A Bout De Souffle & 9 Other Great French New Wave Movies

A Bout De Souffle & 9 Other Great French New Wave Movies

Breathless (À Bout De Souffle) was one of the most influential movies to emerge from the French New Wave. Here are some essentials of the movement.

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One of the most influential movements in cinematic history, the French New Wave revolutionized cinema forever, influencing the work of directors like Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino. Titled La Nouvelle Vague in French, the French New Wave was born alongside the existential movement, at a time when French intellectuals struggled to find meaning in a post-WWII world. La Nouvelle Vague Went against the conventional Hollywood standard, by focusing on what is truth. Its directors attempted to capture the reality of the human condition and human emotion.

As a result, the genre rid itself of more complicated Hollywood production techniques. Instead, it made use of natural lighting and sound, handheld cameras, improvised dialogue, a lackluster emphasis on plot and narrative structure, and shooting on location. The French New Wave was also distinctly known for a post-production editing style of jump cuts.

10 Adieu Philippine (Farewell, Philippine, dir. by Jacques Rozier, 1962)

A forgotten French New Wave movie, Adieu Philippine is also noted for being one of the most important works of the movement. The movie is particularly historically important because it deals with The Algerian War (1954 – 1962).

The movie uses a lot of jump cuts and follows three Liliane, Juliette and Michel on a holiday in Corsica before Michel is drafted into the French army to fight in the war. Director, Rozier’s first directorial debut, the movie is one of the hardest French New Wave movie to see today.

9 Paris Nous Appartient (Paris Belongs To Us, dir. by Jacques Rivette, 1961)

Set in Paris in 1957, Paris Nous Appartient deals with the existential crisis of the 1950s and 1960s, when France dealt with fears of nuclear annihilation under the threat of the cold war. New consumerist prosperity, never before seen in France, also overtook the country, and intellectuals struggled with the meaning of life during a time of financial stability.

The main characters are alienated and do not feel as though they belong, and two of them would take their lives. The movie also features cameos from other New Wave directors, such as Jean-Luc Godard and Jacques Demy.

8 Jules Et Jim (Jules and Jim, dir. by François Truffault, 1962)

A wartime love story, Jules And Jim tells the story of a love triangle of two young men, Jules and Jim, and their obsession with Catherine. Set before, during, and after WW1, in Austria, Germany, and France, the tragic love story tells the story of Catherine, a free-spirited woman who plays on the obsession of both friends, until it leads to the death of Jim.

The movie is notable for its use of voiceover narration, incorporated newsreel footage, freeze frames, and photographic stills, invoking the historical nature of the war, and the free-spirited nature of Catherine.

7 Hiroshima, Mon Amour (Hiroshima My Love, dir. by Alain Resnais, 1959)

One of the most influential movies of all time, and the “a cornerstone of the French New Wave”, Hiroshima, Mon Amour is another existential exploration of the war set within a love affair. A French actress and a Japanese architect begin an affair shortly after the bombing of Hiroshima.

Through their love affair, they explore their memories of WWII, as they try to find healing amidst the mass pain of the Second World War. The movie is renowned for its use of very brief flashbacks intercut into scenes of the present to represent the ever-present, ever-clamoring nature of memory.

6 Bande à Part (Band Of Outsiders, dir. by Jean-Luc Godard, 1964)

Jean-Luc Godard was the French New Wave’s most popular director. Band of Outsiders is considered one of his least threatening works (and the least threatening French New Wave movie) because it appeals to a wider audience. The movie is not too conceptual, and it follows a simple heist movie plot of three people trying to steal a huge sum of money.

The movie borrows from the American gangster genre, with the characters’ infatuation with money, crime, averting the law, and guns. Behind its simplicity, however, the movie tells the story of the existential dread that French youth at the time faced in a newly consumerist society that suddenly prioritized individualism and capitalism over all else.

5 Lola (dir. by Jacques Demy, 1961)

The French New Wave was influenced by the German expressionist and Italian neorealist movement. Lola was director, Jacques Demy’s tribute to German director, Max Ophüls. The name of the protagonist, Lola, was also inspired by German director Josef von Stenberg’s movie, The Blue Angel featuring Marlene Dietrich.

The movie is a story of unrequited love, when cabaret singer, Lola, catches the eye of Roland, who falls in love with her. Lola, however, is also in love with a man, Michel, who impregnated her seven years ago and then abandoned her.

4 Cleo De 5 à 7 (Cloe From 5 To 7, dir. by Agnès Varda 1962)

Agnès Varda was a female French New Wave director whose works, including Cleo From 5 To 7, centered a feminist and woman’s point of view. Singer, Cléo, awaits the results of a test to find out if she has cancer. Cleo is self-obsessed, and cannot deal with the issue of her own mortality. She escapes her dread of death by worshipping her youth and beauty. Outside forces, such as The Algerian War and the civil war movement in the US, are also a strain on Cleo’s psyche as she faces her powerlessness and alienation in the face of a new world.

The movie also deals with Cleo’s experience with sickness and death as a woman, in patriarchal France.

3 A Bout De Souffle (Breathless, dir. by Jean-Luc Godard, 1960)

Jean-Luc Godard’s debut feature movie, Breathless has influenced numerous movies. The movie follows a protagonist, Michel, who is enamored by the gangster lifestyle, lives a life of crime, and hopes to flee to Italy. The movie was filmed even before the script was finished, exemplifying the carefree nature of the French New Wave.

Indeed, the movie moved from genre to genre, one minute a gangster movie, the next a romance, and the next a comedy. He is noted for saying of the movie: “It’s not improvisation. It’s decision-making at the last minute.”

2 Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows, dir. by François Truffaut, 1959)

The 400 Blows is another movie about youth rebellion, alienation, and existentialism in French culture of the ’50s and ’60s. Considered one of the greatest movies ever made, Truffaut’s protagonist, Antoine, is misunderstood both at home and at school. The movie ends on a cliffhanger, leaving audiences questioning whether Antoine walks into the ocean forever or not. The 400 Blows was semi-autobiographical, revealing parts of Truffaut’s troubled childhood.

The movie won Best Director and was nominated for the Palm d’Or at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival.

1 Tirez Sur Le Pianiste (Shoot The Pianist, dir. by François Truffaut, 1960)

Based on the David Goodis novel, Down There, Shoot The Pianist is an homage to American film noir movies. It features a forgotten pianist, who cannot deal with his wife’s suicide. He is also hiding from his past, but when his brother finds him, he is dragged back into a life of crime.

Charlie’s life begins to unravel at a fast pace, especially when he unwittingly murders another man, who is jealous of Charlie’s new lover, Lena. Charlie finally accepts his new fate, ending in fatal consequences.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/a-bout-de-souffle-breathless-best-french-new-wave-movies/

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