Breathless, Dir. Jean-Luc Godard, (1960)
[ - a film review i wrote for my professional practice course]
"Don't use the brakes. Cars are made to go, not to
stop." In Jean-Luc Goddard's film, Breathless, everyone seems to be
running to nowhere with a cigarette in hand and sex and coffee constantly on
their mind. The energy that the threat of connection as well as death is
actively being evaded is evident to me from the first car chase to the blunt
melancholic end. This is created by contradiction and jump cuts in both the
fourth wall breaks and the plot driven by debauchery and intrigue. These themes
are created by Godard using allusions to narcissism in its semiotics. The film
is full of these easter eggs in the back of scenes, exemplified by glimpses of
photographic self portraits on the walls of both of Michelle’s love interests as
well as prints of Renoir paintings and liberal use of poster typography in the
background of street scenes.
The themes of narcissism and debauchery continue to be
revealed in the characters and plot. Everyone seems to be out for their own
gain and relationships between characters always seem to have a layer of
distance, like everyone is watching each other to determine how they can use
this for their own benefit and pleasure which leads this film to be totally
indulgent in its escapism for those of us tired of the responsibilities of the
real world.
This is an incredibly enjoyable watch if you like films
defined by atmosphere and a choppy raw tone. I think Breathless is best paired
with a bottle of wine and the company of someone you can laugh about how much
you want to be, yet, also completely avoid Michelle, at least that’s how I always
try and watch it.
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