François Truffaut's 1959 movie The 400 Blows is arguably the birth of the seminal La Nouvelle Vague movement. It was not merely his storytelling which captivated his audience. It was also Traffaut's photographic approach to filming, and his crafting of relatable characters and settings. His stripped down cinematography and screenwriting has been cited as major impacts on directors before and after him. I would even go as far as assuming he was a major influence on Seinfeld's earlier seasons, since “a show about nothing” is a clear legacy of the French new wave.
The 400 Blows tells the story of ne'er-do-well adolescent Antoine Doinel and the trouble in which he often finds himself. The plot itself is fairly uneventful. Some mischief and its consequences, a foreseeable chain of cause and effect and effect and effect. It is not a deeply complicated plot in which multiple sequences of events take place from the start of the movie to the end. With that said, that was clearly never Truffaut's objective for The 400 Blows, and this is a characteristic which made much of La Nouvelle Vague so groundbreaking and alluring.
The strength of The 400 Blows lies in Truffaut's masterful crafting of realistic characters within the post-war Parisian backdrop. A largely impoverished metropolitan area which was still on the road to economic recovery. Unlike the typical portrayals of Parisian settings, which focus on beautiful architecture, romance, passion, culture, food, and ostentatious wealth, this was not the norm of the city and its inhabitants. Portrayals as such in general are fantastical and whimsical as a fairy tale, albeit in an urban backdrop; yet even more so in France within 15 years after the end of World War II. Truffaut shows what the late 50's was like for those who were not part of the higher social echelon adorned in Chanel and Dior. Their homes were small, rooms needed to be multi-functional, food was bland and quantitatively modest, and the typical conditions of Parisian public schools would get its American counterparts shut down. Such impoverished, uncouth, and abusive conditions are the perfect catalyst for the events which follow.
Even more resonating than the environment was Truffaut's portrayal of Antoine, the movie's protagonist. Like many subsequent new wave films, The 400 Blows was a character study of its main protagonists. There were very few actors who played any sort of prominence throughout the film; which mainly consisted of Antoine. To a lesser degree, his best friend, mother, step-father, and teacher are featured, but they were instrumental roles helping explain Antoine's personality and predicaments. Other extras, such as fellow school children, merely served to help create and accentuate a setting with no more significance than other pieces of the backdrop.
Of course, these factors were largely utilitarian due to budget constraints. Regardless, these characteristics are what made the earlier era of La Nouvelle Vague the beloved and groundbreaking movement it was. These filmmakers had to make use of creative and experimental ideas to compensate for other inequities. Exploring psychological themes, writing stories which resonate on a deeply personal level, and creating a photographic aesthetic, all compensate for a lack of budget while still stimulating and entertaining the audience. Creativity can be inexpensive. Traveling to multiple sets, or hiring a large production team with loads of extras, would need a heft budget.
Antoine is the archetypal everyman. He is somewhat mischievous, but no more so than typical children his age. He skips class, shares pinups, and draws on the wall. Most of us have done the same things, including myself. He was not alone in his misdeeds, just as most of us had our peers. He just had the misfortune of being the one who always gets caught. He was either following the crowd, following the ill given advice of his best friend, or trying to assert his adolescent sense of independence and self-identity without the experience or prudence to do so wisely... like most teenagers. There are times when he got in trouble for being misbehaved. Then there were times when he got in trouble for not doing anything wrong, aside from being foolish. Then there were times when he was actually behaved and still got in trouble anyway. In fact, the latter of which characterizes the times which led to the direst consequences.
We are also given insights into his closest relationships. He did not care much for his teacher, but the guy wasn't exactly likable (not that he could be blamed, those students were little shits; you, dear reader, would have beaten the crap out of them too, and you're lying if you say otherwise). He wasn't fond of his mother, but she was openly resentful that she ever bore him. He had an interesting rapport with his step-father, but even that was shallow and reduced to sharing a few humorous comments with one another. There was no love between them, considering how easy it was for him to fully wash his hands of Antoine. None of these authoritative and older characters think much of him, and they make their sentiments abundantly clear to Antoine. The most loving and loyal relationship he had was with his best friend. Unfortunately, this friend was an idiot and a terrible influence on him, thus being a main cause of his misdeeds.
Antoine, while not necessarily the sharpest tool in the shed, longs to prove his self worth to his detractors. He wants to demonstrate his resourcefulness and assert his independence to those who are his most outspoken critics, and openly regard him as cretin inevitably destined for failure. At the same time, he also clearly doesn't have much hope for a better tomorrow, so direr consequences mean less and less to him as he has less to lose. The only time he shows a noticeable degree of sadness for his life circumstances is upon his arrest. You can see him shedding a few tears while he stands in the back of a police wagon staring at the free world he will no longer experience - the last asset he had to hold onto. That is until he quickly adapts and accepts his placement alongside thieves, junkies, prostitutes, and possibly murderers, in incarceration.
As the movie progresses, the amalgamation of these factors both move along the plot, and explain the evolution of Antoine from a mischievous kid drawing mustaches on pinups to being placed in an observation center for juvenile delinquents. During questioning with the counselor, which serves as a bit of a soliloquy, he elaborates on some other shady things he has done. However, he never indicated doing such things on his own accord. He was not the worst of his peers, but he faced the worst of the consequences, which is understandably disheartening.
Antoine's story is told in a way which not only makes him an underdog, but a deeply human character. Although the circumstances and relationships during my childhood were very different than his, I cannot help but feel sympathy for him as I watch his life unfold. At times, I even feel a connection to him. I may be presumptuous in saying this, but I would surmise that nearly all of us has truthfully said "I didn't do it," or "everyone else was doing it" (which, in effect, makes it an acceptable social norm) at some point during our childhoods, adolescence, or even adulthood. Imagine if that kind of injustice was more common than not? Wouldn't that have made us disenchanted with the wisdom of our elders and elicit our rebellion? The people who are supposed to socialize and educate him openly express
their disdain and lack of faith that he will ever amount to anything.
That's not exactly a reassuring image to build the self-esteem of an
adolescent. How else could he have been expected to behave?
This was the power of Truffaut's vision and why this movie was such a resounding success. He was able to create a dynamic character through balancing a minimalist plot with complex relationship dynamics and settings. I have seen this movie a number of times, and I don't see myself getting bored of it. If I could only give a 10/10 to a mere handful of movies, this would undoubtedly be one of them.
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