Rendezvous (1976) User Reviews

The Greatest Story Ever Told

[Miura88 · 8/10 · 25 March 2006]

The title may be a bold claim for a movie that lasts less than 10 minutes, but while most movies last for 90 minutes, they can seem to be slightly boring in some parts, Rendezvous is not. Steeped in mystery for almost 30 years, the movie has been underground for most of this time, but thanks to modern technology, Cetait Un Rendezvous is back to enthrall a new generation of petrolheads. With no edits or special effects, meaning that everything you see was real, the movie seems all the more astonishing.

Starting off with a beating heart, the movie cuts to a rasping exhaust note of an unknown car, all taken from a camera mounted on the front of it, capturing the sights and sounds of 70's Paris, while the driver (who's face is never shown) extracts every ounce of performance out of said car. After 8 minutes of near misses, speeding through red lights and that intoxicating engine noise, a surprise is revealed.

The movie leaves all sorts of questions unanswered: What was the car? Who was the driver? How fast was he going? And how the hell did he do it? This next bit contains spoilers.

The car in the movie is believed to be the director's own Ferrari 275 GTB, while the driver is said to be either an F1 driver or the director himself. The speed of the car is said to be over 150mph. However, thanks to the way Rendezvous has left so many questions unanswered, these have been guesses. However, the sad truth is, Claude Lelouch, the director, explained that the car he was driving was actually a Mercedes, with the Ferrari exhaust note added to give the viewer a greater sense of speed, he also confirmed that he drove the car himself.

After people who simply watched the movie and admitted on how amazing it was, the previous truths may have burst a big bubble for them. However, who's to say that Lelouch was telling the truth this time? Couldn't it be possible for someone who never told the whole story for 30 years, is simply lying once more? Perhaps not, but the truth is, you never know, because you weren't there at that time.

Yet, while on the surface the film appears to be a reckless, brainless car movie for petrolheads only, the underlying notion the movie exudes is love: Think about the location Paris, the most romantic city in the world. Then think about the car engine note, a Ferrari, the car marque most often used with passion and love. Then think to the beginning of the movie, the beating heart. Why is it beating? Beating for the sheer excitement of traversing Paris at breakneck speed? Or beating for desire to spend time with the woman the driver loves, whom he meets at the end (the surprise ending, thus explaining the name of Cetait Un Rendezvous). Now think why he drove the way he did. Was it reckless? Stupid? Irresponsible? Yes. Why do it? Out of love and desire. The love of his woman, the desire to want to be with her so much that he would risk everything, just to spend one moment with her. In a world where everything has become fast paced and politically correct, the driver applies the fast-paced principle to the driving world, in order to relax and spend time with his girlfriend. Could it be that we spend so much time doing what we have to do, that we run out of time to do what we want to do? This is the true genius of Rendezvous: It appeals to so many by the action on screen, that it displays profound thinking that you never expect to find when you look deep into it's soul. You find something wonderful where you least expect it. On the surface, Rendezvous is one of the greatest car movies ever made, yet under the surface, it is also one of the most intriguing. A real shame that so few people have seen this tiny slice of cinema heaven, if you look hard enough, you will find Cetait Un Rendezvous, watch it and be amazed. Likewise, if you try to focus on the underlying theme in Rendezvous, you will be simply amazed by what you find.

Miss this amazing film at your own cost, for it is far greater than you would imagine it, in more ways than one.

Inaccurate, but impressive

[mgberlin · 8/10 · 20 July 2008]

In the opening credits, it says the movie without speeding up or "trucage" which is best translated as manipulation.

However, internet research reveals, the movie was shot with a fixed automatic camera on the bumper of a heavy but very fast Mercedes S-class (the hard ride of a genuine sports car would have ruined the equipment).

So as a matter of fact, the legend about Ferrari plus racing driver, the engine noise and the gear change sounds are all fake - and pretty much "trucage", indeed.

