Review of Breathless (2009) by Willie C — 15 Sep 2013

I've been getting ahead on a lot of classic films thanks to the selection Criterion has on Hulu Plus. I saw Vampyr, which was a fantastic and creepy horror film, but the one that really stook out was Breathless by Goddard.

I'd never seen a movie from the French new wave director, Jean-Luc Goddard, so I decided that there was no other place to start than his first, and possibly most famous film, Breathless.

This isn't one of those movies where I can "describe what goes on," because that isn't how this movie works. It works like a series of events in this fugitive's life. From his lust for his basic dream woman, to the many cigarettes smoked, we get up close and personal with our lead anti-hero. Very few directors can make a fake movie character seem real, but from the looks of things, Goddard is one of them. And this is just our lead. We also have a fantastic female role, played by the beautiful Jean Seberg.

If you've never seen a Goddard film (or even a French film) I think Breathless is the way to start. It has everything that makes the common French movie, and that isn't bad. If you want to shake things up a bit, try Breathless, you may just find that it's something you like.

AND NOW FOR A STORY:

Anna Karina is famous for being Jean-Luc Goddard's muse. While I've never seen her in any of his films, I am very familiar with the actress herself. Don't ask. She was doing some modeling around the age of 17 when this film was in production, and was offered a small part. However, this would require her to take off her clothes. Because of this she refused. Confused, Goddard pointed out that she had modeled in an ad in which she sat seemingly bare in a bathtub. Karina replied that she was only naked in Goddard's mind. Being a male this is relateable. This story alone gets me so excited to see the works this duo made following Breathless (she eventually became his wife, but they divorced after a few years). Some of the notable works they collaborated on include Band of Outsiders, Made in the USA, A Woman is a Woman, Pierre La Fout, and Vivre Sa Vie. I'd like to see Vivre Sa Vie first, because it looks very interesting. Thank you Criterion for making all of these great movies available.