Stunning and amazing

Rating: Null/10 (21 April 1999)

"Blue" was incredible. Like Kubrick, Krzysztof Kieslowski uses symbolic images -- in the case of this "trilogy" it is very often colors as the titles would suggest. Where Kubrick makes serious commentary about society and the civilized world, Kieslowski paints a picture of emotion and the human psyche -- many would argue a more daunting task.
Truly the interpretation of this film is personal to the individual who watched it, but here's my take. "Blue" was about one emotion, one state of mind: the numbness we experience before grieving. It is something that every human being who has suffered goes through, whether it is for just a few minutes or for a lifetime, as we feared Binoche's character would do. I felt the plot was a vehicle by which the director painted these emotions so vividly.
Binoche's character suffered intensely and seemed numb to the world around her, but at the same time she also became more empathic and sensitive. She could not stand the thought of others having to suffer -- which was the case in her interaction with the prostitute-dancer and with the mice in her closet. These many paradoxes in the human mind seem to be a running theme in this film (another is the closeness and anger she felt for the lawyer who carried her dead husband's child), and possibly his others (of which I have yet to see).
To anyone who has a weak stomach for wrenching emotional imagery, stay away from this film. However, if you want to see an artistic and poetic triumph in a film, you must see "blue."