Edit Decision List for A New Wave Film

00:05 - Jump Cut

stationary close up into stationary close up of the subject lighting a cigarette (to simulate the passage of time

00:08 - Jump Cut

stationary close up to stationary close up of the subject driving

00:10 - Jump Cut

stationary close up to stationary close up of the subject talking to someone off screen

00:15 - Match on Action

stationary wide shot to stationary close up showing that she is alone in the car

00:17 - Jump cut

stationary close up to stationary close up to again show the passage of time

00:21 - Jump cut

stationary close up of the subject talking to something offscreen to stationary close up of subject smoking

00:24 - Jump cut

stationary close up to stationary close up, shows passage of time

00:27 - Jump cut

stationary close up to pan left establishing shot, gives context of location


00:31 Jump cut

stationary close up to stationary close up of the subject addressing the camera thus breaking the 4th wall

00:36 Jump cut

stationary close up to wide angle long shot of pedestrians

00:39

stationary close up to stationary close up of the subject laughing

Film Studies Final Piece Evaluation

My final piece fall my film studies unit is a short experimental film called "Lack", which revolves around the theory put forward by Jacques Lacan. Lacan's theory is the hypothesis that from birth we amercing a vital part of us, what is missing is forever unknown to the individual, yet we constantly seek out something that would fill our lack, sub consciously and consciously.

With this in mind i began planning my Film, due to the nature of this theory, i wanted this film to feel personal and intimate yet have an atmosphere of coldness. The most effective way to portray this was to focus on something that was incredibly personal to myself, for this i chose to have my girlfriend be the focus of the film. Knowing that having something so personal to focus would mean that not only would i put more emotion and heart into the final piece, but that the theory i would apply to it would be even more effective.

The film is heavily inspired by Chris Markers "la jette", i loved how the film used still images rather than film itself, which added another layer of uncertainty and mysteriousness to its atmosphere, when planning this piece i concluded that the use of still images rather than film would give my piece more gravitas and impact when viewed, this stylistic choice would also challenge the audience as it would be so far from what they know as film.

The film itself opens with rapid white scratches over a black background, this is very little to talk about as we are essentially watching a black screen, i wanted the audience to immediately feel intrigued and confused when watching my film, by giving away nothing at the start of the film i have created interest.
The scene immediately cuts to a static mid shot of my girlfriend and another subject sitting exactly parallel to her on a sofa, the rapid white scratches from the previous shot now consume her face, destroying any identity she may have, in this scene she is no more than a body, devoid of identity.
The white scratches that cover her face in this shot were intended to be a representation of how this subject has or feels as if she lacks identity, which would be lacanian lack. The  subject believes that she doesn't know who she is, what she stands for, what she wants to be. whether or not she was born with this lack, or if it evolved over time is unclear. During post production i added a filter over the shot to reduce it to monotone black and white, not only was this a stylistic choice, but also a representation of how laconian lack whether sub consciously or consciously, muddles and distorts the individuals reality.

every shot following this are still images, everyone has been manipulated and distorted to further the representation of lacanain lack, the images i took don't necessarily have any analytical weight behind them, they are simply candid shots of her daily life. Its what i do to the final images that express laconian lack. I added motion blur to the photos, resulting in images that look corrupted, sinister yet fluid, a further expression of how the lack within ourselves is destructive and tormenting, yet beautiful and liberating at the same time. I say liberating because i believe on our endless search for something to fill the void within us all, we discover more about ourselves, we discover new ways to surprise ourselves, and this is liberating.
for the audio i read a passage from Lewis C Carol's "Alice In Wonderland", the passage follows as,

'Dear, dear! How queer everything is today! And yesterday things went on just as usual. I wonder if I’ve been changed in the night? Let me think: was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I am not the same, the next question is, “’Who in the world am I?’ Ah, that’s the great puzzle.'
An analysis of this passage tells us that Alice is suffering from a crisis of identity. "i wonder if I've changed in the night" shows us this. I thought using a passage from Alice In Wonderland would fit perfectly in with a lacanian film.

Due to the films intimate nature, and avant guarde basis, several issues made themselves apparent during filming. If changes were made they would be as follows; 

due to heavy overcast and weather restrictions all of my filming had to take place indoors, resulting in a selection of stills that were all fairly repetitive, if i were to re-do this piece i would have like to film in multiple environments.

The audio i used could have also be managed better, i have very little experience with audio equipment outside the built in microphone on my camera, meaning that the audio for the piece changed in quality over the run time. If re-shoots were to be made i would record the audio again but in a studio, rather than a classroom with background noise.

In conclusion im extreamly happy with the final piece, i feel that it meets all the criteria set before me and accurately portrays a lacanian lack in a analytical and clinical manner, whilst maintaining all of its personality.

New Wave Film Evaluation

For my contextual studies final piece i wanted to create a short piece that highlighted the technical aspects that made the new wave moment so inspirational. focusing on camera techniques and editing rather than narrative and characters. It was my intention to accurately portray these techniques within a film of my creation, and explore how they all affect the film in there own way.

The film opens with a static close up of an individual lighting a cigarette, i wanted the very first shot of my film to be a perfect representation of the New Wave, and the subtlest most stylistic option for me atleast was to have this smoking shot, in essentially every New Wave film we see characters drenched in cigarette smoke, most notably Godard's film "Breathless", in which the protagonist is constantly smoking, almost to comical effect. by incorporating this i hoped t set the tone of the film instantly, a love letter to the French New Wave.
After this i incorporated rapid successive jump cuts of the subject driving her car, in the context of the New Wave, jump cuts were not only used to represent the passing of time, but also as a tool to criticise the mainstream, jump cuts were used throughout conversations and scenes that normaly would never feature jump cuts. for my film i saw rapid jumpiest in unusual scenes as a ,method of not only demonstration and representing time, but also as a tool to to connect the audience to the protagonist, the passage of time not only shows the audience the degradation of the protagonist, but emotionally connects the two due to said degradation.

During this scene i spliced shots of the road the individual drove on in-between the footage of her driving, this was done to give a sense of location to the film, and to brake up the repetition of the film. showing footage of the location we filmed in also gives us the added benefit of showing the audience the environment the protagonist lives in, giving a more in depth look at the protagonist without resorting to hefty exposition. This technique also stems from the French New Wave, the camera would almost linger on shots of the streets of Paris highlighting the environment the people live in, and how they have essentially became a product of said environment.

the next shot is of my subject walking through a car park, just like the previous scene i use jump cuts throughout the scene, to spend up the pace of the film and to further represent the passage of time. the camera has jagged movements never resting still for a moment. i chose to use a handheld camera rather than one on a steady rig or a dolly as it gives the audience the impression that they are simply a fly on the wall, an outside observer looking into the intimate and personal world of the subject. This is similar to how cameras were used in the New Wave. due to the cheapness and guerrilla filmmaking, expensive cameras used in hollywood films were unavailable yo the filmmakers of the new wave, so cheaper handheld cameras were used in there absence. There use of which provides a similar emotional response as to my film.

