paranoidandroid-1

I saw this film in my documentary cinema class about two weeks ago. It strikes me as incredibly idiosyncratic, funny, touching at times, and somewhat of a cinematic journal. What do I make of this film? That is, what sort of frame of mind do I leave the theater with? I don't know. I like Zahedi's commentary, the sort of bookends that begin and end the film-these are hilarious in how candid and improvised they are, not to mention very telling of the film's protagonist. But the sincere and improvised qualities of these portions of the film seem to be undermined by the Las Vegas hotel room sequence. Suffice it to say, the film seems driven by Zahedi's proposition and what he asks of his father and half-brother. Without giving away too much, I wonder if the filmmaker had this in mind all the while, if the film isn't meant to be a diary. Regardless, I ultimately think that this is a wonderful film about family and familial...experimentation. And the road sequences are some of the best and funniest I've ever seen. Highly recommended.

I can't get over how beautiful this film is. First, Leaud gives such a wonderful performance, and its humor is easily overlooked; his face, in certain scenes, has an aloof, unsuspecting, and innocent quality, that it ads to his confusion-we wonder how he can be involved in something as serious as the communist party. He travels through his life with a sort of on-purpose, slash, accidental attitude that I can never quite explain. Then, there's Madelaine. Madelaine, with her jet black hair, confusion of love vs. sexuality, and striking beauty, represents everything I love about the women of the French New Wave. Very insecure, but, at the same time, they have definite plans and agendas. Finally, with all of the political and social commentary, it's easy to overlook just how visually beautiful the film is. The two protagonists, in bed, unsure of what to make of their intimate situation. They're so close, so attracted to each other, and Godard puts them in such a beautiful composition and lighting that it almost seems saccharine, but they still don't know what to make of it.

Every 24 frames of every second of this film is a love letter to Paris. With all the talk of "French New Wave" this and "existential" that, it would be easy to forget the amazing images of Paris. For a brilliant, and much more upbeat look at Parisian life than "The 400 Blows", see this film.