VERSUS THE SCARECROW EPISODE ELEVEN: A Look At Jean-Luc. I decided to challenge myself and really open the doors of my film knowledge and take on “The Scarecrow Video Movie Guide”. It’s 808 pages of movies and movie reviews from some of the most knowledgeable movie people you don’t know. It’s a book put together by a staff that praises, and destroys, some of our favorites and not so favorites. You can read the rest of my series here.
Just a quick refresher: each episode, I’m going to tackle three films from three different categories. Two films will be films I’ve never seen before and one will be one I’ve seen before or own. For the new films, well, new to me, I’m going to review them like a typical FTS review using the TOAST Rating system. But, for the films I’ve seen, I’m going give a quick paragraph or two about why I like or don’t like the film. We’ll try to include the poster and trailer for each film. “….and here. We. Go!”
This episode we break into French Foreign films by taking a look at one of my favorite directors: Jean-Luc Godard. We look at Weekend, 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her, and the first Godard film I ever saw, Pierrot Le Fou.
A Relfection on Pierrot Le Fou (1965)
Pierrot Le Fou was the first French foreign film I had ever seen and it was also the first ever Jean Luc-Godard film I had ever seen. The first time I watched it, I felt like I had discovered something new. As if a new film style was emerging before my eyes. After sitting in awe after the final scene, I quickly realized the film was over 40 years old and that I wasn’t seeing anything new; just a Jean-Luc Godard film. A film among many that ushered in the 60s new wave style of French films and a spectacular film that was able to accomplish a lot on a $300,000 budget.
It’s the story of a man, Ferdinand, who’s tired of living the bourgeois lifestyle with his wife and children. So he runs off with a babysitter, and ex-girlfriend, to escape to a life of simplicity. But he finds out his girlfriend is mixed up in mob activities and soon they’re on the run. The beauty and deceit that follow the film around every corner paints a picture of a man leaving behind a boring life for one more exciting and fulfilling. In my opinion, it’s one of the more accessible Godard films because unlike his other films, the anti-capitalism and consumerism ideals aren’t shoved down your throat, which gives the story and characters a better chance to breathe and develop.
Seeing this film got me more interested in French foreign film and I began to watch movies by Jean Cocteau, Arnaud Desplechin, Louis Malle, Jean-Francois Richet, and of course, Jean-Luc Godard. It’s become a favorite genre of mine, especially older French foreign films, because they tend to push the limits of what constitutes film and come off more “art house” which can be a double edged sword; it’s either intriguing and awesome or “holy shit why am I watching this?”
You can read the rest of episode 11 where I reviewed Weekend and 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her. If you’re interested in more, you can find the rest of the Versus The Scarecrow series here.