Band of Outsiders

I won't pretend to be a scholar of French New Wave. I've seen a few movies (including BREATHLESS, 400 BLOWS and a few more). And now Godard's BAND OF OUTSIDERS. Of the New Wave I've seen, Godard's films are often the liveliest and most "carefree." At their best, they have an undeniable energy that feels real, like something really happening while a camera happened to be running. Sometimes, you are VERY aware that a film is being made but in a way that delights you with the craftsmanship. And sometimes, you just don't quite know what's going on, because the elements of what we think of as traditional narrative and storytelling are less interesting to Godard.

BAND OF OUTSIDERS touches all these areas. We are introduced, somewhat abruptly, to Arthur & Franz, two young men with little money and big ambitions. And little in the way of scruples. They are both taken with the innocent young Odile (Anna Karina), whom they attend an English Class with. They like her, but they also like the fact that she lives in a home where one of the men there keeps a huge pile of cash in his closet. So they both woo her because they are interested in her, and woo her to get her to help them steal the money. She knows that's their goal, but is nervous about helping. It isn't always easy to tell how anyone really feels about anything. There's actually a narrator there to explain some of this to us, but he never really quite does. The two men are fairly stoic, and its hard to read them. They are clowns. They are romantics. They are men of their era who also like old Hollywood movies. Odile is innocent, but that doesn't mean she isn't interested in and tempted by these guys. She's ready to break out of her shell more than a little.

The "heist" in the movie is almost incidental to watching these 3 interact. At times, their relationship is quite amusing, and at times, there is an undercurrent of danger. Odile fancies Arthur, ultimately, because she thinks he's the most genuine. But to us, he feels the most sinister. Capable of violence. And at it's best, the three have some really amazingly fun scenes together. Best of all was a long sequence set in a cafe, which, after lots of amusing things regarding who will sit where at their table, the 3 launch into a dance (The Madison). That scene, one long, long take, is amazing. Nothing happens, really, except they dance...but it's amazing to watch. Karina comes into her own...she glows in this scene, and for me, at that moment, she became a truly interesting actor.

It's a goofy movie in many ways, and speeds along briskly, but mostly to nowhere. The heist takes the tone of the film in new directions, and I'm not sure how Godard wanted things to come across. It seems remarkably callous. There are times throughout the film where we simply don't have a clue what's going on in the minds of the characters. They engage in conversations that come out of nowhere and we're given no context. Yes, it's all very "new wavey", but we need a little more to be willing to take the journey with you 100%.

It's a fun movie, and feels very evocative of its time and of a particular generation in that time. The young and disaffected with no real prospects. I'm very glad I saw it.

With this film Godard returned to the (petty) crime genre and his fascination with American pop culture. Odile (Karina), Arthur (Brasseur) and Franz (Frey) meet in an English language class and become friends. When naive Odile tells them she lives in a house where a large amount of money is cached, their imagination runs wild. Fantasizing and discussing Hollywood B-movies and pulp literature, they decide to rob the house with the help of Odile.

Godard goes to even further extremes in "violating" traditional storytelling with his voice-over narration, giving the viewer information during the action and letting his characters talk to the camera. It might not be Godard's most innovative release, compared to let's say BREATHLESS, CONTEMPT and TWO OR THREE THINGS I KNOW ABOUT HER, but is probably more entertaining and accessible to modern audiences than almost any other pre-1970 film he made (his later work is difficult to grasp for any audience). In the case of CONTEMPT audiences might have flocked to the cinemas because of Brigitte Bardot's presence, but besides BB-devotees, that's hardly a recommendation now. But this one generally is an entertaining and insightful film, with the dancing sequence in the bar justly memorable, as is the 9-minute tour of the Louvre.

Still, essential for movie buffs. Godard even credited himself as Jean-Luc "Cinema" Godard. Quentin Tarantino paid tribute to this film naming his production company A Band Apart.

This is a very rich and entertaining work. The plot revolves around two men and a woman who decide to rob the employer of the woman's aunt. However, Godard uses this slender plot as an excuse to riff on a wide spectrum of subjects. The would-be criminals run around, dance, recite newspapers stories to each other and have pretend shoot-outs.

This film is a lot of fun. Watch out for the celebrated dance sequence in the cafe and the scene where the three hold a minutes silence and all the noise on the soundtrack is cut off for the duration.

Acting wise, the film is stolen by the lovely Anna Karina (who was Godard's wife at the time) as the sweet, vague woman at the centre of the trio. Godard himself does the voice-over narration relating the story.

Filmed on the cold, de-glamorised streets of urban Paris, the film has a spontaneous feel that adds a lot to the exhilarating feel of the whole work.

This film is a charming, fun and suspense filled picture from one of the world's most interesting film-makers.

I must admit I have a bit of a problem with Jean Luc Godard. As he is a major influence on many film makers I love, I'm always curious to watch his movies to see where thay learned their chops. But I usually find Godard's movies a chore to get through and generally disappointing overall. Even his most famous and influential movie 'Breathless' took me a few viewings before I "got" it, and recently rewatching it for the first time on DVD I found it to be a lot less entertaining than I'd remembered. 'Band Of Outsiders' is for many Godard buffs even better than 'Breathless', but I really cannot share their enthusiasm. While in many ways the two movies are similar in approach and subject matter, the major difference for me is that 'Band Of Outsiders' lacks the infectious energy of 'Breathless'. Making a movie about characters who are bored with life there is a great risk that the movie will be boring to watch, and this is too often the case with this film. There are a few inspired sequences I can't deny that, especially the influential dancing scene, the minute of silence, and the race around the Louvre, but these are few and far between. The other main difference is in the actors themselves. Anna Karina is by far the best thing about this movie, but Claude Brasseur and Sami Frey lack the charisma and presence of Jean-Paul Belmondo, and drag the movie to a standstill every time they have a "bit". I'm sorry I just couldn't get into their characters or care for their fate, in the way I could about Belmondo and Seberg in Godard's earlier movie. So there you have it, a movie that buffs will probably want to check out for historical reasons, but apart from that there isn't much reason to sit through it. And yeah, I know it gets a big thumbs up from Quentin Tarantino, but so does 'Days Of Thunder'!

Odile has made new friends at English lessons, after making a faux pas, an indiscretion, telling them about a stash, of a great big pile of cash, it's become Arthur's and Franz's new obsession. Now they're conjuring a plan to grab the dough, it's unsecured, and in a place Odile can show, but she's having some concerns, struggling to come to terms, so she voices her unease, to let them know. Alas the plans for burglary do not run well, as barriers unknown block and repel, it's a comical affair, leads the combo to despair, the execution was quite poor, I think that's fair.

It still views well, but you need to digest it with the era in mind, alongside the other material the director produced around then, taking into account the unique style of his presentations.