70's Marathon #1:Breathless

Godard's seminal 1960 film

Breathless(A Bout De Souffle),

Was the crowning acheivement of the nouvelle vague.

Yes,

1959's the 400 Blows, is one of my favourite films of all time,

and Jules Et Jim, another

by Truffaut, are beloved as much

as Breathless,

but why Breathless is the greatest acheivement of the Nouvelle Vague

can be condensed down into two words:

Jump Cuts

Truffaut

was a very commercial director.

Not to say that his films were hollywood,

but of all the nouvelle vague directors, he was the least fascinated

by breaking the rules of cinema.

It's obvious by the first 5 minute sequence, where Jean-Paul

Belmondo

is driving a car down a highway, and then shoots a cop,

is not only there to

set up the story but also

to

showcse this new style of filmamking.

Breathless was a delight to watch, which

seems strange for

me to

say

considering the characters and storyline.

Godard's previous film I had seen,

Band a Part,

while techinically brilliant, left me

very cold inside,

very disaffected.

However, from the opening moments

of Breathless, i was completely taken with Godard's editing and camera.

I was felt calm while

watching this

movie

even if the content was disturbing or emotional(not that

it is).

The last time I

felt

this way

was when I saw The 400 Blows.

But another thing that

suprised me

about Breathless is that my favourite moments

were tracking shots

There are some fantastic tracking shots which seems so at odds with what

Godard's editing philosophy.

One of my new favourite shots

of all time

is when Jean Seberg is with her boss and they both walk

down the stairs

You expect Godard to cut, but instead

his camera fluidly turns

to reveal Jean Paul Belmondo sitting at another table. We then follow

Belmondo

as he walks around the back of the store and then follows Seberg. It's breathtaking to watch this shot in motion.

Belmondo is great,

he's very charasmatic and likeable

in what could be a very unsympathetic role.

Seberg is not

as

great, but she is

still very good.

I don't have

much

else to say.

Oh, also, fantastic final tracking shot.

Verdict: Absolutely brilliant. Don't be put off thinking this is high art, it's also emmensely enjoyable(while being high art). The question that's gonna keep me up at night, is it better then 400 Blows?