Category: Non-EnglishOh boy oh boy. This is quite likely the first movie of the French New Wave and who better to begin this movement in cinema than François Truffaut (a lot of people can disagree that he is the one who started it but feel free to discuss!). The movie itself has a very biographical feel to it as towards the end you can almost hear it as Truffaut's own voice. Yes, a lot of what happens to Antoine in some way formed a part of Truffaut's earlier life.
There's plenty of love shown for cinema in this film. It follows the life of Antoine who finds himself "trapped" in a family in Paris, France. There's the music, the concept, the cuts (oh boy, watch out for the one where the mother asks Antoine about the francs she gave him). There's plenty of references for cinema lovers in there. The first movie a film-maker makes is normally the subject closest to his heart and this is clear in Truffaut's treatment of the movie. On the surface you can scratch about this movie being about adolescent years, dig deeper, Truffaut is showing you things and making you listen to things so that you can realize there's a deeper meaning behind cinema and the art it creates. Watch out for Balzac's reference.
Incidentally enough I have watched more Godard than Truffaut and I find the latter as different and interesting as the former. What does that mean? Go figure!
Recommendation level: 5/5. You can't miss this no matter what. I saw it for free at a screening so I was lucky!
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