Subway (1985)

(On Cable TV, August 2022) I’m not convinced that Subway isn’t a Science Fiction film. It’s shot so bizarrely, featuring such extreme characters in an alien environment that it still feels like SF. Of course, being an early creation from writer-director Luc Besson helps contribute to that impression—Besson’s quotidian can feel otherworldly, and that impression is magnified here. Anyway: Set in mid-1980s Paris, Subway begins with a car chase that lands its protagonist (a wild-haired, manic yet taciturn Christophe Lambert) underground, pursued by an attractive woman (Isabelle Adjani, striking) and some less attractive hoodlums working for the woman’s husband. Finding refuge amongst the metro’s colourful punk inhabitants and strange passageways, the film largely takes place in darkness or starkly artificial light. Visually and atmospherically, it’s quite a striking film: some of its early moments are quite memorable, and the accumulation of weirdness (such as a drumming Jean Reno or an athletic roller skater) makes an impression. Where Subway falters, inevitably, is in its plotting, or rather its inability to put its striking elements in the service of an equally striking narrative. Still, the film itself is more than its plot—it’s a bold piece of cinema, an early calling card for Besson and everyone else involved.