Bed & Board

Antoine works as a florist's assistant, in the courtyard of his house. Christine, his wife, a violin teacher, finds out she's pregnant. Amid unforeseen circumstances and arguments, Antoine gets involved with a woman, putting his marriage at risk.

From the saga of Antoine Doinel (Truffaut followed the fictional life of this character for 20 years), Bed & Board, the penultimate film in the collection, is the lightest and most entertaining, thus breaking the content of the previous ones, which were material for reflection in the character study and social situation at the time (from the late 60s to the late 80s).

Truffaut never told bad stories, and here is an example of a marriage, which, like so many others, reached the breaking point faster than previously thought, and need help to survive.

The chemistry between Jean-Pierre Léaud and Claude Jade is fabulous, with really good scenes and dialogues, even when the result is not as good as expected.

Antoine and Christine now happily married, though life can be quite tough they don't seem worried, selling flowers in the day, trying to make violin pay, and then a baby, to make it all a bit more hurried. A chance presents for Antoine to set sail, on a corporate ladder, the bottom marks the trail, meets a Japanese distraction, causes confusing attraction, it's not the baby that will cry and whine and wail.

The continuing trials and tribulations of Antoine Doinel, who continues to excavate sizable holes to fall in and then spend his time and energy escaping from. Not quite as engaging as Stolen Kisses but enjoyable and relatable nonetheless.

No #4 in the Antoine series, five films beginning with 400 Blows, Antoine, the dreamer, has got himself a fine young wife, his opposite really, prim and well mannered. Their romantic first year is a series of funny neighbors and comical whimsy. I learned how to die the color of flowers, more interesting than one would think. I learned about hurrying a wife along by throwing her coat and bag down a stairway. I learned that relationships go wrong when one gives in to lust. Hey, I knew that.

Jean-Pierre Leaud has a physical resemblance to Truffaut. These episodic films, the ones in color that I have seen remind one of a HBO mini-series. His autobiographical Doinel is from a broken family. In the 400 blows, a masterpiece really of the New French Cinema in the late 50's, we see the lonely kid grasping for understanding. In subsequent films, we see the young adult Doinel grasp at relationship and career. The next beautiful woman is always around the corner. In Bread and Board, the femme fatale is 70's Japanese Go Go Chick, Hiroko Berghauer. Notice the heavy eye make-up on the women that make them look like zombies.

And who could imagine that Antoine Doinel, the misunderstood and agitated character played by Jean-Pierre Léaud in "The 400 Blows" would succeed it in life? Now he's married with Christine (Claude Jade), has a strange work, first selling flowers, then controlling little boats by remote control, father of a pretty boy and life goes on with some up's and down's after a little romance with a Japanese girl. Doinel's story in "Domicile Conjugal" ("Bed & Board") is presented as a sweet and funny tale barely remembering the confuse boy of the film released in 1959. But there are moments when the audience is reminded of the young Antoine and his problems with his parents and problems with school (when he decides that his son will be a writer and that he won't have lessons at school, cause of many of the problems of Doniel).

Truffaut's makes his most funniest film here, a humor that is not created with absurd or a slapstick comedy but it is simply a day-by-day of Doniel's presented with charm, humor, originality in memorable moments (Doniel's strange friend who always asks money of him saying that he'll pay in double; or Doniel's breaking the wall of his apartment to make a room for his child; and some conversations between the couple about male nudity and the breasts of Christine, which according to Antoine are different to each other). It takes common and ordinary situations of everyone's lives and makes of it something beautiful, delightful and pleasant to see. And the two main actors are marvelous on screen, have a electrifying chemistry and brilliant performances.

A perfect work and a movie of the highest quality, "Bed & Board" is one of those films that you wanna watch it more than just one time. 10/10

Ufff I loved the chemistry betweeen Antoine and Christine, simply Charming. The films shows that "modern" marriage of the end of XX century. A woman who still keeping talking to her ex-husband. A husband, that was unfaintful and still kept a good relationship with Christine. However, you can still see, a behaviour of a male chauvinist and a woman "submissive", just that with very open mind view.