Breathless - 1960 - Dir. Godard

I saw this back in my college days with Shoot the Piano Player and I got down with STPP way more. I saw this as not nearly as much fun as his other work and actually pretty dull most of the time. I understand it's place in cinema history and I think it fully deserves it's place. But I'd rather watch Weekend. That's just the kind of fella I am. But you know, I get it. It's his first movie, he's not gonna take the kind of risks he would later on, but I feel like without his visual flair and his editing lessened (comparatively), we're left with a story about a jerk who acts like a film-noir jerk and isn't able to convince a woman he loves her. I just don't really get into Michel. Godard doesn't normally have all that sympathetic characters by any means... or really strong characters at all, but usually there's so much other ridiculousness going on that I don't really care or notice. In Breathless, we're stuck with this schmuck, we get some nice jump cuts but that doesn't make up for it! I still think that the end sequence is bitchin' though. It stuck out most of all in my memory from my first viewing. So I'm done badmouthing this landmark type movie. Probably if I had to recommend any starter Godard, this would be the one... Although I suppose that would be kind of deceptive wouldn't it...

Seven!

A Woman Is A Woman - 1961 - Dir. Godard

A ton of fun! Not some I feel like I say about Godard films, but this is certainly a lot of fun to watch. It features his wild editing, sudden diversions, and general goofiness without any of the long winded rants about communism or whatever the hell Godard gets so caught up with. It's more straightforward, following the relationship between these two people and Belmondo who... you know... is classy and wants to get it one with Karina, who wants to have a baby but her fella doesn't want one. Despite the relationship drama, it still has that pretty light farcical feeling, where everyone is young and full of vigor and up for anything (arguments while bike riding). The film has a lot of random music cues, which... to be honest, I don't really know why they are there. But I feel like they are excellent. It's just a comedy that you don't see a lot of. Not to be taken too seriously. It does wacky things just to do wacky things. But it doesn't feel like just because it's wacky it can't have a bit of a heart now and then. When the drama does come in, which it inevitably does since it's about young people being in love. It's still very French New Wave-y. I would say it's probably the most accurate introduction to Godard someone can get while still being entertained (for some reason I remember Breathless as being pretty straightforward, I plan on verifying this).

YEEEAAAAHHHHH!!!!!

Masculine Feminin - 1966 - Dir. Godard

Here's a thing. I'd seen this movie already and not remembered it. I always feel like that 1) It's to be expected with Godard's films and 2) it also speaks of how poorly those damn movies stand out. I mean, I get a kick out of them, but damn it, it's easy to forget those movies. Perhaps, I saw them all when I was too young. I mean, I really liked it this time around. The movie is actually a lot of fun. Obviously, he has the awesome credits and titles in between some scenes. The movie is too early to have all the polemic that Godard's later ones do. I mean, there's plenty of political rants and whatnot, but the film also focuses on culture a lot. There's a particularly long shot of Leaud's face which is pretty crazy. And Godard always casts a ton of cute little French girls from this time. The film's fun. Godard's being playful... not terribly surreal but playful and mostly just making clever little comments on sexual differences and the "follies of youth." The most notable bit about the Coca-Cola generation and Marxism, it makes a lot of sense in the context. Oh man! There's also these really neat interspersed or sudden bits of French pop music, usually having something to do with the scenes, but this movie is another one that just makes me want to give Godard a high five. Or at least shake my head at him in a friendly way.

I can't help but feel like he is being incredible French right now.

Pierrot Le Fou - 1965 - Dir. Godard

I saw this back when... as I was first introducing myself to Godard. I remember only really being struck by the scene where they put on the goofy play for the American Tourists, mostly because the Americans were ridiculous. Apart from that, it just seemed long as hell and slow. I liked it a lot more this time around. And it didn't even feel that long, except maybe the third act. I suppose I barely had any interest in a resolution to the plot or the "heist." I have to admit, the very end is awesome. But the first two thirds of the movie are charming as hell. Godard is so good at filming cute girls. Or he's good at finding cute girls and having them do cute things. Karina and Belmondo are a charming pair. The film is also at a nice point between Godard's hyper-political/abstract point and his black and white films. It's a little bit of both. So it's still abstract and political but he's still pretty playful and it feels less like he's beating you over the head. It also helps that they're on the Mediterranean and everything is just fucking beautiful. Oh man, and the song about her Fate Line is awesome. Sometimes the movie is just them wandering around having neat conversation. And maybe it's just the wander-y part of me, but that's just damn awesome.

WATCH OUT! She's CUTE!

Brigitte and Brigitte - 1966 - Dir. Moullet

So I'm writing this blurb fifteen days after seeing the film. Apart from the scene where the two girls meet, I'm having trouble recalling distinct details from it. So certainly, it's not terribly memorable. It's pretty straight-forward as French New-Wave is concerned. With numerous rants, young people, and a consistent concerned with American films, even featuring a cameo from Sam Fuller. The film is less fun than the premise suggests (two almost identical girls with the same name meeting in the big city) and actually felt less fun or maybe playful than the previous Moullet films I've seen. It's his first, so it's not fair to impose such things so I'm not gonna be a dick about it. This in fact, awfully cheap looking, which I feel is a big thing to say of the generally low budget Moullet. So I suppose if you're hard up for some New-Wave and aren't familiar with Moullet, this might work. It's a nice crossroads between the two as far as I'm concerned. Not a great introduction to either though.