The following shot is a static close of the subjects face as she walks around a shopping centre, the camera in this scene was suspended on a make shift dolly which she than proceed to push around the centre. I placed the camera this way to provide he audience with an unflinching view of the subject, as a method of expanding on the emotional connection between subject and audience. Similarly to the previous scene, the makeshift dolly is a further representation to guerrilla film making during the New Wave, limited budget meant that professional was almost impossible to come by, the Filmmakers would resort to makeshift tripods, dolly' and other equipment currently used today. the make shift dolly i used for this shot was again another way for me to use techniques used in the New Wave.

If i were to re-shoot or re-do this piece there are several changes and corrections that i would like to make, due to time restrictions i wasn't able to create a more fleshed out narrative, whilst i like the quaintness and intimate nature of my final piece, i feel that creating a story with motifs and dialogue using themes present throughout all New Wave films would have been a better choice in order to capture the essence of the New Wave.
another aspect that bothers is me is that some shots of the individual in the shopping centre are slightly out of focus, there is no explanation for why this is, i simply made a mistake with the focusing, if i had the choice i would go back and reshoot these scenes.
During some of the car journey scenes, we can see grain throughout the frame, due to filming at night i had to increase the ISO to make up for the loss of light, doing so resulted in heavy grain. if i were to reshoot i would have a light source in the car itself, providing more light for the lens meaning that i wouldn't have to increase the iso to make up for the loss of quality.

In conclusion i am happy with my final piece, i feel that it not only accuratly represents the essence of the New Wave, but also highlights and recreates environments and techniques that made the New Wave so.

New Wave film- Draft

Video Essay evaluation

Evaluation

This is my French New Wave video essay, i made this video for the contextual studies module after studying Jean Luc Godard and the social/political climate of the French New Wave. i attempted to talk about how the cultural mindset of Godard and his peers moulded his films, i showed this by explaining the technical aspects of his films and the re occurring themes throughout three of his feature films, namely breathless, my life to live and the little soldier. i started by writing the scripts in sections, starting with the introduction of Godard and the New Wave, then moving on to the political and social climate of the paris and how this changed the filmmaking itself, then moving on to the analysis of each individual film. From here i recorded each section of the script and created the video portion itself by adding multiple clips from my three chosen film, le petit soldat. i had trouble synching the video to the audio of the script, it was important that this was accurate however as the video portion of the essay needed to be directly linked to what was being said in order for it to remain logical and precise. The recording of the script itself was fairly easy, the only problem i came across was fitting my schedule around my friend who read the script out. we would have to work on several separate days rather in one session, this resulted in audio levels that were often slightly carried from one another, volume levels changed between most of the clips due to moving the recording equipment around several times, volume and enthusiasm for the script wavered as we had to result to recording at different times of the day and background noise can be picked out in some clips. if i were to re-do the audio for the video essay i would set a set day in order to record everything, so that the quality remain consistent throughout the entire video. 

in terms of the actual content of the video essay, i feel like i accurately explained the re occurring motifs of existentialism with Godards films and linked this to the context and social political landscape of the New Wave well. if i were to re do this video essay i would included more context for the New Wave, an explanation into why Godard and his peers felt the way they did, as it stands i feel that i only vaguely referenced this, giving an explanation but only very briefly.  Another issue i feel that i should dress upon reflection of the video is its length. the original brief for the video was for it to be 5-10 minutes long, however my video ended up at around 18 minutes, this was due to it essentially being an auteur study of Godard, and to provide an accurate representation of his work i had to discuss several of his films, this is what took up the bulk of my video. if i were to re-do the video i would focus more on providing evidence to solidify Godards re occurring motifs, more in depth analysis of key scenes rather than discussing the film as a whole. 

In conclusion, i am extremely happy with my final cut of the video essay, i feel that it provides a detailed and intellectual analysis of Godards films, whilst remaining visually interesting and competent, apart from some problems with the audio quality, and some of the transitions between clips, i feel that this video essay accurately explains the New Wave, and Godards work as an auteur.  

Existentialism within the French New wave- New wave video essay

New Wave Video Essay Script- Final Cut

New wave video essay script 

The French New wave was a pivotal turning point in cinema, it rebelled against a medium that became stale and bland, injecting a vibrancy and charisma that had previously never been seen before in the art.

the french new wave was essentially a rebellion against the classical formula of film,originating in the post war france of the 50’s, pioneered by the young turks, a group of four film reviewers for the magazine Cahiers du cinema, the young turks most notably jean luc godard had a habit of attacking the most artistically respected French filmmaker of the day. 

Writing criticism didn’t satisfy these young men, no matter how much they attacked the stale medium of film, they sensed no change in the medium, by the end of the decade the turks began making there on movies with borrowed money, un restricted by the rules and regulations of studio environments and the rules and regulations of the publishers, thus began the french new wave. 

The new wave sought to re define film, the young turks believed that film no longer represented the angst and existentialism that the post war generation was defined by, for them, film represented a false idealism, an art form un damaged by the horrors of the war.

 The pioneers of the new wave chose to completely re invigorate the technical and narrative aspects of there films, rejecting the tried and true methods of films previous, using techniques that were previously un used and shunned by there predecessors, some would say that these abstract techniques are representative of the young turks and the generation they spoke for, imperfect and damaged, disillusioned by the idealism of the medium. 

the environment and social climate of 50’s paris also played a major role in the new wave, budget restraints and technical restrictions were reflected upon in the film of the turks, films were shot on location, in the grime and dirt of the streets rather than extravagant studios, cameras were cheap and hand held due to budget restrictions, actors and subjects within the films were close friends of the directors, as hiring actors was to expensive, all these little characteristics and technical choices culminate in a style utterly unique to the French New wave. 

this essay will not only be a study into the characteristics of the french new wave films, but also an in depth study of the films of jean luck Godard, his existentialist views and unique visual aesthetic, and whether or not he can be considered an auteur

perhaps the most notable figure from the new wave is Jean Luc Godard, A visionary in the medium both nationally and internationally. Admired for his inventive and unique approach to cinema, his works resonated with a generation of bitter and jaded individuals.

 in this video essay i will be comparing and contrasting three of his works, namely; 1960’s breathless, 1963’s le petit soldat and 1962’s my life to live, to identify any reoccurring motif’s and thematic styles that solidify Godard as an auteur 

but first, what is an auteur, according to francois truffaut; "a true film auteur is someone who brings something genuinely personal to his subject instead of producing a tasteful, accurate but lifeless rendering  of the original material’. this essentially means a filmmaker who has full creative control over his or her work, controlling all aspects of the film that makes it so.

 this ranges across everything, the cinematography, the editing, the direction, the mise en scene, every aspect should be tightly controlled by the director in order for them to be considered an auteur 

Breathless 

breathless is considered Godards magnus opus, not only his first feature film, but his first response or attack against the medium. the film deals with existentialism and love and betrayal in a refreshing light compared to similar films, drenched with a film noir esque style, and characters who are representitive of the bridge between the hollywood film scene and the traditional french film scene. To identify re occurring themes throughout godards work, we first need to identify them, and what better place to start than his first feature film, breathless 

lets start by explaining the synopsis of the film, the narrative revolves around Michel, a criminal and murderer who is obsessed with film persona of humphrey bogart, michal murders a policeman on a country road and is subsequently hunted by the police, michal penniless and wanted turns to an american paper seller for security, The ambivalent Patricia unwittingly hides him in her apartment as he simultaneously tries to seduce her and call in a loan to fund their escape to Italy. 

