West: on the set of Ridley Scott’s film, Thelma & Louise

Initially, it was supposed to be just a weekend in the mountains between two friends from Arkansas, a housewife subdued to her husband (Thelma, played by Geena Davies) and a freelance waitress (Louise, played by Susan Sarandon). But when she kills the man who tries to rape her friend outside a bar, the story gets wild. Thelma and Louise make their way to Mexico, pursued by the police and the FBI, whose agent (Harvey Keitel) is the only one who has sympathy for them.

California’s roads

Set between Arkansas, Oklahoma and Colorado, the first two-thirds of this feminist road movie written by screenwriter Callie Khouri was shot in California, from the northern suburbs of Los Angeles to the Lockwood Valley. This is where the film’s motels, salons and drugstores, typical of interstates, are located — the straight roads that cross the United States. It is here (not in Oklahoma City, as the plot points out) that Thelma is lured by the hitchhiker Brad Pitt (J.D.) into her first major role.

Landscapes that enhance the film

In its mad rush, the two women’s convertible Thunderbird takes a look at the deserts of the West. In front of these red sandstone landscapes and infinite skies typical of Westerns, Scott’s camera follows the codes of the genre: Thelma wears a cowboy hat, Louise a revolver and the chases lift clouds of dust. These scenes were shot in Utah, near Moab, and in the Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. As the police tighten their presence, the beautiful and menacing natural scenery becomes the symbol of the ultimate quest for freedom. The final scene, which helped turn Thelma & Louise into a cult film, shows their car flying over the Grand Canyon. If it is a gorge on the Colorado River, that view farther north is called Dead Horse Point. Anecdotally, this sequence required the construction of a ramp so that the craft could continue its course without plunging vertically. The two actresses had obviously been replaced by models.

Ridley Scott is preparing a biopic on Napoleon

For his first feature film for a platform, the English director chose to make a biopic on Napoleon’s life, from the Revolution to exile. The film, which is both a historical episode and an intimate drama, is scheduled to air on Apple TV later this year. Joaquin Phoenix plays the title role; Vanessa Kirby plays Josephine, the emperor’s great love.