Original title: 10 must-see New Wave movies that will make you truly fall in love with Paris
The directors of the French New Wave rewrote the rules for filmmaking. They combined the golden age of Hollywood and the neorealist elements of Italy with their own philosophical explorations, not only paying attention to the artistry of the film, but also achieving excellent results at the box office. Writer Paul McQueen selected 10 classic films from New Wave films, which together present a paris full of intrigue and passion, adding a layer of drama to the city.
Four Hundred Blows
"Four Hundred Blows", also translated as "Nonsense" and "Four Hundred Down", is the film debut of director François Truffaut, and this semi-autobiographical film has achieved remarkable results in critics and box office. It made it onto the list of "greatest films of all time" by most film experts. Arguably, this film really drove the entire New Wave movement.
It is a film that provides a perspective on family and adolescent development, and the protagonist of the film, Antoine, under the indifference and reprimand of her mother and stepfather, begins to wander the streets of Paris, looking around and causing trouble. Although the film's protagonist appears in four of Truffaut's other films, the ambiguous ending in the film has sparked widespread discussion.
"Cousins"
This is the second film of director Claude Chabrol, which tells a subversive modern fable: a naïve country boy who comes to Paris to study, lives with his cousin, studies law, and is very different from his cousin, who lives a bohemian life and only pursues pleasure and excitement, but later falls in love with one of his cousin's lovers. In the shadow of his cousin, the country boy must face the test of love and ethics.
The most memorable scenes in the film include a cruise along the Champs Elysées in a gorgeous classic car with two cousins, and several trips to the numerous bookstores in Paris to read a book.
The film's stars Jean-Claude Brialy and Gerard Blain also played roles in Chabrol's debut film Le beau Serge (1958). In both films, their characters have opposite personalities, leading many to believe that the two films mirror each other.
"Exhausted"
Ten months after Truffaut debuted with Four Hundred Strikes, Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless once again changed the game for the film. The film is both a tribute to the films of the past and a refutation of every basic rule of filmmaking that has been laid down, and it is a microcosm of the cool side of the city of Paris.
Godard's shoot was unscripted, using handheld cameras, natural light, the actor's own costumes, and the actors had little makeup. The result of this shooting is a masterpiece with rough edges, which matches its protagonist well: a fugitive murderer and an American girl who provides him with a hiding place. The final scene is staged on the streets of Paris, fulfilling the promise of the title — exhaustion .
"Shoot the Pianist"
Truffaut's second film, based on David Goodis' crime novel, is a tribute to American film noir, B-movies, and silent comedy.
Movie star Charles Aznavour plays a prominent and famous pianist whose bad fortune eventually sends him to a diving bar in Paris, where the enthusiastic tavern waitress falls in love with him and encourages him to return to the stage.
However, his younger brother, whom he had not seen for many years, broke into his life by hiding from the underworld enemies, leading him to the gate of the city underworld. The film successfully crosses the line between comedy and thriller.
"Paris Belongs to Us"
In his 50-year career as a film director, Jacques Rivette is known for making films of very long durations, and is widely regarded as one of the most experimental directors in the New Wave. It took him 4 years to complete this debut. The film's story revolves around a troupe of actors and a suspicious suicide.
The film features the key elements that have always been consistent in Levitte's films: rehearsals, investigations into mysterious events, and conspiracy theories. When Paris Belongs to Us was finally released, it didn't seem to catch a hit at first because the audience had already experienced the thrill and overflow in Truffaut and Godard's work. Over time, it gained the recognition it deserved.
"Zazi on the Subway"
Louis Malle has always been seen as a member of the French New Wave, but he incorporated many key social movement elements into the director's third film. Adapted from Raymond Queneau's novel, the film tells the story of a little girl named Zazie who goes to Paris to visit her uncle.
Because of the workers' strike and the subway outage, Zazie's dream of riding the subway was shattered. Still, the rebellious Zazie embarks on a crazy journey through Paris, seeing the rooftops, passages, and bridges of Paris, as well as the indifference, hypocrisy, and gross disorder of the adult world.
Cleo at Five to Seven
This is Agnès Varda's second film and a triumph for French New Wave and feminist cinema. Its story takes place in the streets, cafes, parks and homes of the Left Bank of Paris, and is recorded in near real time by film. The protagonist, Cléo, is a successful singer who is anxiously awaiting a test result to determine if she has stomach cancer.
The film is a true portrayal of a woman bravely marching into the unknown in a crisis, without sadness and sentimentality. Cléo's brilliant rehearsal of the song "Sans toi" instantly turned the original naturalistic film into a musical, but the plot did not become sensational, but calmly moved on.
"Jules and Jim"
The story of the film's protagonists, Jules and Jim, spans 25 years, including before, during and after World War I, and takes place in France, Austria and Germany. The most important thing about this movie is freedom, loyalty, and enduring love. Other than that, its soundtrack will make you fall for it.
The three protagonists, played by Oscar Werner, Henri Serre and Jeanne Moreau, are outstanding, and they are often mentioned by later film lovers as the most fascinating trinity in the film. The chemical reactions they produce when they walk the Seine under the stars are the most intense.
"Do Whatever You Want"
Jean-Luc Godard's wife, Anna Karina, plays the heroine, a young woman who comes to Paris to dream of becoming an actress. Things didn't go as smoothly as she planned, and she was forced to sell herself to make ends meet.
"Do As You Please" profoundly explores the inability to do as you please and the complexity of human nature, and is one of the director's most dynamic works. The film is visually full of surprises and is one of the milestones of New Wave cinema.
The Outlaw
This is another gangster-inspired film by director Jean-Luc Godard, which is also full of youth, vitality and charm. Sami Frey and Claude Brasseur play a pair of restless best friends who both fall in love with a girl named Anna Karina, who lives in a mansion and is said to have a lot of cash in it. The brothers ask Anna Karina to help them go to the house and carry out the robbery.
Some absurd robberies have had a lot of accidents in the process. Even among all the French New Wave films, some of the classic scenes that take place in this film are the most incredible, such as the three protagonists suddenly rushing past the Louvre.
The scene of three people dancing between tables in a restaurant has also been cited many times in popular culture and has endured for a long time.
Whether you love Paris or not, these stories that happened in Paris are worth watching again.