Masculine-Feminine

A great film from Jean Luc Godard. It’s nice to see Paris and to practice my French. The acting and cinematography was good. It was a young adult romance. They go to a movie theater and a cafe.

As Dragan Nikolic would say "It's Godard, there is no plot", but still a fun and beautiful movie

Obra memorável. A trilha sonora, os personalidade e a trama são perfeitos, certamente um dos melhores filmes que já assisti. Godard acertou em cheio nessa obra fantástica.

Filme fantástico, bem ao estilo Antonionni e com à assinatura inconfundível de Godard. Uma pitada policia bem sútil. Recomendo a todos que assistam à essa película.

The acting seemed very sub par and the writing might as well have been written by knowitall college students trying to prove they know more about politics than you do. The women in the movie seem to be deemed uninterested in life and what goes on around them, compared to the male counterparts (making them less important??). Not really sure what the movie is trying to prove, but there were some introspective scenes about young love that kept me watching. Probably won't watch again.

I think I finally agree with Bergman. Goddard aint that great. Maybe I'm boring, maybe I just prefer form and a due respect for the time honoured tradition and craft of good storytelling.

"Understand what you will" - Godard just throws down the gauntlet with a slap to the faces of the audience, but it's not necessarily a difficult premise - Masculin Féminin explores youth culture in France during the '60s as a smorgasbord of historical and cultural events, commercialism, cigarettes, and hormones. Léaud's Paul is a pseudo-intellectual who chases girls through cafes with an unimpressive string of opinions and tastes, quoting without understanding and often substituting emotional outbursts for sincerity or passion. Opposite him is Goya's Madeleine, the main target of Paul's affections, variously interested in the superficial, commercial, and herself, who variously snubs and encourages Paul's attempts to woo her as the situation demands; she is typically composed but seldom can be considered 'in-control'. Godard doesn't really necessarily take a stance condemning either for their faults, loves, or fears as he simply remarks on the environment that resulted in their current state, though their collective lack of substance or importance makes their existence a bit tragic in the face of larger cultural movements then underway, a stance that could easily resonate with a newer generation. One of the more accessible Godards, ably acted, interestingly shot and edited (even though his clear intentwas to demonstrate the Paul's impotence, the director can't help but make an urban, smoke-filled Parisian cafe look cool), Masculin Féminin still has plenty of relevance and empathy to provide. (4/5)

Smart, philosophical, cool, sexy, playful, subversive, and perfect to the time period - I just loved 'Masculin Feminin'. There is an indie, impromptu feeling to the film, which is told in chapters, and includes beautiful Parisian street scenes, thought-provoking quotes, and great performances from Jean-Pierre Léaud and Chantal Goya, as well as the supporting cast. It's said that director Jean-Luc Godard didn't have an actual script, and instead used hand-written notes he would come up with the night before. While that could have led to disorganized chaos, here it works, and brilliantly. Sometimes heard with street noise in the background, the dialogue seems natural even when it's provocative, or when characters are in sequences that are essentially interviews. It's not a linear, simple story and that may put some viewers off, but if you think about it, along the way Godard touches on love, sex, homosexuality, politics, the antiwar movement, violence, race relations, pop culture, and of course, the youth of 1960's France, saying a lot in this film. There are surreal elements, and hey, you even get a cameo from Brigitte Bardot. Very entertaining, and on a number of levels. Quotes: "If you kill a man, you're a murderer. If you kill millions of men, you're a conqueror. If you kill them all, you're God." "We went to the movies often. The screen would light up, and we'd feel a thrill. But Madeline and I were usually disappointed. But Madeline and I were usually disappointed. The images were dated and jumpy. Marilyn Monroe had aged badly. We felt sad. It wasn't the movie of our dreams. It wasn't the total film we carried inside ourselves. That film we would have liked to make, or more secretly, no doubt, the film we wanted to live." On Bessie Smith and race: "They have no clue what she's singing about. "Here's my big fat black ass." She's not singing about love. ... It's not about desire, not about sorrow. Nothing like what you think. Want me to tell you? Her big fat ass is telling you to fuck off. That's what. Same goes for musicians. Take Charlie Parker." Madeleine: Do you think one can live alone? Always alone. Paul: No, I don't think one can, it's impossible. Without tenderness you'd shoot yourself. "We can suppose that, 20 years from now, every citizen will wear a small electrical device that can arouse the body to pleasure and sexual satisfaction."

Hippishly cool portrait of Paris in the 1960s as seen through the lens of Monsieur Godard and the viewpoints of his characters. Great existential conversations and byplay between the leads, as well as Godard's roving camera around and about the streets of the 'City of Light' really drove this for me.

Randomness, but in a fun, odd and young reflective way. 1001 movies to see before you die.