An odd little thing...

The blurb on the Criterion insert calls Jean Luc Godard's "Alphaville" a "sci-fi film without the special effects," detective noir satire, and "poetry," among other things. I admit I'm still a bit baffled by what it is I watched last night. The plot was simple enough, your basic Star Trek "emotionless computer rules the world in a brual fashion and can only be defeated by overloading it with the illogical" story, but it was told in such a roundabout way-- the main character, an intergalactic spy with a private-eye look and attitude, is often seen literally walking in circles. This is also the big potential turnoff for those without patience or an open mind. It seems to conform to just about every negative stereotype Americans have about French art-house films and if you're already of the mind that obtuse storytelling is more "pretentious" than interesting, "Alphaville" probably won't change your mind.

7/10