Movie Notes: The 400 Blows

July 17th, 2010

= 5 stars

Starring Jean-Pierre Leaud, Claire Maurier, Albert Remy
Directed by Francois Truffaut

Synopsis

French school boy Antoine Doniel (Jean-Pierre Leaud) causes more trouble the more his parents and school teachers neglect him.

The Good

• Great balance between acting and realism, at times feels like a documentary. The child actors are amazing, and since some are very young kids it rarely seems like acting. Leaud has an amazing final scene where he’s questioned by a lone psychiatrist and must explain in his own words why he does what he does — it’s charismatic yet emotionally distanced (implying great sadness).
• Truffaut’s amazingly economic direction. Every scene is framed in a minimal yet purposeful way to support the dramatic meaning: if a character is going to run across the screen, a wide shot is used, the cramped household emphasizes the uncomfortable feeling the family has for each other and tight shots and close ups are used out of necessity — which really hits home when Antoine visits a friend’s much larger house, and an overhead shot is employed, a slow camera move in to demonstrate realization, dissolves to show the passage of time. I felt there was a purpose to every directorial choice.
• Despite depressing subject matter, there’s enough humor sprinkled about, resulting in a celebration of life’s ups and downs.
• Antoine’s story is told in a sympathetic way; he acts out at school because his family life sucks — his mother is apathetic and having affairs, while his father takes nothing seriously. You mostly feel sorry for this young boy and his increasing isolation from society, through no fault of his own. His anti-social behavior is defensive. The plot gets increasingly intense as Antoine gets increasingly out of hand, more specifically, he moves from petty thievery to more symbolically serious deviancy.
• Amazing final, wordless sequence, featuring two tracking shots, meant to contrast with everything that came before (namely that claustrophobic house).

The Bad

N/A.

Conclusion

The 400 Blows is that rare film where everything (acting, story, direction) seems in harmonious balance, but overall there’s a feeling of sheer competence, that Truffaut knows exactly what techniques to employ in service of the story at every moment. Highly recommended.

IMDB: The 400 Blows
Wikipedia: The 400 Blows
Rotten Tomatoes: The 400 Blows