Jean-Pierre Léaud gets a starring vehicle under Jean-Luc Godard's direction as a 21 year old kid named Paul returning from the war a jaded socialist. He meets a young woman his age named Madeleine (Chantal Goya) in a café and the two go through a hot-and-cold, up-and-down relationship that is at times sexual and passionate, aloof and distanced. Madeleine, it appears, is also possibly romantically tied to a roommate named Elizabeth (Marlène Jobert) who helps her on a budding musical pop career.
Meanwhile, a third woman named Catherine (Catherine-Isabelle Duport) emerges, another friend of Madeleine's, and although subtle and undefined, she is falling in love with Paul (Paul never realizes this; his activist unionizer friend, Robert (Michel Debord) does). Robert is in love with Catherine, and in a very inquisitive monologue sequence, he posits questions to dig deeper into what makes her tick with no payoff. This is one of many fascinating, lengthy monologues where dialogue is extensive, probing, questionable, commentary, and off-kilter.
Most of the time, when there is a dialogue it features a young man and woman (typically Léaud's Paul and someone he's "interviewing"/"polling" or "interrogating") talking about sex, politics, or pop culture. That's the thing about this film: its significance as a cultural and historical artifact is important. It is a pivotal period where Vietnam is on the tongues and a shift in mores in society was changing. Philosophers, musicians, and political figures make their way into scenes with Godard feeling it was key to establishing time and place. This gives the film a relevance that we can look back on and realize spoke on what was happening during that period in the world. Focusing on young adults of different types within a group centralizes them as an example of a cultural shift taking place. Still kids with a direction in life still a bit elusive. I do think Godard can go a little far with including so much of his own art in his films. The inclusion of "Alphaville" for a theatre sequence, such an example. Bridget Bardot getting a rather pointless cameo reading lines with a hyperactive acting coach. Sometimes his films lose steam when he does this.
Madeleine, to me, gradually separates herself from Paul (perhaps not even consciously) as her life begins to take off due to her pop career (in the studio, when Paul slides his hand to hers she pulls away; when she is greeted by a radio personality for an interview she treats Paul as if he were her chauffeur) and his takes on a more political and sociological change.
One interesting scene has Paul interviewing (he calls it "polling French women in general") a "Miss 19 winner" who won the award and benefited from its "advantages" (travel, niceties, exposure), asking private, personal questions about sex and political issues. Sufficed to say, she tries as she might to avoid the topics that aren't comfortable, although he's quite skilled at pulling out of her certain thoughts she is reluctant to share.
The first real dialogue shared between Paul and Madeleine is a good example of what the film is like as a whole. Questions are asked and comments are made quite openly and honestly. Barriers seem to diminish as the two become a bit more comfortable sharing details about themselves. I do wish Catherine and Paul had one such scene as I think these are the two characters with far more potential never realized by the tragic conclusion. A series of violent acts happen around or in close proximity with Paul. A blond shoots two black men with Paul unable to warn them in time. A knife-wielding troubled soul at first appears to be threatening Paul in a game room, eventually stabbing himself. An older man takes some matches from Paul, pours gas all over his person, and sets himself on fire. A "maid" shoots a father in the back while he tries to remove his son from a café. In the final scene, deeply sad and unfortunate, has Catherine speaking about an incident in an apartment to a police officer getting details on it. It proves that Paul's closeness with tragedy eventually befell him.
I did find the dynamic regarding Madeleine and Elizabeth interesting in that there appears to be a love affair among them. They think Paul is unaware, but he noticed them in a shower together (behind a steamed glass giggling), and when his eyes are closed while imitating a tune from Bach Elizabeth caresses Madeleine who doesn't swat away her advances. Catherine, appearing to be a third wheel, is given little moments with Paul that would seem to indicate she has a taste for kink and decadence (she asks him if he has ever heard of De Sade; she briefly gets a chance to ask Paul if he is still in love with Madeleine, with him shooing away the question; she playfully disavows Robert's implicating her of being in love with Paul), and a specific interest for him if he'd realize it. But Paul and Madeleine's endless "is this love or not?" back and forth interferes with potential with Catherine. By film's end, he'd never get a chance to truly understand that.
