all one big lie, just as every character was, and almost every relationship was. It is Andre who says it best, "Thats also part of the times, today everyone lies."
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ReplyDeleteThe “Rules of the Game” is a puzzling storyline about the pursuance of a single girl. I believe that the story itself is very confusing because although they are all playing the game, no one seems to win. Characters end up turning on each other because throughout their pursuance jealously becomes an issue due to the multiple affairs. There are no rules when playing the game therefore friendships and relationships are compromised because of the overpowering neediness for Christine. The participants in the game are the guys and the prize is her. I believe that because of her uncertainty it causes the game to become un-winnable. Christine leads each guy on and says she loves them but in actuality she doesn’t love them, she loves the attention she gets from them. Because she does this with each participant, this brings the guys closer together because although frustrated, they understand each other and how hard it is to keep Christine for their own. The people who also suffer during this game are the spouses of the participants. Being faithful doesn’t exist during the movie and although they want to trust their significant others, the undeniable truth is that you can’t. I believe this movie teaches the point that you never really know someone fully. Putting faith in others can backfire and you should trust yourself before believing in others. Marriage is supposed to be a pact that is never to be broken. When people get married they are putting faith that there significant other is and will forever be committed to them and them only.
ReplyDeleteI believe the "The Game" in "The Rules of the Game" has two meanings. It signifies the game as in hunting game, as well as the game of love. Animals that are hunted are referred to game and I think that the director wanted these hunted animals to be examples of the characters of the story. The game of love includes the lovers, who can be seen as the rabbits/quail, and jealousy, who can be seen as the hunters. Not only are these two games correlated figuratively, but they relate in the way that they both have shooting victims; the hunt had animals as victims, and the love/jealousy game had Andre as a victim. The "rules" of the games are minimal: only pick one lover/animal, and if not lie about it or steal. Andre is honest and open about his love of Christine and he is shot for it. The poacher broke the rules of the hunting game by stealing the rabbit and setting traps and he got caught and lied to get out of trouble. Every other person who has an affair in the movie are not open about it and they get away all hunky-dory. The penalties of breaking the rules of the hunting game are far less severe than the penalties of breaking the rules of the game of love. To ultimately "win" the game, one must obey the rules and only then will they not suffer consequences. The participants of the game are anyone hungry for food/love.
ReplyDeleteThe "game" in the title of "The Rules of the Game" refers to the social norms of French bureaucracy, and more specifically, the adultery. Because we use words like "cheating", which is usually used in a gaming context, it's clear that marriage is the "game" in French culture. There are rules and norms and specific things that you have to do in order to "win" or "play" the game but avoid being caught "cheating". There are ways to be secretive, like in a game of poker, to hide your side fling, and when those rules are broken, people get hurt. The players in “The Rules of the Game” all come from different backgrounds, but all play the game in similar fashion, attempting to secretly hide their past, present, and future affairs. Because Christine sees Genevieve and Robert together, the rules of the game are broken, and slowly every act of adultery and every affair become discovered. The irony, of course, is that despite the rules being broken, everyone (sans Andre) ends up in the same situation. I believe it’s a testament to the culture of the time, and how everything can be forgotten with a kind word and a kiss.
ReplyDeleteIn the film, "The Rules of the Game", the title seems to puzzle many when the movie starts. The audience would expect some sort of large gambling movie or something to do with an actual game, instead it is based off of couples cheating on each other, which leads to the conclusion that there aren't any rules actually. The game would be sneaking around cheating on your spouse while you are being cheated on like a giant love triangle. In society today the number one rule for marriage is no adultery, but in this film there are no rules, leading to adultery being the whole game. Everyone in the film is a participant of the game, but very few follow the no rules policy by trying to keep their spouse from cheating on them, like Mr. Shoemacher. No one really wins the game as everyone seems to go back to their original spouse, except Andre who was killed by Mr. Shoemacher because he was one of the only ones who followed the rules of today's society. Since there are no rules there is no winner of the game, making it impossible to be winnable for everyone. But there are losers, Andre and Showmacher since they don't end up with their lovers.
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