Nevertheless, the drive is hilarious to watch. Until recently, there was a synchronized show of the movie and a drawing of the route on a map on the Internet - unfortunately, this didn't work the last times I tried to watch.

Drive, He Said

[writers_reign · 9/10 · 25 June 2012]

Although I drive a 'family' car I only do so to get from A to B. I'm not a car fanatic, never read a magazine devoted to cars and though I have seen movies like Grand Prix it was only because there was someone in the cast I admired (in the case of Grand Prix it was Yves Montand). When I stumbled across C'etait un rendez-vous in a Charity Shop I had never heard of it and bought it simply because of the name Claude Lelouch. I'd be lying if I said I didn't find it thrilling but it's also true to say that I have been to Paris getting on for fifty times and I not only love the place but recognized about 85 to 90 per cent of the route. Ironically Hitchcock is celebrated for the 'ten-minute take' which he utilized on 'Rope' - ten minutes being, of course, the maximum footage that can be shot without reloading the camera - and Rope is the exact opposite of 'Rendez-vous' slow paced in the extreme. Someone pointed out in this space that Rendez-vous is as much a love story as anything else, citing the beating heart at the beginning and the girl waiting at the other end. With Lelouch behind the camera that is entirely believable given that this is the man who made a chocolate-box romance featuring a Formula One racing driver. Whatever his intention, whatever he was driving, whatever his average speed, this remains a great piece of film making.

Amazing Ride

[deancapetanelis · 10/10 · 18 June 2005]

I just saw the Ralph Lauren car exhibit at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. In the gift shop they had this movie on a loop. I'm ashamed to say I paid close to thirty dollars for a 9 minute DVD but that's a testament to how amazing this film is. Who cares if the car doesn't get into all 5 gears or that it isn't going as fast as it seems. It's still an amazing piece of film footage. Once you see it you'll know where they got some of the inspiration for the video games GTA and Midnight Club. I swear I've seen imitations of some of the footage in those games. This film should have been one of the ones mentioned at the beginning of 'The Player' where the security guy is talking about long single takes in movies during the long opening shot. I'm going to go watch it again.

I'd like to add, now that I've seen Ronin I know where Frankenheimer got some of his inspiration.

Ronin Pah

[spam-47 · 10/10 · 9 May 2003]

Forget Bullitt The French Connection etc. Believe the hype! Knowing this is for real makes it gripping, no dialogue, 2 actors, on screen for 5 seconds. 10 minutes of pure high Octane exitement in a classic Ferrari on the streets of 1970's Paris. Excellent

Hairy-chested, un-PC and pure bollocking fun

[[e-mail] · 31 July 2003]

Seeing this film is like being catapulted into an IMAX version of a Peter Stuyvesant commercial, back to the days when men smoked and didn't wear underarm deodorant, cars had engine notes, clutches required leg muscles and women enjoyed being flirted with at the office (...and, yes, they actually did!). Rendezvous is a high-adrenaline, condensed style statement with an ending that could have only come from the maker of 'A Man and A Woman'. Underscoring it all is the sexiest soundtrack of all time (John Barry and Shirley Bassey notwithstanding), 12 cylinders and 4 litres of the Ferrari 365 Boxer driven by Lalouch's friend, racing driver Jacky Ickx. I love this film and the era it represents, particularly as I live in one of the most over-regulated, purse-lipped and 'responsible' societies in the world. For anyone that has ever owned, driven or just loved classic Italian sportscars, (and enjoyed raising a little bit of hell), Rendezvous is a must see. I can just imagine our hydrogen-car driving grandchildren shaking their heads in befuddlement as they tuck into their tofu and spring water. I'll be there to explain to them that if you don't smoke, drink, fornicate and drive sexy cars that they actually mightn't live longer...but it sure as hell will feel longer.

No dialogue, just the squeal of tyres and the roar of the engine. Breathtakingly insane.