FRANCE!

The Carabineers - 1963 - Dir. Godard

I can get behind a nice, smooth, and easy Jean-Luc Godard film. Like a warm beverage. You know, nothing is more soothing than a Godard film. All right, I stop being sarcastic now. I like Godard though. I'm not crazy about him. Sometimes I wanna punch him in his stinkin' face, but most of the time, I will sit and watch and enjoy a Godard film. I had been watching a lot of his Color films recently, which I honestly enjoy a lot more. La Chionese still sticks it too me. And it SOCKS it to me as well. So, The Carabineers is a black and white, which generally means its a little less visually striking to me. Tonally, it's pretty gentle for a Godard film. He pulls his usually bag a tricks what with people going on and on about this and that but it feels like its presented in a much more upfront manner than Godard is wont to. There's a direct narrative that we're following. There's also a lot of people listing things WHICH IS AWESOME! As well as extended shots of people enjoying and identifying objects in photographs. Perhaps my personal favorite was the four characters yelling french names with random zooms in and out. You know, this film is really fun. But for 75 minutes, it runs long. It also doesn't really surprise you where it ends up going. But it's fun taking the trip.

Sigh... I can't think of anything funny and its the only pic I could find.

A Girl Is A Gun - 1971 - Dir. Moullet

And less than 24 hours later, I see A Girl Is A Gun (SWEET TITLE!) another one of Moullet's features. I think I liked The Smugglers better... I THINK. I'm not exactly sure. They are both very similar featuring gratuitous running around in a desert/chase sequences. The Smugglers seems to have a lot of nice individual moments while A Girl Is A Gun feels like a stronger movie in general. I suppose that is the point that I feel I want to make about Moullet, having seen two of his movies. His movies are kind of purposeful failures in some sense. Like movies TRYING to be other movies but they can't quite cut the mustard. Like the characters aren't driven enough, or smart enough to pull through their plans. The story inevitably gets side-tracked by any old thing. A thrilling chase becomes a romantic attraction. Moullet seemed to try hard to work within his limitations of budget to make something that feels pretty original in some sense. I mean, this is definitely French New Wave, no doubt about. Oh! And Donnelle/Guy from La Chionese plays who I'm assuming is Billy the Kid (we don't ever get a proper introduction by any means). He's a scrawny guy. I watched the English dub because Moullet said with the dub he wanted to try and replicate the shabbiness of American genre films. I think that's what has really sold Moullet for me. SHABBINESS! He's definitely a little shabby. But Leaud's dub was purposefully manlier than Leaud (a skinny frenchman) appears. I mean, that's just silly. And it's fun! You know, I have fun Moullet. And A Girl Is A Gun has a totally bitchin' psychedelic score. The movie does a good job of getting progressively sillier too. Actually the same goes for The Smugglers. I feel like movies like them have a tendency to fizzle out but both of those movies sort of throw us a nice curveball that generally amps up the film in general.

Billy the Kid famously stole his pants from Beetlejuice.

The Smugglers - 1967 - Dir. Moullet

I had never heard of Luc Moullet before. I read about A Girl Is a Gun and the film came on a double feature with The Smugglers, which I watched first because it was listed first on the DVD. The man is a French New Wave director who never really hit it terribly big. Smugglers is his second feature following the tale of a customs agent who has assembled a smuggling operation with two ladies. Naturally, being french, he gets romantic with both of them. The women don't really know how to react when they learn about each other. Sometimes they try and kill one another, sometimes not. Generally the film gives in to French New Wave randomness pretty quickly. A good portion of the film involves the two women chasing each other/escaping with each other from the SMUGGLERS UNION and the government. Another portion involves the trio quitting the life of smuggling to persue the GRAND ADVENTURE of City Life working in an office. I mean, it's fun in the French New Wave-y way, a bit less pretentious than a lot of the films of that time. More prone to general silliness, as well. I didn't particularly laugh out loud by any means, but the movie is clever. And you also can to watch Francoise Vatel run around in a bikini a lot. And that lady has a lot of pluck and is quite shapely. ;) There's also a pretty adorable sequence of her BRAVELY making hot cocoa at her desk. As I look back on the film, I'm feeling quite fond towards it. At one point, they throw everything they own into a river. Later on in the film, they regret this and get everything back. It's told with a voiceover and we see footage of the stuff flowing down the river reversed. I mean, a movie that pulls that stunt has got some good ideas in my book. Also ladies wandering the desert mumbling nonsense is awesome. It really does move quite slowly, but I was still surprised the movie was only eighty minutes long. But I think the pacing made me a little critical of it. It's a fun movie to watch. I'm interested in A Girl Is A Gun but moreso in Bridgette and Bridgette which features Vatel as one of the Bridgettes.

THE HARROWING LIFE OF SMUGGLERS!