Franz (Sami Frey) and Arthur (Claude Brasseur) don’t have money, jobs, or prospects, but they do have a black convertible and a shared romantic interest in Odile (Anna Karina). When Odile lets slip that a stash of cash is ineptly hidden in the isolated villa where she lives, the men hatch a plan to take it for themselves. An oddball heist movie with a dark streak that picks apart every rule in filmmaking. Directed by Jean-Luc Godard, one of the most influential filmmakers of the 1960’s. 1964, France, 97 minutes. with English subtitles.
TICKETS are $6.99, and available here.
Discussion with J.D. Zeik on Tuesday, July 7, at 7:30. Please send an email to film@jameschingroup.com to request a link to the discussion on Zoom. J.D. Zeik’s credits include his original screenplay, Ronin, starring Robert DeNiro and directed by John Frankenheimer; The Touch, with Michelle Yeoh; Pistol Whipped, with Steven Seagal; and the TV film (and subsequent series) Witchblade, on which he also served an executive producer. He has also worked with artists as varied as James Cameron, Alfonso Cuaron, and 50 Cent.
“It’s as if a French poet took an ordinary banal American crime novel and told it to us in terms of the romance and beauty he read between the lines.” – Pauline Kael, New Republic
“One of Godard’s most appealing and underrated films, relatively relaxed and strangely optimistic.” – Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
“A masterpiece of mood, nuance and emotion.” – John Anderson, Newsday
“Godard works at an affectionate distance that allows him to comment on his characters’ naivete. But close enough so that he can hear their hearts break. – Charles Taylor, The Village Voice
“A LUSTROUS RESTORATION! MASTERPIECE! [Godard]’s most charming and, arguably, influential film: a free-associative meditation on the gangster genre that revealed a new way of framing our dreams and our reality. There would be no Bonnie and Clyde without it.” – David Edelstein, New York Magazine