Patricia says she is pregnant, probably with Michel's child. She learns that Michel is on the run when questioned by the police. Eventually she betrays him, but before the police arrive she tells Michel what she has done. He accepts his fate and awaits the police, he steps out into the street to greet them, but is shot, he runs down the street, stumbling, but falls, he dies breathless and alone. 

the entire film is drenched in cynicism and existential metaphors and symbolism, almost every scene has an element of this theme, but for the sake of convenience ill pick out a few key scenes that truly embody this motiff. 

bedroom scene 

The impossibility of love, another central Godardian theme, is played out in the relationship between Michel and Patricia. In the long hotel room scene, which takes up nearly a third of the screen time, the two lovers talk, joke, argue and fool about, but frequently fail to completely understand each other.

 during this scene we can clearly see that patricia is romantically interested in michal, he is a perfect opposite to her personality, patricia is adventurous and competent, respectable but ultimately, frightened by the world around her, whilst michal is an ameteur anarchist, jaded and disillusioned by the society and culture around him.

 this easily represents the context of the new wave, especially Godards personal ideology’s and beliefs regarding the state of cultural decay him and his generation found himself in. 

however, patricia isn’t truly in love with michal, she is in love with the aura of mysteriousness around him, his power as a character. , but she knew that this power doesn’t correspond to the society in which she planned to live and succeed in. She learned to love Michel’s dedication to an unknown alternative to the reality they both known, but ultimately, couldn’t make herself fall for this alternative. 

death scene 

the final scene of the film involves michals final stand against all odds, his desperate attempt at an escape and his fall. though wounded Michel is not trying to run away from the police or resist.

 Betrayed by desperate Patricia (whose love for him was forcing her to make too radical change in her life and priorities), whom he gave the chance to abandon him, Michel is running somewhere in the direction of his uncertain existentialist dream. 

whilst this scene is rather distressing, at its essence it can be considered a love letter to Godards generation, though wounded and broken, they continue to follow there uncertain dreams, with no set destination or plan the people still rebel against the conformity and denial of the post war years. and this, to godard is beautiful 

the final shot of the film is also worth mentioning, the camera pans down to michals face on the floor, wishing in agony and pain, he looks up at the camera and mimics patricas facial expressions from earlier in the bedroom scene. this is godard essentially laughing in the face of death, a final existential mockery before slipping into death. a commentary on how the people of post war france succumbed to greed to consume pleasures provided by society in exchange for obedience, a polite and happy smile though fake, in order to retain the normality of there lives.

opening scene. 

the film opens with a static close of michal staring out to the street, signalling his accomplice out of shot, his expression is completely uncaring, he appears to be almost bored by the crime he knows he is about to commit, in this scene michael is the embodiment of the cultural mindset of godard and his peers, he is almost an alien in the pseudo-happiness, quietly observing the oblivious and content around him.

Michel’s particular gesture of, as if, zipping up his mouth is a sign of refusing to talk in the way that be fits the time, unimportant personal achievements desperately exaggerated by the people, refusing to notice and address the crippling existential dread the war forced upon the people of france, blindly living there life as though nothing had happened. michals gesture of zipping his mouth shut, is a subtle, yet rebellious action. 

my life to live 

simmiraly to breathless, my life to live explores the concept of existentialism but this time coupled with the theory of hard determinism, the theory that even before we are born our path and actions throughout life are pre determined meaning that we have no free will, we are born and we die in a pre determined way. 

As is the New Wave way, there are many unconventional techniques used in the creation of Vivre sa vie. Filmed on the streets of Paris, it is sometimes possible to see non-actors looking at the camera, as if they are being drawn to the star, Anna Karina. Long takes are prevalent, and, according to an interview with Godard, were often accomplished in the first take. "If retakes were necessary, it was no good," he was quoted as saying. 

The storytelling method played with the film form. It is not a simple A to B narrative; pieces are missing, and it is impossible to fill them in given the information given in the film. The camera moves to follow the action; if it is possible not to have an edit, that is usually the decision made. 

There are many existential and philosophical questions raised -- some answered, some not -- but the film, too, as the youthful New Wave director began to question life itself. The fourth wall is broken, to a haunting effect. It is a rebellious piece that often plays with story structure and film technique, like many of the New Wave films. Likely done for both practical or artistic reasons, Vivre sa vie could be described as avant-garde quite easily and correctly.

We're introduced to Nana a girl who craves fame and wealth so badly that she is willing to prostitute herself and we track her through her descent into despair. The film; broken up into 13 chapters designed to take you out of and limit your engagement with the film, highlights the absurdity of Nana's existence. Nana is a mother, yet we never see a child or maternal moment. Nana is poor yet lives carefree. She is a prostitute yet even then she is turned down by a client. 

The mental toll this takes on her causes her to defiantly state in a cafe that she is herself and in total control, demonstrating by moving her body parts. Yet not long after this Nana is sold like she were a plaything and killed in the resulting struggle. She lived, she tried, she died

everything within this film relates directly to existentialism and the context of the new wave,  just as we did for breathless, we will analyses key scenes that show us the re occurring motifs of existentialism. 

philosopher 

the scene starts with a static shot of nana, with nana located in the bottom left section of the frame. the camera angle and nana positioning creates the impression  that nana is no longer vital to the story, and by extension, her world,  if not  even the frame and the film focusses on her, what chance does she have to be anything more than another body in the crowd, what is my purpose? she seems to ask herself, a classic existential question.

nana begins a dialogue with a philosopher out of shot,the two start to converse and discuss the novel the three musketeers, the philosopher tells nana a story about a character within the book, porthus. 

the philosopher tells nana that the second porthus started to think he was dead, this can easily be applied to nana herself, before her attempt to change her life she was content, she lived a life without fear and the possibility of failure. godard is essentially saying that ,with change comes a fall. even though she was brave enough to rebel against her conformity, she was destined to die.

another interpretation of this scene again analysies the dialogue between the two, we reach this point in the movie right after nana watches Carl Theodor Dryer’s 1928 The Passion of Joan of Arc. the raw emotion and existential metaphors within leave a visible impact upon nana, she challenges herself to create her own philosophy of life, however upon meeting the phiosipher, her beliefs have been reduced to nothing. her attempt at forging a new way of life for herself, a new beginning. has been lost, she has no identity, no meaning, its at this point you can say that she has truly fallen. 

