FilmWatch Weekly: Linklater's 'Nouvelle Vague' and Trier's 'Sentimental Value,' plus much more * Oregon ArtsWatch

"The streaming behemoth has, after all, been tagged as the archenemy of exactly the sort of fervent cinephilia that Linklater's film both celebrates and embodies as it painstakingly recreates the making of Jean-Luc Godard's À bout de souffle, released in English as Breathless, the film that jumpstarted the French New Wave in 1960 and made icons of its director, its stars, and its style."

"To be fair, the original, which tells the ramshackle story of a doomed affair between a petty crook on the run (Jean-Paul Belmondo) and an American newspaper hawker (Jean Seberg), is required viewing to appreciate Nouvelle Vague, but seeing them in close proximity only enhances the mix of cheek and reverence with which Linklater treats the creation of this landmark film and the legendary individuals involved."

Netflix distributes Richard Linklater's Nouvelle Vague despite the film's celebration of fervent cinephilia and painstaking recreation of the making of Jean‑Luc Godard's À bout de souffle (Breathless). Linklater's film traces the origins and personalities behind the French New Wave while blending cheek with reverence. Netflix provides an outlet for films that might otherwise languish in distribution limbo, but those films often receive only token theatrical releases before being absorbed by the streaming library and algorithmic obscurity. Nouvelle Vague received a very limited 35mm theatrical run and is now available on the Netflix app. Seeing Breathless (on The Criterion Channel, Kanopy, or Blu‑ray) alongside Nouvelle Vague enhances appreciation. Guillaume Marbeck portrays Godard with sunglassed superiority and private insecurity.

Read at Oregon ArtsWatch * Arts & Culture News