[Falcador · 10/10 · 3 December 1998]

The most famous motoring footage of all time, or more perhaps infamous. A breathtakingly insane sprint across Paris in a Ferrari. Claude Lelouch has gone for the minimalist approach in the documentation of 'the bet' as legend puts it. No dialogue, no plot, just the sights and sounds of a headlight's eye view of Paris early in the morning as Lelouch tries desperately to traverse the Paris CBD in under 8 minutes. The boy racer in everyone will enjoy the enthralling ride - equal to any racecam footage modern motorsport provides - the roar of a 60's Ferrari - to the enthusiast a sound now made mechanically impossible by noise regulations. While Lelouch desperate flinging of the car through Paris is a joy, half the fun is the reactions of pedestrians, animals and other vehicles as Lelouch thunders through.

Technically brilliant piece of trickery which convinces me.

[opsbooks · 10/10 · 2 November 2004]

On second and subsequent viewings Lelouch's famous blast through Paris throws up more questions than even the reviewers here have come up with. It's obvious by the time taken to reach landmarks that the camera vehicle never exceeds the magic 100mph. Having experienced a similar drive through the streets of Sydney back in the 1960s (in a then just released Mini Cooper S) I know how fast one seems to be traveling when close to road level.

The speed or lack of it isn't the point of the film, though. It's the combination of Paris circa 1976 and the masterful soundtrack which to my way of thinking wasn't dubbed as some would have you believe. The exhaust note and a few missed gear changes seem to indicate that all is on the up and up; the Ferrari has such a torquey engine that it would have been possible to carry out the drive in top gear. Only in a few spots does the engine really rev high and it's always in the lower gears.

Rather than look for faults, better to just sit back and be treated to the best 9 minutes combination of sight and sound you may ever experience.

What I'd like to know, though, are there other films of this nature around?

It's not as quick as you think

[jm-116 · 7/10 · 26 October 2005]

When you initially watch the DVD it's looks very quick.

I'm actually a racing driver, so i know what 150mph looks like and when he's on the Champs Elysee he's certainly close to that speed - 5 gear and max revs.

But the maths only add up to an average speed of just 44mph over the 6.5mile course. Which still isn't bad but not as quick as you initially think !

It's still something people talk about and I regularly pop the DVD into the player to show friends. It's still the same open jawed reaction !

The recently re released, re mastered DVD is far better quality than the poor private video's that had been knocking around for ages.

Heart stopping.

[Adam Frisch · 10/10 · 15 May 2000]

According to rumor, it's the famous racecar driver Jaques Lafitte who drives this car as it speeds insanely through the near empty streets of Paris at 200km/h one early morning. Veering for cars and buses, almost hitting pedestrians and pigeons on every corner, this is as close to a real snuff movie you'll ever get. Very little is known about the car and it's driver. But I can assure you this: It was in no way sanctioned or produced with the cooperation of the police. It's far too risky for that. But what a ride! An absolute must see for any film or racing fan. Brilliant!

Fun, but a fake

[pollocka · 10/10 · 23 October 2004]

A fun short film, some crazy manoevres, but not as fast as it makes you believe.

On the Champs Elysee the car is (according to the soundtrack) running close to max revs in 5th gear which means it should be doing about 150mph, yet it takes 67 seconds to cover 2 kilometres which puts its average speed at 67mph on a dead straight road with supposedly almost constant full throttle.

By taking the 'racing line' through corners, mounting the camera close to the road and dubbing the sound it gives a good impression of speed, but other cars pass by too slowly and most of the pedestrians barely notice what is supposed to be a 4 litre V12 Ferrari bellowing through a city at full chat.

What C'etait un Rendezvous aspires to, Getaway in Stockholm achieves.

Sorry, no racing speeds in this movie!

[Matthead · 1/10 · 3 January 2002]

Lelouche's "Rendezvous" movie is IMHO an overrated joke.

I watched an AVI, and figured out the timed needed to drive down the Champs Elysees from Arc de Triomphe (timecode 1:32) to Place de la Concorde (2:48): about 70 seconds in a straight line. By measuring the distance on a map of Paris (about 2000m), you'll get the average speed: about 64 mph or 102 km/h, AFAIR.

