Victim . What was influential about it? Told through the eyes of Truffaut’s cinematic counterpart, Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), THE 400 BLOWS sensitively re-creates the trials of Truffaut’s own childhood, unsentimentally portraying aloof parents, oppressive teachers, and petty crime. “The 400 Blows” illustrates how hard and necessary it is to focus on hope by showing us how easily and inevitably Antoine’s considerable talents, middle-class resources, friends, acute self-awareness and attempts to escape can be overwhelmed by all-too-common parental and social neglect. The 400 Blows. The 400 Blows (1959) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. The 400 Blows, directed by François Truffaut, available to buy or rent on all major streaming platforms Editor’s note: In light of the fact that most movie theaters around the country remain closed during the coronavirus pandemic, we have invited our contributors to revisit films that are particularly significant to them and that are easily found online. In a documentary style, the camera follows the life of Antoine Doinel (played by Jean-Pierre Léaud). Shoot the Piano Player. François Truffaut put in place a true arrangement to create an emotion both for his actor and the spectator. Yet despite the film's eye for the joys of growing up it never strays far from realistic scenes of hardship. Isabel Quigly The Spectator. The 400 Blows marked the beginning of the French New Wave movement, which gave directors such as Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol and Jacques Rivette a wider audience. Add to playlist. The film was so fluid, so graceful, so apparently natural, that it seemed not to have any agenda at all. This was a topic on which Truffaut had been writing for years. Recommended byAkira Kurosawa, Bong Joon-Ho, Christoph Hochhäusler, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, James Gray, Lynne Ramsay, Cristian Mungiu, Bertrand Tavernier, Jerry Schatzberg, Nicolas Philibert, Bertrand Blier, Noémie Lvovsky, Luc Dardenne, Mahamat Saleh Haroun, Bruno Podalydès, John Woo, Lukas Dhont. Ask the Professor: Why does “400 Blows” end on a freeze frame? In this scene, fiction temporarily stops to enable us to observe, in real time, the effects of a fair ride on a body in a tight space, that of Jean Pierre Léaud, who plays the character of Antoine. This semi-autobiographical film played a large role in the beginning of the French New Wave. Stop Searching, Start Streaming. SIGN UP NOW. Director Francois Truffaut. He films his character in a fixed shot, a big close-up, on a dark background that isolates him well in the field. Starring: Jean-Pierre Leaud, Guy Decomble, Claire Maurier, Albert Remy. Pandora's Box. Report. Read. The 400 Blows - Final Scene. An ending can be relatively "open" as our example from The 400 Blows suggests. The comedian must then answer a few questions, in a guided improvisation. 400 Blows (1959) is the… Read more . Browse more videos. Professor Julian Cornell: I watch a lot of films about childhood, films with children and child actors, and films that are supposed to be about youth. The film, based loosely on Truffaut's childhood, follows the story of Antoine Doinel, a young man in his early teens. [The 400 Blows'] most prevalent connection to the then burgeoning French New Wave is its message of freedom Full Review. Told from the point of view of Truffaut’s cinematic counterpart, Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), The 400 Blows (Les quatre cents coups) sensitively re-creates the trials of Truffaut’s own childhood, unsentimentally portraying aloof parents, oppressive teachers, and petty crime. The 400 Blows. Seance on a Wet Afternoon. Set in early 1950s Paris, the film is an expertly crafted character study of a young adolescent who's often misunderstood by his peers and, after being left with no attention,… Review by BrandonHabes ★★★★★ 13. Writer Francois Truffaut. (Only Kiss Me Deadly, which similarly ends in the surf, and L’Eclisse come to mind as potential rivals.) Read 3 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. The 400 Blows. All it takes is a dismissive parent or an abusive teacher or a needling friend and our worst impulses can hold sway during those formative years. The 400 Blows book. Sort by: Subhayan Chanda's rating of the film The 400 Blows. The 400 Blows doesn't idealize growing up in 1958 Paris, but the pursuit of freedom for the 13-year-old Antoine is at once difficult and wonderful. The Eiffel Tower can be seen in the distance over a few rooftops and the viewer's attention is naturally drawn to it throughout the opening sequence. The New Wave dealt with a self-conscious rejection of traditional cinema structure. Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud) unfortunately experiences all three of these unhealthy influences. The 400 Blows is considered semi-autobiographical. Subhayan Chanda A troubled household, frivolous life and a yearning for freedom in a form Truffaut couldn't visualize or even be aware of existence at the age of 14. The 400 Blows. Elevator to the Gallows. The 47 Ronin Part 1. The 400 Blows. by François Truffaut 1h33 1958 France. The most famous and still well used shot that came out of The 400 Blows was not used until the very end of the picture – the freeze-frame. He’s also controlled by the adults around him, and to a point, the camera itself. It held a mirror and brought out the ugly, dark side of a face that I keep hiding from society. The 400 Blows (Les Quatre Cents Coups) or its literal translation: “Raising Hell”—is the simple semi-autobiographical tale of Truffaut mirrored by the actions of Antoine. The 400 Blows is the debut film of French director Francois Truffaut.The film was released in 1959 in France and was an unexpected success. Paris is a wonderland of discovery for Antoine, even though he's constantly receiving the fuzzy end of the lollipop. You May Also Like. The 400 Blows. Francois Truffaut’s Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows) contains some of the most joyful depictions of childhood I’ve ever seen in the cinema. ...The 400 Blows directed by François Truffaut changed many cinematic rules and planted the seed for new ones that are still being used today. Their touching friendship is captured in René’s unsuccessful attempt to visit Antoine at reform school. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and at the Cannes Film Festival for the Palm d'Or. The 400 blows: The abysmal cost of freedom Posted by ramadheerndanny April 27, 2021 Posted in Analysis Tags: Francois Truffaut , The Adventures Of Antoine Doinel Director Francois Truffaut in an interview once said something to the effect that -cinema has invariably been a catalyst to stave him off from emaciation- it has undoubtedly saved his life and gave him a spiritual succor. François Truffaut, France, 1959 Comment. Les 400 coups. Much like Truffaut, Antoine (Jean-Pierre Léaud) struggles in school, grapples with his parents, and has a trusted best friend. O ne of the initiating sparks of the French New Wave, The 400 Blows ultimately boils down to the film’s trendsetting coda, perhaps the most exclamatory question mark in movies. The 400 Blows study guide contains a biography of director Francois Truffaut, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Rashomon. A movie that left me numb is The 400 Blows. The 400 Blows traces 14-year-old Antoine Doinel’s odyssey through a life of aloof parents, oppressive teachers and petty crime. more. He is a teenager with a rebellious attitude, and naturally, he’s programmed to break the rules. Les 400 coups. The 400 Blows Film Analysis 1338 Words 6 Pages François Truffaut's very first film, 1959's The 400 Blows, was a film on an astute and happy schoolboy who looks for the delights of cinema, companionship, and freedom while endeavoring to have a typical … The 400 Blows remains Truffaut’s seminal film, yet he continued to reinvigorate cinema throughout the sixties, with such thrilling works as Shoot the Piano Player and Jules and Jim. 6 years ago | 13 views. “The 400 Blows” proved it, and in the best possible way. ScreenPrism: How did 400 Blows (1959) change the coming-of-age genre? This coming of an age film was filled with ambiguity in the characters, which gave a sense of realism. In other words, the plot presents story events that leave us uncertain as to the nature of the final consequences (74). A 12-year-old boy turns to crime to escape family problems. A loner on the brink of rebellion, Antoine is buoyed along the way by a touching friendship, a love of cinema, and the hope of escape. The camera moves down the street and towards the Eiffel Tower until it is blocked from view by a building. In The 400 Blows, Antoine and René reenact the delinquency and cinemania of the young Truffaut and Robert Lachenay (who was an assistant on The 400 Blows). The 400 Blows suggests that every kid is just a few steps away from delinquency. Follow. Ratings & Reviews. The 400 Blows is my first stint with this director's works and the elegant manner in which he has unfolded this story before our eyes is sheer poetry. Ratings & Reviews. "The 400 Blows" fades in on a traveling shot down a Parisian street. François Truffaut’s first feature is also his most personal. The 400 Blows is Truffaut’s directorial debut and considered one of the first movies in French New Wave canon.The 400 Blows was a very big surprise out of France because it was an oddity to see such great work out of Truffaut, who was known at the time a movie critic for a French magazine. From the … François Truffaut, France, 1959 Comment. The 400 Blows. The 400 Blows is the first major film directed by Francois Truffaut, formerly a film critic known for his brutally-honest reviews. Criterion Collection Edition #5 François Truffaut’s first feature is also his most personal. 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