Godards intention with this could be a metaphor for how his generation were often punished for attempting to forge themselves any meaning out of there society. anything that wasn’t the norm or the controllable was shunned by there society. nana’s loss for words in this scene is exactly what godard experiencced himself 

another scene that clearly expresses nana’s existential mind set, and therefore godards is the passion of joan of ark scene. narratively very little happens, all the scene features is a shot from the movie, followed by the words 'the death, however, The emotional power of this profoundly silent scene deaply effects nana, the camera cute to a close up of nana. 

tears streaming down her face, the light from the cinema screen reflect off her tears, darting back and forth across the screen. this and unbroken close up of nan’s face tells us everything we need to know about her. just like joan of arc, nana whites to fight and die a martyr, to have purple in her life just as joan had however, unlike joan, nana has nothing to fight for. 

her tears aren’t in response to the movie she is watching, but a deep and existential sadness, a sadness that could only be created from the sudden realisation that you have nothing worth fighting for. 

its my belief that godard intended this to be a self reflection of himself rather than his generation. these tears are too specific, to raw and emotional to simply be a broad commentary on his times 

le petit soldat 

le petit soldat was godards second feature film, shot and released within the same year as breathless (1960), just as radical and controversial as the first, the film was met with a storm of controversy not only due to the film now infamous torture scene, but also due to its politically charged narrative.

this film has its existentialism rooted so deeply within it, that picking only two or three scenes and analysing them won’t show how crucial this motiff is to the story. instead i will be analysing characters and there actions through the film, rather than specific scenes 

Bruno is the films main protagonist, he is an agent of a tight wing terroist group who are locked in a battle with a counter far left terroist group. he eventually meets veronica, an agent of the far left terroist group. 

Bruno is a young man with a developed internal world and personal opinions and ideology, on his own he is able to act according to his personal ideals, not according to orders and expectations of his political bosses. 

Bruno often looks at the viewers without asking for advice or help nor pity. 

His gaze is already acknowledging that he is trapped within the confines of his political masters grasp, without dialogue we can still clearly see that he is desperate for a way out of this life style .

Godard wants to get at the bottom of Bruno’s failure as a human being. Is this failure that of the very revolutionary aspirations of the Western youth?

Bruno years for freedom to resist tge society he finds himself entrapped in, but he is controlled by very developed manipulative strategies his societiy are equipped with. 

 under a political establishment with a mighty arsenal of seducing, corrupting and intimidating tools. And now it is much more difficult, than in older times, to resist, i

bruno is obviously aware of this, yet still seeks an escape

from this, we can clearly see a link between bruno and his political ideology, his anger at the established government and his hatred for conformity and Godard and his generation. just as godard craved so much to rebel against the conformity and blind obedience of his society, so does bruno. we can also see the world itself as an exaggeration of 50’s paris. 

those with more defined and personal ideology’s and opinions were shunned or forced to inform to the established way of thinking. the far right and far left terror groups are jut an extension of the 50’s french government, no matter what point on the political spectrum you fall under, right or left, they are all the same 

vernoiqua is bruno equal in everyday, just as disillusioned and jaded as him.

they feel that they are equally trapped by their  political affiliations, but they see it as a problem of their individual intellect, they loath the fact that they are disillusioned by there realisation of the world around, how corrupt and imperfect it is, and they somehow feel ashamed to share it with one another. 

They are like a brother and sister separated by a political divide. And they unconsciously try to mask this fact of being existential equals by romanticising there attraction to a point of obscenity. 

the torture scene also houses deep existential and philosophical meaning in it. whilst the actions on screen are violent and distressing the message behind it just as distressing. Bruno up until this point has been devising away to escape from the political word he has created for himself, before he can fully commit to this plan he is captured and tortured brutally. what this stands for however, is more than abuse of a prisoner. 

it is a reflection on the social political climate of the 60’s. godard exaggerates how those with a difference of opinion, those who wished to challenge the  structure of the government, those who wished to question the ideologies of those in control were crushed. the existential search for a new identity, one different to the norm in his society was oppressed and shunned. although not literally tortured. godard felt that he and his generation was. 

what made godard this bitter and existential, why does his films rely so heavily on visual and metaphorical uses of existentialism. you could say that it was simply due to the cultural and social environment he was Moulded by. but it goes with saying that existentialism is a key re occurring theme throughout all his films, from the doomed existence of michael in breathless, the lack of free will within my life to live and the destruction of individual identity in le petit soldat. without a doubt jean luc godard is an auteur, a master of his class and a true spokesperson for his generation and beliefs. 

New Wave Video Essay- Rough Script

New Wave Video Essay Rough Script

The French New wave was a pivotal turning point in cinema, it rebelled against a medium that became stale and bland, injecting a vibrancy and charisma that had previously never been seen before in the art.

the french new wave was essentially a rebellion against the classical formula of film,originating in the post war france of the 50’s, pioneered by the young turks, a group of four film reviewers for the magazine Cahiers du cinema, the young turks most notably jean luc godard had a habit of attacking the most artistically respected French filmmaker of the day. 

Writing criticism didn’t satisfy these young men, no matter how much they attacked the stale medium of film, they sensed no change in the medium, by the end of the decade the turks began making there on movies with borrowed money, un restricted by the rules and regulations of studio environments and the rules and regulations of the publishers, thus began the french new wave. 

The new wave sought to re define film, the young turks believed that film no longer represented the angst and existentialism that the post war generation was defined by, for them, film represented a false idealism, an art form un damaged by the horrors of the war.

 The pioneers of the new wave chose to completely re invigorate the technical and narrative aspects of there films, rejecting the tried and true methods of films previous, using techniques that were previously un used and shunned by there predecessors, some would say that these abstract techniques are representative of the young turks and the generation they spoke for, imperfect and damaged, disillusioned by the idealism of the medium. 

the environment and social climate of 50’s paris also played a major role in the new wave, budget restraints and technical restrictions were reflected upon in the film of the turks, films were shot on location, in the grime and dirt of the streets rather than extravagant studios, cameras were cheap and hand held due to budget restrictions, actors and subjects within the films were close friends of the directors, as hiring actors was to expensive, all these little characteristics and technical choices culminate in a style utterly unique to the French New wave. 

this essay will not only be a study into the characteristics of the french new wave films, but also an in depth study of the films of jean luck Godard, his existentialist views and unique visual aesthetic, and whether or not he can be considered an auteur

perhaps the most notable figure from the new wave is Jean Luc Godard, A visionary in the medium both nationally and internationally. Admired for his inventive and unique approach to cinema, his works resonated with a generation of bitter and jaded individuals.