Certainly not a Ferrari at full speed, but probably an ordinary car driven somewhat faster than allowed.

In twistier parts of the city, the sound often goes through all gears into 5th, while the visual speeds don't change much. For example at around 05:40, when he is forced to pass a parked truck slowly. It's hard to believe that people get fooled by that.

At the beginning, it is stated that "the film was produced without photographic tricks nor changes in camera speed". That is IMHO true. The film is right, but the sound is fake.

IMHO, everyone could produce such a flick by recording a normal trip through the village on video, and then adding some exciting sounds generated by a computer racing game.

Need For Speed

[tieman64 · 14 August 2010]

"C'était un Rendezvous" is a short film by French filmmaker Claude Lelouch. Shot in 1976, but unavailable for many decades, the film simply consists of a point-of-view shot of a car racing through the streets of Paris. The car then stops suddenly, its driver exiting the vehicle and running into the arms of a young woman, who seems to have been waiting for him.

The film was shot using a Mercedes 450SEL with a camera attached to the front bumper. Lelouch used what was a new piece of technology at the time, a gyro stabilized camera mount, in order to reduce shake. The film consists of one unbroken long take, the camera never leaving its mount. Because shooting permission was not granted, and because the car runs several red lights, goes down one-way streets the wrong way, breaks all speed limits and comes close to injuring drivers and pedestrians, the driver remains unknown to this day for fear of prosecution. Director Claude Lelouch was himself arrested following the film's first screening.

Despite its short length, the film is well worth watching. Shot at three o'clock in the morning, it oozes ambiance, Lelouch's camera frequently passing iconic Parisian landmarks - the Arc de Triomphe, Opera Garnier, Place de la Concorde, the Champs-Elysees etc – all of which seem strangely sleepy.

Intentionally or not, the film also works nicely as a celebration of human ingenuity. The guttural noise of the car engine, the sound of rubber on road, the sound of gears being changed, the sight of ornate Parisian roads and monumental works of architecture…it's almost an ode to fine construction. Of fine tuned cars, fine city planning and flawless architecture. The film fetishizes well built stuff.

Of course the film also works well as sheer spectacle. It oozes speed, energy and thrills, but at the same time, the film examines the way these feelings are amplified by the legends and myths surrounding the production. The film is thrilling not because it's fast, but because we know its unplanned, reckless and illegal. Stage this sequence and it would simply have no effect. In a similar fashion, the speed of the car is largely conveyed by the sounds of a F Ferrari 275 GTB being added or dubbed over the film in post production. In other words, the engine and tyres screeches of the car sound far more fast and aggressive than what the images tell us. Put the film on mute, and the car seems to be driving slowly. Put the sound on, and suddenly we seem to be going at 140 miles per hour. It's a lovely bit of deception.

Beyond this, "Rendevous" seems to examine the recklessness of romance; the electricity of passions, the giddy, crazy things men do to get their hands on a lover.

8/10 - Worth one viewing.

What the hell????????

[Greg1138 · 10/10 · 3 October 2003]

Hmmm.....I won the DVD of this movie - and I was totally unimpressed. Less than 9 minutes long? No cast? (Actually, there are a couple, but more on that later), no effects? No script? Come on, what were they trying to pull???!?!?!

And then I watched it.

Car lovers, you HAVE to see this movie. A break-neck drive through a 1976 Paris dawn in what must have been one of the fastest cars around at the time. All sorts of rumours surround this film - was the driver of the car a hired Formula 1 Driver? - having seen it, this would not surprise me.........was the director immediately arrested following it's first showing? Again, this would not surprise me.

No script, No effects, No editing - yep, it was all done in one take, and the DVD supposes a reason for this - and only the briefest appearance by "Actors" for the surprise ending.......and it is a surprise - not for nothing does this movie have this title...

Watch it if you get a chance, but not before securely fastening your seatbelt!!!!!!!!!! The kind of movie that Cine2000 and IMax were invented for.....

