Review of Stolen Kisses (1968) by Andrew S — 07 May 2009

The third film in Truffaut's Antoine Doinel series is an enjoyable romp. Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud) is dishonorably discharged from the army and falls into a job as a private detective. He's not particularly good at it, and hijinx ensue.

Truffaut has a lightness of touch which can be very compelling; it can also make some of his films feel a little bit slight. This is in equal parts true of Stolen Kisses, although the lightness is definitely part of the film's theme -- both in terms of looking back on one's lost youth and in terms of the revolution that was occurring in France when the film was made.

(It may not seem a political film on the surface, but, viewed in the context of May '68, Doinel's attitude towards work and life have a lot of political ramifications.) Truffaut's warmth towards his characters is always his greatest strength; his cinematic technique, however, is sometimes a little rough around the edges.