 in this video essay i will be comparing and contrasting three of his works, namely; 1960’s breathless, 1963’s le petit soldat and 1962’s my life to live, to identify any reoccurring motif’s and thematic styles that solidify Godard as an auteur 

but first, what is an auteur, according to francois truffaut; "a true film auteur is someone who brings something genuinely personal to his subject instead of producing a tasteful, accurate but lifeless rendering  of the original material’. this essentially means a filmmaker who has full creative control over his or her work, controlling all aspects of the film that makes it so.

 this ranges across everything, the cinematography, the editing, the direction, the mise en scene, every aspect should be tightly controlled by the director in order for them to be considered an auteur 

Breathless 

breathless is considered Godards magnus opus, not only his first feature film, but his first response or attack against the medium. the film deals with existentialism and love and betrayal in a refreshing light compared to similar films, drenched with a film noir esque style, and characters who are representitive of the bridge between the hollywood film scene and the traditional french film scene. To identify re occurring themes throughout godards work, we first need to identify them, and what better place to start than his first feature film, breathless 

lets start by explaining the synopsis of the film, the narrative revolves around Michel, a criminal and murderer who is obsessed with film persona of humphrey bogart, michal murders a policeman on a country road and is subsequently hunted by the police, michal penniless and wanted turns to an american paper seller for security, The ambivalent Patricia unwittingly hides him in her apartment as he simultaneously tries to seduce her and call in a loan to fund their escape to Italy. 

Patricia says she is pregnant, probably with Michel's child. She learns that Michel is on the run when questioned by the police. Eventually she betrays him, but before the police arrive she tells Michel what she has done. He accepts his fate and awaits the police, he steps out into the street to greet them, but is shot, he runs down the street, stumbling, but falls, he dies breathless and alone. 

the entire film is drenched in cynicism and existential metaphors and symbolism, almost every scene has an element of this theme, but for the sake of convenience ill pick out a few key scenes that truly embody this motiff. 

bedroom scene 

The impossibility of love, another central Godardian theme, is played out in the relationship between Michel and Patricia. In the long hotel room scene, which takes up nearly a third of the screen time, the two lovers talk, joke, argue and fool about, but frequently fail to completely understand each other. during this scene we can clearly see that patricia is romantically interested in michal, he is a perfect opposite to her personality, patricia is adventurous and competent, respectable but ultimately, frightened by the world around her, whilst michal is an ameteur anarchist, jaded and disillusioned by the society and culture around him. this easily represents the context of the new wave, especially Godards personal ideology’s and beliefs regarding the state of cultural decay him and his generation found himself in. 

however, patricia isn’t truly in love with michal, she is in love with the aura of mysteriousness around him, his power as a character. , but she knew that this power doesn’t correspond to the society in which she planned to live and succeed in. She learned to love Michel’s dedication to an unknown alternative to the reality they both known, but ultimately, couldn’t make herself fall for this alternative. 

death scene 

the final scene of the film involves michals final stand against all odds, his desperate attempt at an escape and his fall. though wounded Michel is not trying to run away from the police or resist. Betrayed by desperate Patricia (whose love for him was forcing her to make too radical change in her life and priorities), whom he gave the chance to abandon him, Michel is running somewhere in the direction of his uncertain existentialist dream. whilst this scene is rather distressing, at its essence it can be considered a love letter to Godards generation, though wounded and broken, they continue to follow there uncertain dreams, with no set destination or plan the people still rebel against the conformity and denial of the post war years. and this, to godard is beautiful 

the final shot of the film is also worth mentioning, the camera pans down to michals face on the floor, wishing in agony and pain, he looks up at the camera and mimics patricas facial expressions from earlier in the bedroom scene. this is godard essentially laughing in the face of death, a final existential mockery before slipping into death. a commentary on how the people of post war france succumbed to greed to consume pleasures provided by society in exchange for obedience, a polite and happy smile though fake, in order to retain the normality of there lives.

opening scene. 

the film opens with a static close of michal staring out to the street, signalling his accomplice out of shot, his expression is completely uncaring, he appears to be almost bored by the crime he knows he is about to commit, in this scene michael is the embodiment of the cultural mindset of godard and his peers, he is almost an alien in the pseudo-happiness, quietly observing the oblivious and content around him.

Michel’s particular gesture of, as if, zipping up his mouth is a sign of refusing to talk in the way that be fits the time, unimportant personal achievements desperately exaggerated by the people, refusing to notice and address the crippling existential dread the war forced upon the people of france, blindly living there life as though nothing had happened. michals gesture of zipping his mouth shut, is a subtle, yet rebellious action. 

my life to live 

simmiraly to breathless, my life to live explores the concept of existentialism but this time coupled with the theory of hard determinism, the theory that even before we are born our path and actions throughout life are pre determined meaning that we have no free will, we are born and we die in a pre determined way. 

As is the New Wave way, there are many unconventional techniques used in the creation of Vivre sa vie. Filmed on the streets of Paris, it is sometimes possible to see non-actors looking at the camera, as if they are being drawn to the star, Anna Karina. Long takes are prevalent, and, according to an interview with Godard, were often accomplished in the first take. "If retakes were necessary, it was no good," he was quoted as saying. The storytelling method played with the film form. It is not a simple A to B narrative; pieces are missing, and it is impossible to fill them in given the information given in the film. The camera moves to follow the action; if it is possible not to have an edit, that is usually the decision made. There are many existential and philosophical questions raised -- some answered, some not -- but the film, too, as the youthful New Wave director began to question life itself. The fourth wall is broken, to a haunting effect. It is a rebellious piece that often plays with story structure and film technique, like many of the New Wave films. Likely done for both practical or artistic reasons, Vivre sa vie could be described as avant-garde quite easily and correctly.

We're introduced to Nana a girl who craves fame and wealth so badly that she is willing to prostitute herself and we track her through her descent into despair. The film; broken up into 13 chapters designed to take you out of and limit your engagement with the film, highlights the absurdity of Nana's existence. Nana is a mother, yet we never see a child or maternal moment. Nana is poor yet lives carefree. She is a prostitute yet even then she is turned down by a client. The mental toll this takes on her causes her to defiantly state in a cafe that she is herself and in total control, demonstrating by moving her body parts. Yet not long after this Nana is sold like she were a plaything and killed in the resulting struggle. She lived, she tried, she died

everything within this film relates directly to existentialism and the context of the new wave,  just as we did for breathless, we will analyses key scenes that show us the re occurring motifs of existentialism. 

le petit soldat 

le petit soldat was godards second feature film, shot and released within the same year as breathless (1960), just as radical and controversial as the first, the film was met with a storm of controversy not only due to the film now infamous torture scene, but also due to its politically charged narrative.

