In 1980, Nicholas Roeg (who served as the cinematographer on this film) made a groundbreaking, stunning portrayal of a dysfunctional romance told in fractured, elliptical narrative fragments called "Bad Timing". In many ways, "Petulia" serves as a predecessor to that wonderful film, as it tells a similar story using a similarly disjointed technique. However, as a film this one, while not bad, barely holds a candle to Roeg's later masterpiece. Although Roeg's cinematography is often excellent, the story is very promising, and there are even a number of good scenes, as a whole it just doesn't quite come together. For one thing, the film feels more like an attempt at hip, edgy '60s art film-making from conventional Hollywood filmmakers than the real deal (note the overabundance of melodramatic, overwrought soundtrack music). It seems more like a self-conscious imitation of "Pierrot le fou" or "Blowup" than anything that comes close to comparing to the artistic integrity of those films, and consequently has dated very badly in a way those films have not. Also the dialogue is often frustratingly awkward in a way that I am not sure was intentional, or rather what the intended tone of the dialogue was suppose to be. Was it meant to be post-modern and ironic? Or is it really just insipid Hollywood melodrama dressed up with flashy psychedelic cinematography and set design? Considering the degree to which the film disintegrates into pure conventional sappiness by the end (the last scene being almost painfully mawkish), I fear it may be the latter. It is really a shame, because based on the premise alone the film did not at all need to be that way. There are actually enough good moments that it makes it all the more regrettable that ultimately the filmmakers could not overcome cliché.
Review of Petulia
