um, I couldn’t care less if anyone approves of my taste in films
@Matt Parks: Firstly, Godard is like 70 years old, isn’t he? I’m sure he’s pretty brittle by now. Secondly, I’m not exactly planning to have a fair fight with him. I’m talking about kicking a senior citizen down a flight of stairs after the use of distraction.
@Robert W Peabody: I’m not entirely sure what you mean, but if that is about capital punishment, I wouldn’t be worried anyways. Since I finish with an action films one-liner and he’s French, it would probably turn out that he is a spy…from Switzerland…sent to take our…let’s say, cabbages to create atomic bombs to drop on us (the good guys). In the end, the force would have to give me back my job and my wife would come back and ask me to come back.
@Curtis: Contempt was actually one of my least favourite films by Godard. I have seen a lot by him and I haven’t found an exception yet. For the most part, Breathless, Pierrot le Fou and the first half La Chinoise were watchable, but none of them were a great film, in my opinion.
Ha . . . 80, actually.
In response to those responding to the article I posted in this thread I’ve simply never understood why there seems to be more pathological hatred directed at French New Cinema than at any other facet of “art house” cinema or any sort of cinema embraced by cinephiles, whether it be Old Hollywood, German Silents, German New Wave or anything. Until someone provides an intelligent for why the French New Wave “sucks”, is “pretentious”, and is “overrated”, I won’t have any of it. Sure, Breathless and Band of Outsiders may be overhyped, but I’ve had it up to here with pathological tirades ranting against and about the supposed “datedness” and “irrelevancy” of the French New Wave, since none of them are ever back up by intelligent commentary, or never seem to be anyway.
I can’t tell if you have some sort of weird confirmation bias going on or simply aren’t paying attention to probability as the French New Wave is undoubtedly the best known film movement and it, like seventies Hollywood, has been far more celebrated than almost any comparable movement or era. The fact more people have seen films from that movement makes it much more likely there will be people who don’t respond positively to it as the volume of words shed over it is immense. It is a little like wondering why so many people complain more about Lady Gaga than Helen Kane. It simply a question of volume.
Fellini, Bergman, and Kurosawa are all equally celebrated and well known, yet they’re don’t receive as much hatred. And among those less familiar with cinema, French New Wave is usually only characterized by Jules and Jim, The 400 Blows, and Breathless, along with perhaps Band of Outsiders and Alphaville, not even Contempt, Vivre Sa Vie, My Night at Maud’s, or Pierrot Le Fou. Nevermind the fact that most people who pathologically launch tirades against the French New Wave have for the most part probably not even heard of Chabrol, Rivette, and Rohmer. All they seem to know are a group of a half dozen films made by Truffaut and Godard in the early sixties, which are indeed over hyped. Some will also hate on Last Year at Marienbad, which doesn’t surprise me, but Resnais isn’t even French New Wave.
Do hipsters who fetishise Band of Outsiders and Breathless irritate me? Yes they do. But people who launch unintelligent tirades against the French New Wave piss me off too. I’d also get annoyed if those same tirades were launched against Ozu, Antonioni, Fellini, Kiarostami, or Bresson, but that’s a whole other thread, and those tirades don’t seem to exist to nearly the same degree.
I get the feeling you’re talking about specific people and their attitudes toward these films in generalities.
Maybe I am generalizing, but a lot of hatred directed at “French Cinema” always strikes me as disturbingly pathological.
I haven’t noticed this trend. Can you point us to places where its occured?
Just google “French cinema pretentious” or “French New Wave pretentious” or anything of that ilk, and you’ll see exactly what I mean.
Oh, I thought you meant on MUBI. It doesn’t surprise me that some casual filmgoers might feel this way, but I’d my guess is that they’d have the same reaction to Persona, 8 1/2 or Tree of Life.
Yes, but what made no sense about a tirade I posted up above is that one of the person’s criticisms was that French New Wave lacks story and is not very entertaining, but then go onto praise Marketa Lazarova and Daisies, which are equally lacking in conventional entertainment value and storyline, so it just made no sense. I’m not criticizing the Czech films. It’s just that the writer criticized French New Wave films for a certain reason, but goes on to praise films from other countries that I would expect to provoke the same sort of reaction.
I think it may be largely contrarianism contra the obvious influence/popularity of the New Wave, something along the lines of what Greg suggested, and also possibly an element of the cultural cliche in the English-speaking world of antipathy toward all things French. Needless to say, it possible to take such things too seriously, as they aren’t necessary supported by compelling arguments.
Some lack story (Made in USA, for example), but so many, from Shoot the Piano Player to Claire’s Knee are rich in narrative. Even within the French New Wave, there’s such a broad spectrum of film types.
Well Claire’s Knee happens to be one of the French New Wave films I don’t care for, at least not yet, but not because it’s rich in narrative. Being rich in narrative certainly is not a shortcoming in and of itself, although Peter Greenaway and Jonathan Rosenbaum seem to think so with respect to the medium in general. And I haven’t actually seen Shoot the Piano Player.
Made in U.S.A. doesn’t lack a story. If it did we wouldn’t have had to wait until Donald Westlake was dead in order to see it.
Everyone likes to say. Do not give a fword about Godard taste in my future’s films. Fact is if that Swiss dude did see your debut experimental first short-film or your new film fest and would hug you afterwards you would not care that little (or less) about his actual opinion. What makes his work so superior to everyone’s is that back when he started writing film reviews or back when he was debuting his film work or back now, he’s still a serious contender. He’s still a man’s man. He’s still a superb film director. He’s still one of the best movie directors around. He’s the still the best living film director [Ken Russell died on us – all of us – how sad are we today? Cannot stop crying here. and out loud. ;( ] And that most people do not forgive. People want him dead now as bad as they wanted Rohmer or Oliveira or King Vidor. People for the most part (that includes film people, both cinéphiles and film buffs and movie enthusiasts) do not like survivors. Oh “he’s still around”: the DRAG! Why won’t someone just kill him? Been hearing this my whole life about most of the directors I love and care about. Why would Godard (giant amongst giants, genius amongst genii) be any different? He survived and buried single-handedly the whole French New Wave generation (talking about film theorists and film-makers and film critics here) only “i will survive” he likes that song. Hope he lives forever. Am less concerned about him sayin’ to me: “Know what?you’re a good one.” Or " you’re a good film buff" . I care about his work and his legacy, his words and his thoughts. He loved hard and he still does. A man that loves cannot be killed or die out. Imo. Nobody likes an ageing director. We all want James Dean-like directors. One genius feature film (preferably a silent and experimental one at that) {Bom-dia Mário Peixoto’s L-I-M-I-T-E} and then death. So that we all can say. I always did love him. Bullcrapstuff. I do care about you Jean-Luc Godard, i’m your godson, luc! :)
I bet he wouldn’t approve of my film problem.
That is exactly why I never want to meet any of my heroes
i wouldn’t give a fuck if he approved of my taste in film or not, he’s a really bad pretentious filmmaker, too much of a critic to be a good filmmaker. why should even fans of his care if he approved of their taste? just because you admire his art doesn’t mean you need to seek his approval….
Curtis Francis
@thislife
“This is the sort of stuff that makes me mad. And how could this person think films like Daisies and Marketa Lazarova are easier and more story-driven than the work of Truffaut and Godard?”
the article said “superior” not “easier”
anyway, i agree with what the guardian article is saying. godard is horribly overrated. contempt is his exception
i don’t like lumping truffaut in with him, though