New Wave Film Plan

New Wave Plan


For my new wave short i wanted to re capture the essence of Jean Luc Godards rebellious and direct style of film making, whilst still maintaining a personal, accurate film that captures the mindset and attitude of teenagers in our time. simmmiraly to New Wave films, we wanted to create a film that was embolic of our time, using shots and editing techies that represented us, the youth of today. to plan this film we sat down and sincerely thought about what was personal to us, what social, cultural and personal issues that we, as film makers challenged us. for my film i intend to create a film that explore s the personal issues surrounding an individual who wants nothing more than to speak up and essentially disagree with the norm. this is easily comparable to Godards style of film making, his films challenge the social normality, and how his views were suppressed and essentially doomed. with our film we wanted to do exactly this, challenge the norm, not only with thematic issues but also technically, in our story board we planned how shots would linger long after the action of the scene has ended, how shots would focus more on the background. shots would remain distant and in personal, exactly how an individual would think of themselves in this world of anger and hate.






the narrative of the film will be about how an individual feels that he/she is trapped within a society of like minded individuals who feel powerless to speak out against this mind set presented to them. we plan to represent this using a strictly black and white monotone aesthetic, symbolic for how in this world, everything is either black or white, there is no gray area to issues, only right or wrong. in terms of camera techniques we wanted to crete the impression that the short was filmed in one shot, literally following an individual through his day, this type of footage would give the impression that we are literally filming someones day, that we are personally following this individuals life. shots will essentially remain at a personal 'Eye level" state, the audience should essentially feel like they are personally in the film, that there viewership is effecting the quintessential movement of the film.
in terms of editing i intended to keep the film appearing like a single take, a one shot, or apparent one shot would feel like we are literally following this individuals experience of the world. the impression of one apparent take of a scene is embolic of Godards films, and how he resorted to using one location for multiple takes due to budget restraints.




essentially, i want to create a bleak exaggeration of how individuals feel about there cculitre, about how tiny and unimportant they feel, and how even a tiny act of defiance can make a difference


the inspiration for this film came from "george orwell, 1984" in his book he explains how a couple defies and is broken by the system, i feel like this is a perfectly representaio of the youth of today, how there views and beliefs are bonded as liberal or radical. but with this film i hope to break that image. rather the being a love letter to left wingers and radicals, i want to create a film that accurately represents there fight for relevance, and how submerged they feel within the current social climate. The film we also have nihilistic themes, how nothing this individual does will impact the culture around him, the subject will be a soul voice against a tidal wave of oppression.



the aesthetic of the film will rely on the use of a black and white hue across the entire film, this will be used as an exaggeration of how for many people, life is a binary choice, how there is only good and evil, how there is only good and evil. this will also be represented in the clothing of the subjects within the film, black clothes would be symbolise a given conformity, and public mindset of a culture, and white would be symbolic of free thought and individuality

French New Wave, Video Essay Notes, godard

new wave and the auteur jean luc godard 

films- breathless  1960
         le petit soldat 1963
         my life to live  1962

^ early 60's is considered the birth of the new wave, hope to pin point key stylistic choices and technical choices that re scour through his films to determine whether or not godarrd is an auteur 

CHARACTERISTICS OF A NEW WAVE FILM 

http://makeawave-frenchnewwave.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/characteristics-of-french-new-wave-films.html

Unlike all classical Hollywood films, French New Wave films tend to break the rules of continuity editing and using free editing style. The directors of French New Wave often drew attention from audiences by discontinuity, reminding them that they are watching a movie. For example, the editing style they always used is jump cut

The directors of French New Wave had admired the Neorealists especially Rossellini, and in opposition to studio filmmaking, they decided to shoot on location. They replaced the glossy studio light with natural and available light. Thus, the French New Wave films always look natural and casual. In addition, they also doing experiment of the sound. Unlike studio filmmaking which remixing the sound, French New Wave directors recorded the sound during shooting and did not do any correction. For example, in A Bout De Soufflé , the sound come after action an

After World War II, France undergoes an economic crisis. Thus, the amount of investment in filmmaking is very low. Many films were produces on low budget. To produce a film, French New Wave directors borrowed friend's apartment or yard, using the director's friends as the cast and crew.

While watching French New Wave films, we will discover some scene look very shaky and unstable. It is because the directors took advantages of the new technology which developed by Eclair company that was available to them in the late 1950s- lightweight hand-held camera. This hand-held camera allowed them to shoot on location easily and creating many long tracking shoot. In these films, often only one camera was used. The directors used the camera to follow characters walking along the streets, into cafes and bars, or looking over their shoulders to catch their point of view

In opposition to the classical filmmaking, the directors of French New Wave often shot their films with loose structure and open-ended storyline. They did not wrap their climax tidily, much of the story is made up very close to the time of the shooting. They did not plan well before shooting and the dialogue was often change or write the same day it was read. Sometimes, the actors are giving the general idea of the scene. Thus, the dialogue sometimes was not related to the storyline at all.

When we watch French New Wave films, the protagonist in these films were always marginalized, young anti-heroes, and alienated loners, they live with no family ties, behave spontaneously, and often act immorally. They frequently seen as anti- authoritarian. For example, the protagonist in A Bout De Soufflé was a car thief, he killed policeman, steal money from his girlfriend, and spent his time to avoiding capture. While in Varda's Cleo From 5 to 7 (1961), the protagonist run away from the roles others expected from her after she discovered that she have cancer, she decided to live her own life.

this blog post identifies all the recurring thematic and technical aspects of a new wave, essentially the fundamental characteristics of what makes a new wave film, the post also include a brief history of the technicality of the films, for example, how money limitations meant that the directors couldn't afford more advanced camera and lighting equipment, meaning that they had to resort to shooting on location, with natural lighting, i plan to use this blog post in my video essay as an introduction to the movement, and the defining characteristics of it 


http://makeawave-frenchnewwave.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/history-and-development-of-french-new.html 
After the occupation by Nazi, the American cinema is return back to screen.This exposure to Hollywood films was a formative influence on the young critics who would become the director of the New Wave in the late 1950s.For them,America film was more vital,more varied and considerably more exciting than the postwar productions of the French industry
A group of directors, Truffaut, Godart, Claude Chabrol, Jacques Rivette and Rohmer who had all worked as critics for Cahiers du cinema in the 1950s had a habit of attacking the most artistically respected French filmmaker of the day. Writing criticism didn’t satisfy these young men. They itched to make movies by borrowed money .At the end of the decade, they began to make films


this website identifies the socio and economic context in which the new wave was created from, it also references the young turks, the original four film critics in which the new wave was created by, i plan to use this as not only an introduction to the directors and auteurs of the movement, but also as a way to establish life within paris at the time  

History and development of the new wave
The phrase “New Wave” (Ia Nouvelle Vague) refers to a group of film-makers who between the end of the 1950s and early to mid-1960s in France, momentarily transformed French cinema and had a great impact on film-makers throughout the world. Those directors who came to prominence through the New Wave and who have remained major names in the pantheon of European “auteur” director include Jean-Luc Godard, Francois Truffaut and so on. The term New Wave was coined by a journalist named Francoise Giroud who wrote a series of article on French youth for the weekly news magazine L’Express.(Nelmes ,1996)

They argued that the French cinema was similar to the literature, which expresses the same ideas that are depicted in novels and paintings. In other words, the artists at that time used movies to voice their thoughts. Some of the leading film producers, whose names are mentioned above, wanted to change it and this is the birth of the radical movement in the history of French cinema.

