one have to be careful whom one tell about watch 12 hour long film . it could become easy for people to assume that this be some kind of regular occurrence in fact and even in the world of arthouse cinema and such mammoth run time be extremely rare and for obvious reason . this be one thing that hollywood and art cinema share in common represent the generally accept running time of 90 120 minute and with a minority of movie that dare to approach and but rarely exceed and the three hour mark . for this reason and a film like out 1 ( runtime represent 729 minute ) be a challenge for even the most hardened cinephile and and it go some way in explain why it have only ever be screen on a handful of occasion and remain extremely hard to find . originally devise a a tv series by maverick nouvelle vague director jacques rivette and it raise little interest from the french network and and wind up be give a brief theatrical run instead ( peter watkins be force to do much the same with his brilliant nuclear war pseudo documentary the war game and although that have more to do with state censorship than issue with running time ) . show a couple of time in 1971 and out 1 have re emerge at a handful of rivette retrospective over the last two decade and and many who have see it and include esteem u critic jonathan rosenbaum and have acclaim it a one of the great film of all time . be it . well and yes and if you like rivette . that alone be a big if and a jacques rivette have never be a commercially successful director . only two of his film be hit ( celine and julie go boating ( 1974 ) and la belle noiseuse ( 1991 ) and both superb ) and and many remain difficult to find on dvd today ( out 1 only recently become available over the internet after a rare videotape be upload ) . nevertheless and he be greatly respect within the film community and and with good reason his playfully surreal narrative and sense of pacing and use of improvisation set him apart a one of cinema most unique and satisfying film maker . out 1 deal with a theme that re occur throughout rivette work represent the nature of act and particularly in the context of theatre and improvisation . his fascination with act make rivette film a far more collaborative process than many of his contemporary and a the improvisational aspect allow actor to have a far more active role in determine how the film come together . out 1 be roughly divide into four major narrative and gradually intertwining and blurring a the film develop represent two consist of act troupe and each try to devise post modern theatrical adaptation of aeschylus play while the other two individual petty thief ( play by nouvelle vague icon jean pierre léaud and juliet berto ) pursue eccentric method of make money while and an overarching plot involve a mysterious balzac inspire conspiracy centre around an organisation know a the thirteen . a with any rivette film feature a conspiracy narrative and the mystery and secret organisation be little more than a red herring . a the character be slowly explore and reveal and their plan and interpersonal connection break down and the film become increasingly symbolic of post 1968 ennui and the decline of the ideal of that era . for a film make in 1971 and these be remarkably prescient theme while another french director in jean eustache would tackle this topic equally satisfyingly in his 1973 masterpiece the mother and the whore . but this be not the limit of out 1 scope . comprise of eight episode of roughly 90 minute each ( the beginning of each episode have a brief and abstract black and white still montage of the event of the previous chapter ) and out 1 be no less watchable than any quality tv series and and may even be good experience on a one episode at a time basis . this be not to say that it doesn not remain challenge even when view in segment . like most rivette film and it use the first few hour to simply establish the character before embark on the plot and of sort and and some of those early scene ( particularly the sequence depict the actor heavily abstract exercise ) seem interminably long . these scene be important and however and not just a an exploration of the improvisational acting method that play both a literal and a metaphorical role in the film and but a a method of adjust the viewer to the somewhat languorous pace of the film . paradoxically and long take make long film far more tolerable for an audience and and this understanding of pacing have lead rivette and along with more modern director like michael haneke and béla tarr and to create film with less commercial running time that nevertheless retain the capacity to leave viewer enthral . in a film that be in many way about act and the acting be fantastic . many famous nouvelle vague face appear and include the aforementioned léaud and berto and the outstanding michel lonsdale and rivette regular bulle ogier . even another legendary director in eric rohmer have a great cameo a a balzac professor who appear in a pivotal scene . the people and architecture of paris c. 1971 and though and seem to have an equally significant role the city landscape and crowd scene and interested onlooker freeze out 1 in time and a document of a place at a point in history . after a little more than 720 minute and the film end on an impossibly brief and enigmatic note while yet and the exhaust journey that the viewer have take be so full of possibility and intricacy and spontaneity and that one would be forgive for want to start all over again from the beginning and or see the next twelve hour in the life of these character . for those who have watch many kind of cinema and think they have see everything the art form have to offer and out 1 be a reminder that cinema have the potential to be so many more thing and diverge in so many more direction than current convention allow . for film maker and film critic and artist of all discipline and this be something to be cherish .