High Speed on a Paris Morning

[tiptoesan · 10/10 · 9 May 2004]

Jump into your Ferrari and sail through the streets of Paris at high speeds early in the morning. The amazing thing about this movie, other than the fact that no one was ran over making it, is the fact that it was shot in one take. No cuts, fancy special effects or editing...just one man and a really fast car heading for a rendezvous with his woman. Seen on a big screen television with surround will put you in the driver's seat of one of the world's fastest production cars for a 12 minutes of "sitting on the edge of your seat" action. This is one of the best film shorts that I have ever seen and recommend it to everyone that I know.

magnifique

[crunchy_froglet · 10/10 · 29 December 2003]

er, wow! I didn't really know what to expect but despite seeing it several times (only got the video a couple of days ago) there are moments that you can't help but wonder what'll happen, even if you know.

Love the way that the guy obviously has his foot flat on the floor almost the entire duration, red lights or no red lights. Something I don't understand is the "surprise" ending - the film is called "it was a rendezvous/meeting" ..thought it was a rather good ending though.. I thought it was all pretty great to be honest. Yay!

All official information available

[him-28 · 10/10 · 30 March 2006]

It was Claude lelouch driving Himself ! He was driving a Mercedes

http://www.axe-net.be/rdv/presentation.php

He never pass 180 km/h, & was 3 inside of the car

Watch the movie & see itinéraire on http://www.axe-net.be/rdv/

You will find all official information over this short movie. Who was driving, the way he used for movie.

And also leave comments :d But all in French ! English Version will come soon.

You will not be sad to have loose you're time watch my website ! We are not official website, but we speak about us on official lelouch website !

A great short

[matanza_pelicula · 8/10 · 2 April 2004]

It's a typical take by Lelouch: the magic of cinema, surprises in the end, a "how they do this with a camera?"... If you have seen the Lelouch's short for "Lumiere & Co." it's the same thing always, it's a magician of nothing, but all that "nothing" is "brillant" in the way that he show it on the screen. A lot of thing, maybe it's not good at all, but we can't stop to see this movie, it's amazing, we are part of all the movie like in a "camera car" or "camera moto" (for me it's a moto) of Formula 1... I would like so much to see this short in a big screen, projected...

I think it's pure cinema.

A tour of Paris in 7 minutes.

[boscoj · 10/10 · 7 February 2001]

The streets of Paris on a quiet Sunday morning. The shrill scream of a Ferrari going through the gears. A camera strapped to the hood. Blasting through red lights at breakneck speed and using pedestrians as apex cones. The best 7 minutes of real tv I have ever seen. Worth every penny for those car nuts and race fans. This film was "out of print" two years ago. I have been looking for this film since I first saw it in 1989.

Just a car ride

[Horst_In_Translation · 2/10 · 9 September 2015]

I may be a bit biased with my review and rating on this 8-minute film here from almost 40 years ago. The writer, director and lead actor is Claude Lelouch, already an Academy Award winner at this point. Lead actor may be a bit much as we only see him briefly at the end. Everything before that is a high speed through Paris. I have always been fascinated by this city, but I cannot say that I found the way it was portrayed in here too memorable. Then again, I am not interested in cars at all and I certainly do not have a need for speed in my genes or blood. If you think about this differently, you may very well enjoy this, especially the sound of the motor from start to finish. I myself did not and saw nothing memorable in here at all. A very boring watch and I give it a thumbs down. I am sure I'll enjoy Lelouch's other works far more.

An exhilarating piece of short-form cinema

[ThreeSadTigers · 15 April 2008]

This is perhaps not a film that I would recommend paying good money for; especially when you consider that A) it's only nine minutes in length and B) can be watched for free on various video upload sites around the net. However, as a piece of cinema, the experience is exhilarating. If you took the time to search this film by name, then I'd imagine you're already familiar with the concept; which involves a car speeding dangerously through the streets of early morning Paris on the way to an unknown destination. Director Claude Lelouch originally claimed that the film featured a Ferrari 275 GTB speeding through streets at 140-odd miles per hour, which is a brave feat, but one that has been proved as false over the subsequent years.

