Beethoven in the space of "Carmen": experience of reinterpretation

The article discusses the film directed by Jean-Louis Godard "First Name: Carmen" as a reinterpretation of the classic story embodied in the novel "Carmen" by Mérimée and Bizet''s opera with the same name. The author argues that, in fact, the director returns Carmen to the dimension of the French culture, building the film around the idea of love as a purely French invention. That is why instead of the usual Merimee’ novel and Bizet''s music the director uses the quartets of Beethoven, since, like the composer disappointed in the genius of Napoleon, Godard doubts the value of the French love in the context of contemporary social problems.