Une Femme est une femme

Godard’s fantastical comedy centres around the nightclub stripper Angela (Anna Karina), who one days decides she must have a child. Unfortunately her boyfriend Emile (Jean-Claude Brialy) is reluctant about the idea and she starts scouring the city for other suitors. Enter Emile’s best friend Alfred (Jean-Paul Belmondo), who is more than happy to oblige and a bizarre to and fro between the three ensues.

Une Femme est une femme is a typical Godardian work of the time, blending genres with formal experimentation. An homage to the American musical comedy, the prolific director injects his film with knowing cinematic references and tongue-in-cheek humour. The film zips along at a startling pace, managing to entertain and jolt the viewer in a manner unique to Godard.

Once again Raoul Coultard’s lush cinematography plays with colour and captures a playful Paris in all its splendour, while the great Michel Legrand delivers the musical goods. Arguably, the film’s biggest asset is the dynamic between the three iconic stars of La Nouvelle Vague. The quirky Karina, the straight-laced Brialy and the outlandish Belmondo play off each other impeccably.

This is Godard doing what he does best and it appears as though everyone involved is having as much fun as the spectator privy to the zany antics on screen. Perhaps this is why La Nouvelle Vague has become so endearing and nostalgic to film lovers across the world; this film proves how adult themes can be innovatively realised with a child-like joie de vivre.

Look out in particular for the amusing scene where Karina and Brialy mutely argue through the use of book titles, a technique Truffaut would use 10 years later in Bed and Board. These intelligent adults have not forgotten the child within…