POUSSIÈRES D'AMOUR

«Everything we express with our voice results from our desire to come closer to another person. There is no voice without love, and the singing voice is the highest possible expression of love», says Werner Schroeter. To prove this conviction, Schroeter invited a number of singers to join him at an medieval monastery near Paris. The singers brought their wives, husbands, lovers, children - those whom they love. They converse with Schroeter, and then gradually, the singing voices for their loved ones emerge.
«The premise of Poussières d'amour is simple: assemble a group of opera singers, mostly female, in a ruined 13th-century abbey and have them perform and pontificate on subjects ranging from the source of their talent, to the inevitable decline of their powers, to the nagging nearness of death. Roland Barthes' question \"Why and how do singers find their emotions in their voice?\" is the film's starting point. To find answers, Schroeter asked legends like Martha Mödl, Rita Gorr, and Anita Cerquetti to pick a favorite aria to perform, and to bring along a wife, husband, lover, or anyone who has figured importantly in their lives. Other, more contemporary singers like Kristine and Katherine Ciesinski, Gail Gilmore, and Jenny Drivala appear, along with a pair of tenors, Laurence Dale and the robust Russian, Sergeij Larin.
While no one of the performers in this ensemble piece could be called the star, Anita Cerquetti comes closest. During a somewhat testy interview, this mega-diva, who looks like a Roman general in drag, tries to explain to French actress Carole Bouquet why she stopped singing at the height of her powers and career at age 29: \"Life goes on. In life there isn't only singing.\" This sensible insight informs the entire film.»
(Gary Morris)