Breathless (1960) À bout de souffle (original title)

Director:

Jean-Luc Godard

Writer:

François Truffaut (story)
(more)

Release Date:

7 February 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

The film that was banned for 4 years. Why..? (original Finnish poster tagline)

Plot:

A young car thief kills a policeman and tries to persuade a girl to hide in Italy with him.

Plot Keywords:

Car | Journalism | Criminal | Money | Policeman

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Jean Seberg	...	Patricia Franchini
Jean-Paul Belmondo	...	Michel Poiccard / Laszlo Kovacs
Daniel Boulanger	...	Police Inspector Vital
Henri-Jacques Huet	...	Antonio Berrutti
Roger Hanin	...	Carl Zubart
Van Doude	...	Himself
Claude Mansard	...	Claudius Mansard
Liliane Dreyfus	...	Liliane / Minouche (as Liliane David)
Michel Fabre	...	Police Inspector #2
Jean-Pierre Melville	...	Parvulesco the Writer
Jean-Luc Godard	...	The Snitch
Richard Balducci	...	Tolmatchoff
André S. Labarthe	...	Journalist at Orly
François Moreuil	...	Journalist at Orly
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Liliane Robin	...	Minouche
Gérard Brach	...	Photographer (uncredited)
Philippe de Broca	...	A Journalist (uncredited)
José Bénazéraf	...	(uncredited)
Jean Domarchi	...	A Drunk (uncredited)
Jean Douchet	...	A Journalist (uncredited)
Raymond Huntley	...	A Journalist (uncredited)
Louiguy	...	(uncredited)
Michel Mourlet	...	(uncredited)
Guido Orlando	...	(uncredited)
Madame Paul	...	(uncredited)
Raymond Ravanbaz	...	(uncredited)
Jean-Louis Richard	...	A Journalist (uncredited)
Jacques Serguine	...	(uncredited)
Jacques Siclier	...	(uncredited)
Virginie Ullmann	...	(uncredited)
Emile Villion	...	(uncredited)

Directed by
Jean-Luc Godard

Writing credits
Jean-Luc Godard		(screenplay) uncredited
François Truffaut		(story)

Produced by
Georges de Beauregard	....	producer

Original Music by
Martial Solal

Cinematography by
Raoul Coutard

Film Editing by
Cécile Decugis

Makeup Department
Phuong Maittret	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Pierre Rissient	....	assistant director

Art Department
Clément Hurel	....	poster artist

Sound Department
Jacques Maumont	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Claude Beausoleil	....	camera operator

Editorial Department
Lila Herman	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Claude Chabrol	....	technical advisor
Suzon Faye	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Les Films Impéria
• Les Productions Georges de Beauregard
• Société Nouvelle de Cinématographie (SNC)

Distributors

• Films Georges de Beauregard (1961) (France) (theatrical)
• Les Films Impéria (1960) (France) (theatrical)
• Société Nouvelle de Cinématographie (SNC) (1960) (France) (theatrical)
• Société nouvelle de cinématographie (SNC) (1960) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Films Around the World (I) (1961) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) (2006) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Neue Visionen Filmverleih (2001) (Germany) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Optimum Releasing (2000) (UK) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Pallas Filmverleih (1960) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Rialto Pictures (2010) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Seven Films (2011) (Greece) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Suomi-Filmi (1964) (Finland) (theatrical)
• BBC Worldwide (1987) (UK) (TV)
• Carlotta Films (2010) (France) (all media)
• Connoisseur / Meridian Films (1989) (USA) (VHS) (subtitled)
• Connoisseur Video Collection (1989) (USA) (VHS) (subtitled)
• Criterion Collection, The (19??) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Fox Lorber (2001) (USA) (DVD) (subtitled)
• Fox Lorber (2001) (USA) (VHS) (subtitled)
• Janus Films (1989) (USA) (all media)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
• Nothing's New Video (2005) (USA) (VHS)
• Optimum Home Entertainment (2000) (UK) (DVD) (re-release)
• Optimum Home Entertainment (2001) (UK) (DVD) (special edition)
• Optimum Home Entertainment (2007) (UK) (DVD) (box set)
• Polyband (1992) (Germany) (VHS)
• Raro Video (2005) (Italy) (DVD) (boxed set)
• Raro Video (2007) (Italy) (DVD)
• Timeless Video (1994) (USA) (VHS) (subtitled)
• Universal Pictures Benelux (2010) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (StudioCanal Collection)
• Wellspring Media (2004) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"À bout de souffle" - France (original title)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

France

Language:

French | English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:(Banned) (1960) | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:Unrated | West Germany:18 (bw) (nf) | Germany:16 | Finland:K-12 (1996) | Finland:K-16 (1964) | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Portugal:M/12 (re-rating) | Australia:M (TV rating) | Portugal:(Banned) | Portugal:17 (original rating)

Filming Locations:

11 rue Campagne Première, Paris 14, Paris, France

Company:

Les Films Impéria

Trivia:

Jean-Paul Belmondo was very surprised by the warm reception the film received. Immediately after production he was convinced it was so bad that he thought the film would never be released.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Patricia (Jean Seberg) is going up the escalator, a plant beside it can be seen moving as if knocked by the cameraman going up in front of her.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Michel Poiccard:After all, I'm an asshole. After all, yes, I've got to. I've got to!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "American Masters: A Letter to Elia (#24.6)" (2010)

Ladies and Gentlemen, the 8th Wonder of the World: Jean-Luc Godard.

This is the one that started it all. With the story of a man on the run calling himself Laszlo Kovacs (a cinematographer of the time), Jean-Luc Godard arrived in the movies (well, on the production end, at least). This also more than his typical film essay. The story by Francois Truffaut makes for a terrific Godard script (the Truffaut stamp makes it comparable to SHOOT THE PIANO PLAYER). Jean-Paul Belmondo does well in the Kovacs role, humanizing our bad-guy hero right up to the slam-bang finish. Jean Seberg is his conflicted lover who must... well, just watch. A landmark of the French New Wave, which is one of the most important movements in cinema. Vastly superior to the 1983 BREATHLESS with Richard Geer and Fassinder's homage THE AMERICAN SOLDIER. This is guaranteed to be like few movies you've seen before (unless, of course, you're a fan of the New Wave). BREATHLESS is also very memorable for its music and unusual photography. Shows how European film brought out the importance of character in film and raised it to new heights (whereas in American film, a close-up is the closest you'll get to character development). This is a must for any film student and for anyone who just loves movies.