This post goes into depth about the directors who are symbolic with the birth of the new wave, this will prove useful as i begin to show my research on jean luck godard, and how he can be considered an auteur 

https://indiefilmhustle.com/french-new-wave/ 

French New Wave and Auteur Theroy 

During the French New Wave movements, particular attention was paid towards the theory called auteur theory. As per auteur theory, the director of a movie is also the producer of it.

Therefore, the directors took necessary measures to add a personal signature to the film. The directors who lived in France at that time praised the films produced by Jean Vigo and Jean Renoir because they were pioneer figures who fought against this theory.

They were able to create few memorable films with the help of talented script writers. The participation of script writers helped them to stay away from adding their personal opinions and views into the movies that they created.

this website provided me with the definition and history of the auteur theory, which will prove invaluable as i determine whether or not Jean Luc godard is an auteur

https://www.slideshare.net/staceyhall/auteur-theory-5416218

auteur originates from france, which is a literate translation of author, which means that a film is a reflection of a directors creative vision 

francois truffaut; "a true film auteur is someone who brings something genuinely personal to his subject instead of producing a tasteful, accurate but lifeless rendering  of the original material 

an auteur has full creative control over every aspect of his or hers film, from editing to cinematography to mise en scene, the auteur controls it all. 

he or she will make calculated choices resulting in a signature style or theme that runs through one or all of there films 

this website provided me with an article that linked the new wave to the auteur theory, and how author there was born out of the creative moment of the new wave

this is again a further explanation

making waves- new cinemas of the 1960’s 

geoffrey novel smith 

studio based films around this time were fixated on making a profit, studios would make the lowest common denominator film that would appeal to a wide audience to maximise profits, other than make heartfelt personal films that appealed to a minority 

the new wave was created by the young turks, after they felt a cultural shift in france, a generation impatient with the attitudes of its elders and eager to throw off many aspects of the legacy of the past

it is also fair to say that there was a wave of changing rippling through french cinema during the mid-50’s, french films, with few exceptions, continued to be nostalgic and ritualistic in their attitude to national life 

this book provided me with more socio economic contact for paris around the 60's, with this i can determine why the young turks and jean luc wanted to drastically change the landscape of film making at the time

https://theculturetrip.com/europe/france/articles/the-french-new-wave-revolutionising-cinema/

Perhaps the French New Wave’s most notable international figure is Jean-Luc Godard, a visionary of film both in France and abroad. In addition to being an accomplished screenwriter and director, Godard was also a highly respected critic of film.Admired for his inventive experimentation with both technical and thematic aspects of film (a passionate rejection of ‘traditional’ French cinema’s stories of the aristocracy), Godard’s film career started with his involvement with Cahiers du Cinéma as one of the publication’s first and most celebrated contributing writers. His full-length feature debut came with 1960’s À Bout de Soufflé (Breathless); a pop-culture inspired narrative told in a truly revolutionary style.

Breathless is a metropolitan romance (between a recent murderer on the run with a girl) set within the urban landscape of Parisian streets. The feature film introduced Godard as a truly innovative force within film. His films emphasize the presentation of story, more than the story itself,

this article gives us an overview of jean luck godard film making, more specifically, his work on breathless, the article explains the intricate yet personal touches and technical choices that litter the film, i hope to compare this to his other work to see if i can determine if there is any re occurring themes or technical choices that define him as an auteur 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/23/movies/23scott.html?mcubz=0 - on godard and breathless 

It was a burst of youthful, irreverent energy that was also a decisive engagement in the continuing battle to establish cinema as a serious art form. 

And yet even as Mr. Godard and his cinematographer, Raoul Coutard, record the sights and sounds of Paris with documentary immediacy, the images are infused with an unmistakable nostalgia. This is not something a latter-day viewer — perhaps besotted by secondhand memories of vintage cars circling the Place de la Concorde or pretty young women selling The New York Herald Tribune in front of cafes — brings to “Breathless.” Rather, the film’s evident and self-conscious desire to tap into a reservoir of existing references and associations is a sign of its director’s obsession with other movies

“Breathless” was there first. Which is to say that it was already late. Seen from its most unflattering angle, it is a thin and derivative film noir. A generic tough guy steals a car, shoots a policeman, sweet-talks a series of women, hobnobs with his underworld pals and tries to stay a step ahead of the dogged detectives on his trail. His poses and attitudes seem borrowed, arising less from any social or psychological condition or biographical facts than from a desire to be as cool as the guys in the movies.

The wonder is that he surpasses them, and that “Breathless,” quoting from so many other movies (and shuffling together cultural references that include Faulkner, Jean Renoir, Mozart and Bach as well as Hollywood movies), still feels entirely original. It still, that is, has the power to defy conventional expectations about what a movie should be while providing an utterly captivating moviegoing experience 

a review of breathless by the ny times, the review mentions how jean luck films are drenched in pop culture of the time, i hope to compare this to not only my notes made on his other films, but also against other reviews of the films 

http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/le-petit-soldat-1960

Le Petit Soldat" was Jean-Luc Godard's second film, made in 1960 when "Breathless" was creating a sensation and the French New Wave made the cover of Time. It wasn't much of a success. Godard, it was said, had lost the light touch of his first film and gotten bogged down in politics. And his shooting and writing styles, alas, bordered on anarchy.

So "The Little Soldier" was dismissed by the critics, who were busy doing cartwheels for Truffaut's "Jules and Jim" and Resnais' "Hiroshima, Mon Amour." And Godard began a period of four years in which his films, one after another, were criticized for not fulfilling the promise of "Breathless." 

Part of that relevance involves Godard's politics. Although "Le Petit Soldat" was attacked as "too political," it is refreshingly undoctrinaire in 1969 while "Hiroshima, Mon Amour" collapses into what Pauline Kael calls liberal soap opera. Godard, in 1960, making a film about the Algerian War, was portraying the sort of intellectual and moral confusion that good men have when they confront senseless events. And the 1960s have been full of them. 

