L’ATALANTE

French poetic realist filmmaker Jean Vigo completed only four movies—two shorts and two features—before his untimely death at age 29. But his two features have proved influential and immortal, and still turn up regularly on lists of the best movies ever made. L’Atalante, the second of these and Vigo’s final film, is a lyrical, romantic masterpiece about a barge captain who takes a wife. The bride comes to live with him and his salty, eccentric old mate (Michel Simon in an indelible performance) on the boat, but it’s not smooth sailing for the young marrieds. This new restoration returns to the director’s original 1934 cut, eliminating some discarded-by-Vigo footage that had been added to previous restorations. Cleveland revival premiere. Subtitles. DCP. 89 min.