Attempting to watch all of Godard's films, in order, starting today with 'À bout de souffle'.
Thoughts:
Getting an 11-DVD Godard box set for €9.99 has reinvigorated my plan to watch Godard's completely filmography (well, at least all of the features) in chronological order, which means starting with this one. This is the first time I've ever seen this in widescreen and the difference is astounding, as I previously though this wasn't something I'd ever be able to sit through again. It's hard to say something poignant here about one of the few films that truly changed the history of cinema forever. Though the first and third acts are the really explosive freewheeling parts that set the world on fire, I really clicked with the second act, particularly the long scene in Seberg's room. In addition to the technical innovation and the European recombination of film noir/gangster/arthouse elements, À bout de souffle really makes Seberg's character the soul of the film, which isn't so obvious behind Belmondo's clowning around. Writing a meaningful review here is like writing a review of DaVinci's Last Supper or something, so I'll just say that I was really into this, a thousand times more than when I first saw it in college on VHS - whether my new appreciation is due to maturity, my deeper interest in film today vs. then, or the superiority of seeing a film in its proper aspect ratio I'm not sure - perhaps a combination of all three.