It becomes clear during the film that nothing the hero does is going to make much difference; forces are in motion that would just as soon kill him, but for no good reason. Photographs of previous victims are casually displayed, but without much feeling. The trouble with wars like Algeria and Vietnam is that death loses its significance

http://omarsfilmblog.blogspot.co.uk/2009/08/la-petit-soldat-little-solider-dir-jean.html

Godard’s second feature was made in 1960 and instantly banned by the French government for its controversial political content – hard to believe that this was the first French film to examine the protracted colonial war in Algeria. ‘La Petit Soldat’ was eventually released in 1963 but the prolific rate at which Godard was making films meant it became somewhat lost in the sheer euphoria of the nouvelle vague. Godard shot the film with his regular cinematographer, Raoul Coutard, in Switzerland. Coutard’s contribution to the formation of a new wave aesthetic of hand held camera work, location shooting and the use of natural lighting is simply impossible to ignore. The absence of any kind of formal training in the art of cinematography meant that Coutard was free to break from tradition,

http://sensesofcinema.com/2002/cteq/soldat/

Nominally a thriller, Le Petit Soldat is set in Switzerland and deals overtly with the socio-political tensions of the Algerian War – albeit with an ambivalence not usually associated with the polemical Godard. Its troubled hero, Bruno Forestier (Michel Subor), is an ambiguously motivated secret agent, based in Geneva, who carries out a series of contracts for a division of the French Government, all the while under constant threat of deportation and punishment for his desertion of the army. He receives orders to assassinate an extremist leader of the leftist Arab underground, but baulks at the cold-bloodedness of the task. As both factions, French and Arab, begin to close in on him, he desperately tries to arrange passage to South America, but is unexpectedly drawn into a relationship with Veronica (Anna Karina), a mysterious woman with unknown loyalties. 

Unlike the fast-paced, energetic environment of Paris in À bout de souffle – which derived in part from Godard’s famous use of jump cuts – the cityscape in Le Petit Soldat is jarringly edited together via a series of whip-pans, with the restless camerawork often forcibly yanking our attention from Bruno to the watching figures of the agents in the streets around him. More intrusive still, perhaps, is the role of the soundtrack: whereas Godard’s first film featured a light-hearted, up-tempo jazz score, his second is set to Maurice Laroux’s deliberately oppressive atonal piano music.

Le Petit Soldat is structured around Bruno’s reflective voice-over, in which he muses bitterly about the oppressive roles foisted upon him and his social contemporaries: his most pointed reference is to actors, who remain inherently driven by the whims of others. With a disjunctive commentary track – one that often challenges the integrity of the action on-screen

Often bleakly pessimistic, yet at all times stylistically adventurous and original, 

http://www.actingoutpolitics.com/le-petit-soldat-1963-jean-claude-godard/

an existenal love story, a romance broken by political authority 

Psychology of Private Love Blended With Political Thriller and Cultural Criticism

Talented individuals with psychologically deeply rooted and rich and multifaceted personalities not only have social ambitions and professional dreams, but moral and intellectual ideals demanding realization. And this last factor makes them even more vulnerable to militant political organisations.

We see here how Veronica (Anna Karina) is saying “no” to Bruno, following his own joking suggestion, but neither she nor he knows that she is talking for their destiny and for her life.

Veronica is playful with Bruno without any intentions. They are like children in the world of adults. They don’t know that childish games of adults can have grave consequences

Bruno is a young man with a developed internal world and his own will able to act according to his personal intentionality, not according to orders and expectations of his political bosses. But the issue is – is to be culturally educated and a decent person enough to resist the grip of a repressive and militant organization and ideology with, indeed, impressive power over even so called democratic societies?

Bruno looks at the viewers without asking for advice or help nor condescending pity. His gaze is already acknowledging that he is trapped (like the majority of people kept by the throat by the necessity to succeed in the world belonging to masters-decision-makers), but somehow we feel in his eyes a mute appeal of somebody who is victim of the socio-political manipulation.

Bruno is psychologically yearning for freedom to resist the conventional society, but he is controlled by very developed manipulative strategies modern societies are equipped with. We live not in traditional or ideological monarchies, but under a political establishment with a mighty arsenal of seducing, corrupting and intimidating tools. And now it is much more difficult, than in older times, to resist, if you want to avoid personal martyrdom.

His feeling of resistance against being manipulated and exploited for the sake of somebody else’s interests Bruno perceives not existentially, but “philosophically”, as if, it is a problem of human individual and his particular destiny, and not that of people’s socio-cultural life in general



http://www.filmref.com/directors/dirpages/godard.html

My Life to Live is a highly stylized and extraordinarily unformulaic adaptation of a simple premise: a young woman, seeking the freedom and excitement of, what Federico Fellini calls La Dolce Vita, leaves her family to pursue an acting career, only to turn to a life of prostitution  
we are introduced to the singular, iconoclastic vision that is Jean-Luc Godard. Stripped of expression and sentimentality, Godard, nevertheless, succeeds in creating a film that is visually stunning and full of pathos. We are drawn to Anna, not because of her seductive persona or compassionate actions, but because she ishumanity, lost and desperate, incapable of comprehending her misery nor articulating her pain

Godard's revolutionary camerawork transcends nouvelle vague novelty: it serves as a cinematic extension of Nana's soul. The awkward angles and long panning shots during Nana and Paul's conversations reveals the underlying tension and emotional distance between them. 

Nana's conversation proceeds in silent film intertitles - reflecting her own suffering and innate desire to achieve greatness and escape the banality of her sordid life. The seamless camerawork following Nana as she dances uninhibitedly around the billiard room feels intoxicating, almost mesmerizing - a fleeting glimpse of the few brief moments of pure joy she has ever known. My Life to Live is a truly remarkable film: a synthesis of artistic vision and moral tale, suffused with haunting melody, the ballad of a contemporary tragedy.

https://filmcapsule.com/2014/11/19/godard-ism-constructing-philosophy-in-vivre-sa-vie/

Godard’s Vivre sa vie (1962), for example, is richly imbued with existentialism. In both form and content, this story of a woman’s descent into prostitution frequently seems motivated by the existentialism’s principals of self-formation, but the film’s judgement of this philosophy remains ambiguous. Is Anna Karina’s Nana indeed free to live the life she chooses, or is she instead defined by a conspicuous absence of free will? Is it individual autonomy, then, or the tendency to deny meaning that defines Vivre sa vie?

One of the principles of existentialism that haunts both the film’s form and content is the harmony between one’s teachings and one’s way of life, between words and actions. By this principal, Godard would surely be an admirable model for the cinephile of the 20th and 21st centuries. First as a devoted critic and theorist, then as a tenacious and prolific filmmaker, Godard practiced what he preached. His writings on the powers and politics of film were actualized in his work, just as his work itself exists as an extension of his own theory and philosophy.

Godard and Karina characterize Nana through her wells of emotions, as well as her inquisitiveness and naive thoughtfulness. For example, in one key scene Nana tearfully watches Carl Theodor Dryer’s 1928 The Passion of Joan of Arc. The emotional power of this profoundly silent scene depends on both artist’s precision in their handling of Nana’s deep, almost sublime emotional response, indicating her receptiveness of feelings, another tenet of existentialism. Another key scene in the film sees Nana attempt a philosophy of her own, but her subsequent conversation with real-life philosopher Brice Parain leaves Nana even more confused with her initial theory on life.

existentialism

1. a philosophical theory or approach which emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free and responsible agent determining their own development through acts of the will.