However, the fact that Lelouch was not driving the Ferrari and was in actual fact creating the facade of such an extravagance in his own Mercedes estate makes this even more successful as an experiment into the falseness of cinema itself. Through the use of sound and movement, Lelouch creates the facade of intense speed and real danger, as we view the action from a low angle camera attached to the car's front bumper as it twists and turns through narrow side roads and along busy streets, taking in the architecture and some of the major tourist traps on this breakneck journey through time. Naturally you can project your own opinions and interpretations onto it, seeing it as a metaphor for existence, of time moving forward to an event so fast that you cannot even comprehend how dangerous the journey actual is, etc, but for me, I feel this film is Lelouch's way of taking the ideas of someone like Godard to heart to show the natural facade of cinema itself.

The idea that the single components or the "how's and why's" aren't necessarily as important as the finished whole or the experience that they present seems to be the real point of the film. There's also the typically adventurous idea of cinema for the sake of cinema; recalling the ideas of someone like Werner Herzog, in the sense that there is no reason for doing anything other than the reason itself. C'était un rendez-vous (1976) is maverick film-making that represents the true heart and soul of cinema in the classic sense of the brother Lumiere, and of short films like The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat (1896).

Absolutely fantastic!

[Grisgugge · 10/10 · 7 March 2000]

No comments necessary! You must see it! A must for all racing lovers. Joyful for cineasts! Only boring for boring people. Hard to find though. I wish I had a drivers license myself. Notice the garbage trucks and the pigeons. An anarchistic exclamation also.

Irresponsible, Irresistible

[sans-pareil · 10/10 · 16 November 2005]

This film is amazing, it's insane, and it's wonderful. You have to be suicidal and very intent on making a movie to take such risks to get something on film. Through red lights, up one way streets, scaring pedestrians, past the Arc de Triomphe, through the Louvre and up to the Basilique de Sacre Coeur at dawn in Paris... he never lets up for a moment, full speed through traffic lights, dodging buses and garbage trucks. It's only nine minutes long, but it never ceases to intrigue me. I've never seen an footage like it. Need for Speed underground Avant la lettre. Whether it really is a Ferrari 275 GTB he's driving an alpine A110 or whether the soundtrack is real is irrelevant. Even if it was done in a Parisian taxi, the footage is still amazing.

Breathtaking short film, don't miss.

[TRD609 · 9/10 · 24 May 1999]

Such a little film and it raises so many questions. I saw this film at a Sardi's Chowder Society lunch years ago, and I was astounded. We never see the driver, we never see the car, we just see the view forward from the front bumper, and what a view it is. FLAT-OUT through the early morning streets of Paris in something very, very fast. Seemingly insane risks are taken as red lights are blown thru at 120+ mph, pedestrians and on-coming traffic narrowly missed. How was this possible? Was there any traffic control or did the driver really take those risks? Who drove? Who is the woman at the end? What made her worthy of such a drive? But most importantly, exactly what kind of car was it? (I'd like to think it's a Ferrari 275 or 365, some knowledgeable buffs say a Renault Alpine, but no one can answer that one for sure.) If you are a sports car enthusiast, this film is not optional, it's mandatory. For others, some get it, and some don't.

Vrrroooooooom!!!!

[laura.g · 10/10 · 4 January 2001]

This short (approx 15-20 minutes) film is right up there with the car chase from "Bullit". If you're into fast cars-this is for you! Lelouch borrowed a friends Ferrari, strapped a camera on the front and took a high speed drive through the streets of Paris at daybreak. Thrilling! Listen as he goes through the gears. We have a tradition in my (British) car club of showing this at the last meeting of the year-and no one has tired of it yet! (Equally as exciting backward as it is forward!) Credits should read-"Sound track by Enzo"!