Joshua Reflects On The 50th Anniversary Theatrical Restoration Of Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless

There are some moments in a person’s life that forever change the said person’s life.

The first time you hear The Beatles.

A first kiss.

For me, it came one faithful night in the North B living center on the campus of Grand Valley State University, and involved me, my DVD player, and a copy of the film that would, just 90 minutes later, become the film I deem the greatest of all time, Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless.

Now, my love for the film has been rather vocal and even on the record (and this is far from a review, as you’ll see it’s a bit more of an ode to a classic), but one thing has always seemed to elude me: seeing this absolute masterpiece on the big screen, the way the film was meant to be seen.

However, thanks to the wonderful people at Janus Films, and the great theater here in Muskegon, MI, The Harbor Theater, I not only got to see the film in its newly restored glory, but I also got a chance to see that this film is still as powerful for those seeing it for the first time.

Walking into the theater Saturday evening, a friend and myself, along with our necessary companions of popcorn and cans of pop, sat down with one half of us not truly knowing what to expect, being the first viewing of the film, with me wondering if the film, after the numerous times viewing it on DVD, would somehow be less effective with this viewing.

Then, the lights dimmed.

And all worries went away.

The first thing one notices when watching this film on the big screen, is just how stunning, not only for its time but still to this day, the film’s photography and cinematography was.   It’s a starkly contrast heavy film, where the whites are wedding dress white, with the blacks being dark as night.   This makes the film’s lines, ranging from the sides of buildings in the stunningly gorgeous Paris, to each strand of pixie hair on the arrestingly beautiful Jean Seberg, all the more visceral and striking.

The next thing you take in is sonically, and it’s the film’s score and sound design.   With music from Martial Solal and design from Jaques Maumont, the film’s sonic quality is so high, particularly when you first encounter the film, that it may be jarring, as it is quite loud and seemingly off putting for those not knowing what to expect, but it’s absolutely world changing for fans of the sound side of the film world.

However, this isn’t only a film that is eye opening for those first watching it, to this day I continue to find more and more thing to genuinely love it.

Personally, the film’s most interesting attribute is its strength comedically.   The screenplay, written by Jean-Luc Godard and based on a story by Francois Truffaut, is an absolute masterpiece, not only of the crime genre, but something far more comedic.   With lines like ‘When the French say a second, they mean five minutes,’ or a hilarious conversation between Seberg and co-star Jean-Paul Belmondo involving Belmondo anxiously trying to get Seberg to take off her blouse near the star of the film’s final act, that prove this film is far more comedic than one previously imagined.

That said, this may prove to be more due to the charisma and chemistry of the film’s two leads, than anything.   The believability given to the idea that Seberg and Belmondo, Patricia and Michel in the film respectively, were once lovers sometime in the past, is far and away one of the film’s stronger suites.   Narratively, it’s the film at its best, and as a film, there are no moments quite as strong as the scenes of simple dialogue and banter between the two.   Michel and Patricia’s past is something that seems so troubled, and yet so promising, that you feel these characters are truly star crossed lovers, in the most romantic of ways.   Both seem to truly love each other, but neither of them quite know if that should be the case, nor if they want it to be, in the case of Patricia.

Then there is Godard.

What can I say about this film that hasn’t already been said by much brighter and much more gifted writers than yours truly?   The film is as full of life as any film I’ve ever laid eyes on, with a sense of pure kinetic energy that screams projection.   There is something so potent about the film’s visual nature, ranging from the way its framed to the grain of the film, that completely comes alive when it hits the silvers screen.   It’s like the breath of fresh air that you get when you take your first step outside on a fall day.   Always there the next day, but still unlike anything and everything you’ve seen before, or will see after.

The film is a timeless masterpiece that, 50 years later, is just as affecting as it was when that number was in days.

I had the wonderful opportunity to watch the film with a friend of mine, who had only heard of the film, never getting the chance to actually see it.   After much prodding, and much proclaiming of how this is the greatest film in the history of man in the eyes of this scribe, the party in question gave in, leading me to be both hopeful that this film may work as well as it has for me, as well as nervous, with the closest comparison being the idea of watching your child in his first piano recital.   You’ve heard the song millions of times, and you adore it, but you simply hope that it hits with the public as well as it did when sitting back at home.

That said, when Belmondo looks directly into the camera, discussing the merits of sleeping with a girl because ‘she has nice legs,’ even in the face of the fact that her friend is a ‘dog,’ and a chuckle came from the person to my right, I knew that this film is truly something special.   It’s a film that while being in the guise of a French New Wave film, is something far more than just a staple in the stable of one of the greatest eras in film history.

It’s transcendent.

It’s timeless.

It’s a film that no matter how many times you see it, there is always something new to take in.   Whether it be the film’s sense of humor, the chemistry between the two leads, or the completely vibrant sense of style, Breathless is a masterpiece of the time period, the genre, and of film as a whole.   Sure, discovering that the film hasn’t been playing well to audiences here in West Michigan is heartbreaking, but it doesn’t matter.   The fact that this film is still as masterful and full of life 5 decades after its initial release proves that while some may not enjoy it, this film will live on far longer than you or myself.

The film may be 50 years old, but this is one that will be looked at as one of the all time greats for years, with far more zeros attached, to come.   I know this is one that I will cherish for the rest of my days, with an experience that I’ll never forget.   This is one that I’ll show my kids, who will hopefully show their kids, handing this film down like any good story.

Simply put, this is the best film ever made.