Rethinking the Image

Image source: Extension du domaine de la lutte (Harel, 1999). © Lazennec Films/Canal+

The following essay examines four French films which, although all set predominantly in the Paris metropolitan area, each put forward a different representation of urban development and its effects on society.

Originally written in April 2022 during my final semester of undergraduate study, this essay comprises two sections. The first section introduces all four films as a thematic grouping (the essay refers to this as a “film season” due to the title of the original assignment), while the second section presents a focused analysis of Extension du domaine de la lutte (1999, directed by Philippe Harel and based on Michel Houellebecq’s 1994 novel of the same name).