The 400 Blows

Director François Truffaut's first feature film, The 400 Blows, stars Jean-Pierre Léaud as 13-year-old Antoine Doinel, who runs away from school and his difficult family -- but finds it even tougher living on the streets of Paris and must resort to committing petty crimes.

Feedgeist

» Currently at the homes of 2 people

» Queued up by 212 people

mpz 1720854 SR 276654 JH 1133295 rua 1386811 tce 1015337 GP 1043165 retroman Pete Cartwright DP 1000167 AJ 1643272 ME 643475 axelrod GP 382337 KB 296530 NM 1446090 ixc 1066327 IC 1802469 AP 1602073 daf 556034 kwedin jhndrc JL 209102 JT 178590 JE 990256 iuu 651407 BB 1374769 AD 332456 exi 113165 Shosho KristenK LF 1806803 existent80 robowriter MC 1477249 Travis Marshall Michal mqj 597216 Eric & Meagan Miriam G NYC kidwaLtz BG 1858397 mru 1156251 JL 1913672 Robosaur vqh 1814893 shinma laze CF 1119508 Sean T CH 1280855 AC 1285041 RM 776682 Up to 50 people shown

» Recommended for 215 people

» Reviewed by 1 person

After watching this movie it's almost impossible, or maybe just in my case, to not want to go get a camera and start making a movie. The film is drenched with a love for cinema that's infectious. Truffaut fills every moment with an excitement to be living his dream. Every scene is engaging and unpredictable. Films should strive for moments of life, as cinema itself is a dead medium, meaning it’s happened so there’s no chance for spontaneity. Within these constrictions Truffaut fills the film with life, there is a strong pulse in the movie. And with all this excitement and delight in watching it unfold it's a strange contradiction given how the film's story is quite sad. Leaud's Doinel is not really cared about, he longs to be free or to be loved, whichever, and finds himself in constant trouble. There's the dread of childhood mistakes whether it's lying, missing homework assignments, or stealing and the impending consequences. But even with the weight of the story, there's such an enthusiasm in its telling that hope and optimism are always on the horizon. The film could serve as a metaphor for the burgeoning French New Wave as well. A movement that sought to free cinema from its stylistic plot anchored shackles and let it go to places it hadn't been before. It's the cinema of exploration and experimentation, to create something new. It's what Doinel longs for, freedom from his constraints. And in the end, the final shot is a perfect summation for the limitless possibilities of freedom and the thrill of filmmaking.
- Paul Logan