PodBill Just what I expected

Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Deanna There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Fleur Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

avik-basu1889 Whenever the phrase 'French New Wave' gets mentioned, among the few films that someone thinks of, one of them will always be 'The 400 Blows'. This film is the one that made the 'French New Wave' movement famous all around the world. This movement revolved around the internalisation of a confluence of influences and then the execution of something unique, real and personal with the help of those influences as well as new revolutionary ideas. While watching 'The 400 Blows' one can see the dedication to realism in terms of shooting on location which can be found in Italian neo-realism, one can find a fluidity in the camera movement that is reminiscent of Hitchcock and Max Ophüls, one can find the precise use of lighting to make the shadows prominent in certain scenes similar to film-noir or German expressionism, one can also find a bit of poetic realism reminiscent of Renoir and Satyajit Ray. But François Truffaut elevates the film from being a merely experimental piece of work paying homage to his influences to a greatly touching piece of work through the tender treatment of characters, intimate exploration of themes and expressive editing techniques which make his film as personal as can be.The film's opening credits are accompanied by a montage of tracking shots in the streets of Paris with the Eiffel Tower being a constant presence. Through this creative choice, Truffaut instantly establishes the setting of the film. This maybe a personal story about the troubles of a young boy, but it is also a film about the disintegration of the French urban family structure and the deterioration of parental attention and guidance. Antoine' parents, though not being complete monsters, seem not interested in their child's life. Antoine also gets constantly victimised at school due to the overt dictatorship of the teachers. A character at one point in the film remarks about the mysteries of what goes on in Antoine's head. The tragedy is that no one tries to understand his mindset. Antoine gets burdened with limitless housework and is deprived of the freedom that he constantly seeks during the film. Although this has a Dickensian quality to it, Truffaut never undermines the fact that Antoine truly does engage in questionable activities which gradually proceed to petty criminal acts. He merely tries to view everything from Antoine's perspective to understand the reasons and the scenarios that could've driven him to such actions.The pursuit of freedom is a very important theme in the film. There are a number techniques through which Truffaut underlines this. There are constant images of bars and fences superimposed over Antoine to express his thematic confinement. The interiors of Antoine's family's apartment are made to look particularly claustrophobic which makes the cinema verite scenes on location in the streets of Paris look very refreshing. Truffaut uses appropriate music very creatively at just the right times to underline emotions. The editing is creative and was revolutionary at the time. There are long takes, rapid dissolves and some frantic cuts(there is a remarkable cut from one panning shot to another) that accentuate Truffaut's inventive directorial ideas. There is one particular scene in the film, where Antoine walks down the stairs to dump the garbage which blew me away due to the subtle and intricate details that Truffaut inserts at every moment of the scene. From the sudden appearance and disappearance of the French National Anthem on the radio in an adjacent room to the flickering light when the garbage is being dumped, the whole scene is masterfully directed.Jean-Pierre Léaud is almost pitch perfect as the young Antoine. He has the most expressive eyes. There are moments where his voice modulation, his eye movements and general mannerisms are almost absurdly convincing for a first time child actor and of course Truffaut deserves credit for getting such a layered performance out of him.'The 400 Blows' is a film which richly deserves its accolades and acclaim. It is a deeply personal film that tries to understand the world from the perspective of a young boy who has been deemed a lost cause by his family and the society. The fact that this is a loosely auto-biographical piece of work, makes the film as a whole as well the last few moments of the film extremely poignant.

Daniil Artamonov Through this film, I got an idea of the beautiful old French town and of the life that children lived mid-20th century. How many psychological problems evident in this canvas ... Looking at it I realize how many create one psychologist and psychiatrist profession for half a century ... I'm sure we lucky to be born in the current years, and our children are lucky more, and even more grandchildren. Let's think about what role can play this pattern, if it is to watch most of the people of the future: - For a positive effect, it is necessary to show in the ripened age, then people will be able to sympathize with the previous generations ... - It can be seen in the infinite power of the unconscious and desire for freedom ... - Our desire to deeply pledged to go beyond and take the life under our cap.

grantss Good movie, but hardly brilliant or a classic.A boy, Antoine Doinel, is often in trouble at school and doesn't get along with his parents, especially his mother. He briefly runs away from home but then returns (or is returned...). After a while he ups the ante and turns to petty crime...Interesting drama. It also has its lighter side. There are many moments of comedy - the scene with the gym teacher taking the class for a walk was priceless! However, hardly the classic this is made out to be. Directed by Francois Truffaut, this is regarded as being the vanguard of the French New Wave movement. But it really isn't THAT good. It is hardly profound - the plot is a few weeks/months in the life of a early/mid-teens boy. There is no big realisation at the end, or plot closure.Even as a character-based film it is not fantastic. Yes, you feel some empathy for and engagement towards the boy but he is more villain than hero. (The adults are hardly saints either, I might add).Worth watching though, as it is a reasonable story, and to see what all the fuss is about...

Prismark10 The title of the film is The 400 Blows but its actually an expression for 'Raising Hell.'Made in 1959 in a cinema verite style. This is the full screen debut of Francois Truffaut and an example of the French New Wave. It was a critical hit.Jean-Pierre Leaud plays Antoine Doinel, a misunderstood teenager in Paris who constantly gets into trouble at school and an at home. Doinel is based partly on Truffaut himself.Doinel finds school boring, does not get on with his teachers who usually catch him telling lies including an embarrassing one where in a panic he tells that one of his parent has died. At home he is alone a lot as both parents are working. His glamorous mother (Claire Maurier) seems to have little time for him. He gets on better with his father (Albert Remy) who is more playful but as the film progresses, he is actually the step-father and you also learn that his mother is having an affair. Doinel wants love but his step- father seems too weak (he suspects his wife is cheating) his mother too busy but he seems happiest when she does give him attention such as towelling him down after a bath.Doinel and his best friend Rene get into all sorts of scrapes and petty crime. Several times Doinel runs away from home and sleeps rough. He gets caught stealing a typewriter from his stepfather's workplace and comes into the attention of the police, social services and the judiciary. At the end he is sent to a young offender's institute that he also runs away from and onto a beach to what looks like an uncertain future.However Truffaut would re-visit Doinel over the course of his directing career.Watching this film it becomes apparent how much this influenced the British New Wave in the 1960s. So much of this film reminded me of Kes by Ken Loach with its naturalistic acting styles. Just look at the mischievous scene where the sports teacher takes the class for a walk around the streets of Paris and the kids disappear few at a time. Then there is the very naturalistic scene at the Punch & Judy show where the much younger kids are enjoying themselves. The city is a playground but when Doinel is living rough it is also oppressive and scary.Of course as time has gone on the shock value of the out of control adolescent has been lost with newer, more franker films. The French New Wave also had a different way of telling stories in the cinema that someone like me brought up on a diet of junk Hollywood blockbusters might not always appreciate. The film can be a little too wayward and loose.However the final freeze frame of a boy fulfilling his dream of seeing the sea but still alone and lost is regarded as a classic. Apparently this is the first time a film ends in a freeze frame.