Cute new poster illustrated by Keiko Kimura.
Riotto pictures is rereleasing Jean-Luc Godard’s 1966 French New Wave classic Masculine Feminine at theater (watch the awesome trailer on the website) and we watch it at NuArt last weekend (showing from Feb 11 - 17 only). This rerelease has new print and new subtitle but sadly the sound is still very poor. But it’s cool to experience it on big screen. This is the first Godard film I watched and I love the The film starred the eternal boyish icon of French new wave Jean-Pierre Léaud (who was barely grown up here) and yé-yé girl Chantal Goya. The film is a zeitgeist about 60s Paris youth and their musing on politics (ranging from half-ass consciousness, complete indifference or feeble protest in form of prank), love, sex and pop culture…as if they are the only things that matter in lifes, which is pretty much the universally spirit for most youth in any generation.
There’s very little plot, the film is a collections of random conversations and exchanges between an obnoxious political young man named Paul and his self-absorb pop-idol wannabe girlfriend Madeleine and their circle of friends.
One flashcard title reads “This film could be titled ‘The Children of Marx and Coca-Cola’” sort of saids it all. It’s youth’s awkward struggle between politics and pop-culture, intellectual and shallow, right vs left, America vs France…etc. These polar aspects are often juxtaposed against each other through the male vs female characters, one oblivious, indifferent, clueless about the other. Paul imposed his superior taste in Bach on Madeleine ’s pop music (who called Bach ‘horrible music’), but when interviewed by radio Madeleine cited Bach as her favorite musician. They encountered scenes of homicide and suicide around them but their reaction are mostly amusement or “oh really?”
There’re also musing on the rising feminism in the 60s. Though women are not portrayed as raging men-hating angry bitch (though one of Madeleine’s friend, Elizabeth, came a bit close), they’re mostly acting quite cool and indifferent toward males. The other Madeleine’s friend, Catherine (who claimed she don’t need men since she has a ‘gadget’ ^^;;), was playing a toy guillotine chopping head off a doll (male) while Paul unawarely looked on.
Some fun soundbites from the film:
There’s a ‘mask’ and ‘ass’ in Masculine, there’s nothing in Feminine
Kill a man and you’re a murderer. Kill thousands and you’re a conqueror. Kill everyone and you’re a god.
We control our thoughts which mean nothing, and not our emotions which mean everything.
Chantal Goya’s songs were played through out the movie, she sounded like France Gall except for worst singing, but they sounds awesome nonetheless ^^;; For fans of 60s French pop and yé-yé girls, there’re pleasant pop-culture references: cameos by Francoise Hardy (very brief, easy to miss…she played the American officer) and Brigitte Bardot (whose appearance on screen cause a cheer among the audience). There’s also mentioning of Sylvie Varton and France Gall. The clothes and hairstyle of all the female characters are uber cute and awesome. But they all instantly went pale against Brigitte Bardot’s presence (bunch of undeveloped little girls without any sex appeal ^^;;). Francoise Hardy was scarily skinny.
No doubt I have a lot of fun. It is still very refreshing to watch and I see why he’s so influential on auteur directors to come (especially for those who don’t ‘get’ directors like Wong Kar-Wai). I’m looking forward to check out other Godard classics.
mintyalice
