Film Review
Jean Eustache's first film is a fifty minute wry, slightly melancholic examination of
1960s French youth, from the point of view of a slightly marginalised and impoverished
young man. As with all of Eustache's films, this film shows the director's eye for
detail and an intense sympathy with his subject matter. Eustache was a late contributor
to the French New Wave, but his contribution, small though it is, is significant.
In many ways,
Le Père Noël a les yeux bleus manages to capture the
very essence of the New Wave cinema, with its apparently improvised dialogue, expansive
location shots, young rebellious characters, and an intense feeling of freshness.
The film was made with some spare film which Jean-Luc Godard had left over after making
Maculin, Féminin, and the similarity with that film is very noticeable.
Jean-Pierre Léaud is the lead actor in both films, although in Eustache's film
his character is slightly closer to the solitary rebel Antoine Doinel which he played
in an earlier film,
Les Quatres cents coups. (Having Léaud gazing
at his own image in a poster for that film was one stunt Eustache obviously couldn't resist
pulling - self indulgent but very funny.)
Léaud may not be the best choice for a pavement Santa Claus but he is perfect material
for Eustache's brand of introspective, slightly anarchistic, cinema. He would go
on to play the lead role in Eustache's best film,
La maman et la putain, which
is widely regarded as one of the triumphs of French cinema.
© James Travers 2001
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Next Jean Eustache film:
La Maman et la putain (1973)
Film Synopsis
Daniel is an unemployed young man who lives in the southern French town of
Narbonne. When he isn't busy chatting up pretty girls, he is indulging
in various little scams with his friends to earn himself a bit of badly needed
cash. Daniel's financial situation is pretty desperate and he urgently
needs money to buy himself a new duffel coat. One day, he has a stroke
of good fortune when he is approached by a photographer and asked if he will
pose as Santa Claus on the pavement. Daniel accepts the commission
readily and suddenly finds that, in the guise of Father Christmas, with a
thick white beard to hide his embarrassment, he is treated far more sympathetically
by people - particularly those of the opposite sex...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.