The cinema movement know as the French New Wave (nouvelle vague) arose in the late 1950s. Leading the charge was François Truffaut, whose semi-autobiographical movie "The 400 Blows" shocked people with its intensity. But another major player was Jean-Luc Godard, whose "À bout de souffle" ("Breathless" in English) was a new kind of crime drama. Jean-Paul Belmondo's suave crook comes across as a nice guy but will stop at nothing to get what he wants, while Jean Seberg's naive journalist just wants to do what she thinks is the right thing.
I understand that the movie is a tribute to some US movies that Godard liked. Apparently, he and Truffaut felt that a number of French movies were pleasing to the eye but otherwise empty (Truffaut later interviewed Alfred Hitchcock, whose clever storytelling techniques he admired; while writing for Cahiers du Cinema, Godard praised Otto Preminger's works). Just as important as "Breathless"'s plot is the soundtrack. The smooth jazz drives the movie as Michel goes from place to place, with or without Patricia. The jump cuts are distracting at times, but they don't subtract from the movie. Everything about this movie bears analyzing; you should see it at least once. Outstanding.
I understand that the movie is a tribute to some US movies that Godard liked. Apparently, he and Truffaut felt that a number of French movies were pleasing to the eye but otherwise empty (Truffaut later interviewed Alfred Hitchcock, whose clever storytelling techniques he admired; while writing for Cahiers du Cinema, Godard praised Otto Preminger's works). Just as important as "Breathless"'s plot is the soundtrack. The smooth jazz drives the movie as Michel goes from place to place, with or without Patricia. The jump cuts are distracting at times, but they don't subtract from the movie. Everything about this movie bears analyzing; you should see it at least once. Outstanding.