5 reasons to watch the adventures of Antoine Doinel again

The films starring the emblematic character of the work of François Truffaut have been restored and are showing on the big screen. A great opportunity to revisit this collection, launched with The 400 blowsduring which we can follow the filmmaker’s alter ego for 20 years.

Because the New Wave was launched with him

When François Truffaut directed The 400 blowsreleased in 1959, he did not expect his very first feature film to launch a new movement in French cinema, to which another chapter was added the following year with the release of the other seminal work of that time, Breathless, by Jean-Luc Godard. The filmmaker also did not plan to revisit the life of his young alter ego, played by Jean-Pierre Léaud, in four other dramatic comedies. Truffaut will thus find Antoine Doinel in 1962 in Anthony and Colettea short film inserted in the collective feature film love at twenty ; in 1968 in stolen kisses ; in 1970 in Marital home ; and in 1979 in love on the run. Thanks to restored versions, this series of films is now returning to cinemas, via the American distributor Janus Films (hence the presence of English subtitles).

Because there is The 400 blows

Triumphantly received at the Cannes Film Festival when it was presented in 1959, François Truffaut’s first feature film is directly inspired by the filmmaker’s childhood and pre-adolescent memories. His alter ego, Antoine Doinel, is played by a young stranger, aged 14, who responded to an ad published in a newspaper. The presence of Jean-Pierre Léaud is so strong in the skin of this clumsy, unloved young man, prey to petty crime, that the young actor will quickly become one of the emblematic figures of the New Wave. The very last shot, where Truffaut freezes the enigmatic gaze of his young antihero, has gone down in history, just like this film which, although having been made more than 60 years ago, still remains free and very modern. .

‘Cause it covers 20 years of a life

When he realized The 400 blows, François Truffaut surely had no idea that he would bring Antoine Doinel back later, even less that he would follow him at significant periods of his life, over a period of 20 years, always calling on the same actor, Jean-Pierre Leaud. The idea of ​​bringing back his alter ego first came in 1962, thanks to a collective film project, titled love at twenty, where five filmmakers from different countries were given the mandate to make a short film on youth. In Anthony and Colette, Antoine is 17 years old and cannot conquer the girl he covets. Six years later, having grown up in stolen kisses, he manages, despite his instability in all areas, to bond with a young woman whom he will end up marrying. This relationship, around which the story of Marital home is built up, yet festers quite quickly. In love on the run, it’s divorce. And the retrospective look of a filmmaker who puts an end to the adventures of a character directly from his youth. This latest opus also marks the last collaboration between François Truffaut and Jean-Pierre Léaud.

Because there is Jean-Pierre Léaud

After his sensational entry into the world of cinema at the age of 14, thanks to the 400 shotsthe actor has obviously had the opportunity to tour with several leaders of the New Wave, including Jean-Luc Godard (Male Female, The Chinese) and Jean Eustache (The mother and the whore). That said, the iconic figure that Jean-Pierre Léaud has become will remain eternally linked to the cinema of François Truffaut. The actor not only lent his features to Antoine Doinel, but also starred in several other films by the director. What we think of The two English women and the continent and The American night.

Because… François Truffaut

François Truffaut left a legacy of an influential past as a critic to Cinema notebooks, and, above all, a remarkable body of work, made up of 21 feature films, including some great cinema classics. In addition to the films featuring Antoine Doinel, let us only mention Jules and Jim, The wild child, The American night, The story of Adele H. and The last metro. This feature film, which he wrote specifically for Catherine Deneuve, will remain his greatest public success and will be full of César trophies. After this triumph, which occurred in 1980, the filmmaker directed The woman next door and Long live Sunday!, two films starring Fanny Ardant, the last woman in his life. Suffering from a brain tumor, François Truffaut died, much too early, on October 21, 1984 at the age of 52. However, the deep affection that many moviegoers have for him today has never faded.

The 400 Blows, Antoine and Colette, Stolen Kisses, Marital Home and Love on the Run are showing in restored versions at the Cinéma du Musée de Montréal, with English subtitles.