Review of Bed and Board (1970) by Lee H — 17 Mar 2009

Francois Truffaut is the family member, maybe an uncle or a distant cousin, who always tells good stories. He may narrate the simplest episodes with a tenderness, an openness of spirit, that engages. He is the most creative director whose work I have ever seen. He infuses all of his films with sincerity and beauty that can only really be achieved through a deep, deep admiration for the art of cinema and for the tiniest details of human life. Bed and Board may not be the world's most interesting movie on paper, but when you're watching it, it is.

Antoine Doinel is a newlywed in Bed and Board. His wife is the wonderful Claude Jade, so cute as Christine. Their daily life is quaint, relaxed, very intimate. They are going to have a baby. Antoine happens to meet a Japanese girl whose allure he can't resist, and begins an affair with her.

Ever the free spirit, Antoine has a hard time conforming with a fixed situation, a fixed location, a fixed girlfriend. He loves his wife, but he can't bring himself to resist external temptations. Christine is very polite, proper, bourgeoise, and we all know Antoine's upbringing was not exactly the same... so at times he feels uncomfortable in this new lifestyle, he needs a break. Bed and Board tells a sweet story about sacrificing the constant search for excitement and the ideallistic notions we have about what we want our lives to be, and the process of giving value to what we do have. Antoine doesn't have to settle down if he doesn't want to, he just has to go through all these things, ups and downs, to discover by himself that he DOES want to. Happens to everyone. Happens in life. Happened to Truffaut, and happens here. Things fall in and out of place, situations are never clear, everything is relative to everyone. Soon Antoine will discover where his loyalty lies.

Maybe this is all unexciting on paper. And yet it is so enrapturing when watched. Bed and Board is funny and witty as much as it is romantic. Truffaut can elevate anyone's emotional intelligence with his craft. Jean Pierre Leaud never disappoints, especially not when playing Antoine Doinel, possibly his most important role ever. I can't wait to see Baisers Voles now.