Meanwhile, a third woman named Catherine (Catherine-Isabelle Duport) emerges, another friend of Madeleine's, and although subtle and undefined, she is falling in love with Paul (Paul never realizes this; his activist unionizer friend, Robert (Michel Debord) does). Robert is in love with Catherine, and in a very inquisitive monologue sequence, he posits questions to dig deeper into what makes her tick with no payoff. This is one of many fascinating, lengthy monologues where dialogue is extensive, probing, questionable, commentary, and off-kilter.
Most of the time, when there is a dialogue it features a young man and woman (typically Léaud's Paul and someone he's "interviewing"/"polling" or "interrogating") talking about sex, politics, or pop culture. That's the thing about this film: its significance as a cultural and historical artifact is important. It is a pivotal period where Vietnam is on the tongues and a shift in mores in society was changing. Philosophers, musicians, and political figures make their way into scenes with Godard feeling it was key to establishing time and place. This gives the film a relevance that we can look back on and realize spoke on what was happening during that period in the world. Focusing on young adults of different types within a group centralizes them as an example of a cultural shift taking place. Still kids with a direction in life still a bit elusive. I do think Godard can go a little far with including so much of his own art in his films. The inclusion of "Alphaville" for a theatre sequence, such an example. Bridget Bardot getting a rather pointless cameo reading lines with a hyperactive acting coach. Sometimes his films lose steam when he does this.
Madeleine, to me, gradually separates herself from Paul (perhaps not even consciously) as her life begins to take off due to her pop career (in the studio, when Paul slides his hand to hers she pulls away; when she is greeted by a radio personality for an interview she treats Paul as if he were her chauffeur) and his takes on a more political and sociological change.
One interesting scene has Paul interviewing (he calls it "polling French women in general") a "Miss 19 winner" who won the award and benefited from its "advantages" (travel, niceties, exposure), asking private, personal questions about sex and political issues. Sufficed to say, she tries as she might to avoid the topics that aren't comfortable, although he's quite skilled at pulling out of her certain thoughts she is reluctant to share.
The first real dialogue shared between Paul and Madeleine is a good example of what the film is like as a whole. Questions are asked and comments are made quite openly and honestly. Barriers seem to diminish as the two become a bit more comfortable sharing details about themselves. I do wish Catherine and Paul had one such scene as I think these are the two characters with far more potential never realized by the tragic conclusion. A series of violent acts happen around or in close proximity with Paul. A blond shoots two black men with Paul unable to warn them in time. A knife-wielding troubled soul at first appears to be threatening Paul in a game room, eventually stabbing himself. An older man takes some matches from Paul, pours gas all over his person, and sets himself on fire. A "maid" shoots a father in the back while he tries to remove his son from a café. In the final scene, deeply sad and unfortunate, has Catherine speaking about an incident in an apartment to a police officer getting details on it. It proves that Paul's closeness with tragedy eventually befell him.
I did find the dynamic regarding Madeleine and Elizabeth interesting in that there appears to be a love affair among them. They think Paul is unaware, but he noticed them in a shower together (behind a steamed glass giggling), and when his eyes are closed while imitating a tune from Bach Elizabeth caresses Madeleine who doesn't swat away her advances. Catherine, appearing to be a third wheel, is given little moments with Paul that would seem to indicate she has a taste for kink and decadence (she asks him if he has ever heard of De Sade; she briefly gets a chance to ask Paul if he is still in love with Madeleine, with him shooing away the question; she playfully disavows Robert's implicating her of being in love with Paul), and a specific interest for him if he'd realize it. But Paul and Madeleine's endless "is this love or not?" back and forth interferes with potential with Catherine. By film's end, he'd never get a chance to truly understand that.