The film’s title, “Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du
Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles,” (1975) is nothing but the name of the principal
character, a widowed single mother of a teenage son, Sylvian, followed by her mailing
address, complete with the zip-code 1080 and her apartment number 23. Her
mundane daily life matches the generic title being her name and full address.
To be sure, Dielman’s apartment is a ubiquitous fixture as the film’s setting,
and the object of the lead character’s daily household chores, which she does
so dispassionately and so often that the film can be reckoned as a statement on
the utter meaninglessness than can come to inhabit a solitary person’s life when
it excludes interpersonal intimacy and even God.
The full essay is at "Jeanne Dielman."
