I read an interview with director Richard Linklater (Boyhood) where he said every filmmaker who’s been working the industry for a long time should consider making a movie about making a movie.  It’s because “every film is its own dramatic production.”  In this case, Linklater has avoided his own works and instead, recreated a behind-the-scenes dramatization of Breathless, a 1960 French film which marked the directorial debut of 29-year-old Jean-Luc Godard.  Art is subjective but many consider Breathless, which won best director at the Berlin Film Festival, as one of the most important films ever made.

When asked what I look for in a great movie, I often speak of originality.  That same view was held by many young people in France in the late 1950s and hence, the French New Wave era was born.  The likes of Jean-Luc Godard, François Truffaut and Jacques Rivette, in addition to many others, would make movies with tiny budgets, improvised dialogue, quirky narratives, long tracking shots, fragmented editing, natural light, impromptu locations, and handheld cameras.  They weren’t loved by everyone, but these films found an audience – they were wildly different and appealed to those looking for something fresh, bold and rebellious.

Nouvelle Vague is not intended to be an intricate, fact-heavy exploration of French New Wave cinema.  There’s plenty of online material, including documentaries, if that’s what you seek.  Like the style itself, Linklater’s film is more of a loose, observational piece that captures the “vibe” of the time.  Aside from Jean-Luc Goddard himself, played by a sunglass-wearing Guillaume Marbeck in his feature film acting debut, characters drift in and out of the story.  Shooting it in black and white further adds to its charm.

There’s laughs to be had as Godard, much to the annoyance of his producer, purposely zigzags his way through the 20 days of production.  Reminiscent of Ed Wood, it’s as if he has no care for quality and continuity.  He’s re-writing the script over a morning cigarette, he’s calling in sick unnecessarily, and he has little regard for crafts such as make-up and cinematography.  You’ll be wondering how the film became a critical and financial success and it’ll inspire many newcomers to watch Breathless for the first time.

With the dialogue largely in French, another first for Linklater, Nouvelle Vague won’t wow you with emotion but as a relaxed, fun, playful outing, it delivers in spades.