Well documented in the blogosphere, magazines and our hazy collective memories -especially by those, like me, far too young to remember - the films of Goddard, Truffaut, and the like have endured in the nearly six decades that have passed since the 'movement' started.
Aside from the artistic and cinematic innovation that the films of this genre brought about, they have visual style that is entirely unique and impossible to recapture in today's era of digital filmmaking. They are truly products of setting with an almost primitive charm about them. While some techniques (i.e. dizzyingly quick edits, colour filters and characters breaking the fourth wall) may seem cheap and amateur today, it should be noted at at the time they were revolutionary.
Oftentimes, the location and overall 'feel' of these films becomes a vital character in and of itself. From the smoky Cinecitta screening room of Contempt to the ultra-mod art gallery of Woman in Chains, the viewer is transported to a time and place that will never again exist...if it ever even did.
"...they have visual style that is entirely unique and impossible to recapture in today's era of digital filmmaking."
Having recently revisited some of the classics of the era, I'm struck by how influential they are on modern works, from the 'New Hollywood' films of the 1970s, to Pulp Fiction. While imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, it would appear that the director Wes Andersen, in particular, was heavily influenced by the genre. Moonrise Kingdom and Rushmore, two perennial favourites of mine, have uncanny parallels to Pierrot le Fou and The 400 Blows, respectively.
Just scrolling through these images has given me the urge to find a cafe, light up a Galuloise and contemplate the absurdity of modern existence.
Essential Viewing:
- The 400 Blows (Les quatre cent coups, 1958)
- The Spies (Les Espions, 1958)
- Breathless (À bout de souffle, 1960)
- A Woman is a Woman (Une femme est une femme, 1961)
- Contempt (Le Mépris, 1963)
- Pierrot le Fou (1965)
- Le Weekend (1967)
- Woman in Chains (La Prisonnière, 1968)
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