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À bout de souffle
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Breathless (1960) More at IMDbPro »À bout de souffle (original title)

Photos (See all 51 | slideshow) Videos (see all 4)
Breathless -- Three Reasons Criterion Collection trailer
Breathless -- Trailer for the restored version of this Godard film

Overview

User Rating:
7.9/10   28,672 votes »
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Down 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
François Truffaut (story)
Jean-Luc Godard (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for Breathless on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
7 February 1961 (USA) See more »
Genre:
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. Full summary » | Full synopsis »
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations See more »
User Reviews:
French New Wave for Dummies See more (146 total) »

Cast

  (in credits order) (complete, awaiting verification)

Jean Seberg ... Patricia Franchini

Jean-Paul Belmondo ... Michel Poiccard
Henri-Jacques Huet ... Antonio Berrutti
Liliane Dreyfus ... Liliane aka 'Minouche' (as Liliane David)
Claude Mansard ... Claudius Mansard
Van Doude ... Himself
Daniel Boulanger ... Police Inspector Vital
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Liliane Robin ... Minouche
Richard Balducci ... Tolmatchoff (uncredited)
Gérard Brach ... Photographer (uncredited)
Philippe de Broca ... A Journalist (uncredited)
José Bénazéraf ... (uncredited)
Jean Domarchi ... A Drunk (uncredited)
Jean Douchet ... A Journalist (uncredited)
Michel Fabre ... Plainclothes Policeman (uncredited)

Jean-Luc Godard ... An Informer (uncredited)
Roger Hanin ... Cal Zombach (uncredited)
Raymond Huntley ... A Journalist (uncredited)
André S. Labarthe ... A journalist (uncredited)
Louiguy ... (uncredited)
Jean-Pierre Melville ... Parvulesco (uncredited)
François Moreuil ... A journalist (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)
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Directed by
Jean-Luc Godard 
 
Writing credits
(in alphabetical order)
Jean-Luc Godard  screenplay
François Truffaut  story

Produced by
Georges de Beauregard .... producer
 
Original Music by
Martial Solal 
 
Cinematography by
Raoul Coutard 
 
Film Editing by
Cécile Decugis 
Lila Herman 
 
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 CompaniesDistributors
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
"À bout de souffle" - France (original title)
See more »
Runtime:
90 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix:
Certification:

Did You Know?

Trivia:
According to Jean-Pierre Melville, Godard asked him for consultation during the post-production stage because the first edit was too long for distribution. Melville suggested Godard remove all scenes that slowed down the action (his own turn as novelist Parvulesco included). But instead of excluding entire scenes, Godard cut little bits from here and there. This led to the "jump cut" technique this movie introduced. Melville declared the result to be excellent.See more »
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.See more »
Quotes:
[first lines]
Michel Poiccard:After all, I'm an asshole. After all, yes, I've got to. I've got to!
See more »
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Patiently Wasting (2008)See more »

FAQ

What does it mean when Michel makes those three faces: open mouth, big smile, frown?
What does Michel say at the end of the movie?
What is the movie playing in the theater when Michel and Patricia are trying to escape from the detectives?
See more »
154 out of 219 people found the following review useful.
French New Wave for Dummies, 8 December 2004
Author: Mark Taylor (mark_kevintaylor@hotmail.com) from United Kingdom

This is the one that started it all kids, the daddy of post-modern cinema. MTV jump cuts, fractured soundtrack and images aplenty

Self reflexive to the point that it not only acknowledges its own existence, it revels in it.

All style and no substance is considered a bad thing today, unless its Tarantino. Well, if it wasn't for Godard, chances are there would be no QT.

All the characters and images, and dialogue and sets are constructed from all aspects of life - Michel is a Bogart collage. Patricia apes everything she sees, from her Interviewee's facial gestures to Michel's own.

Don't let all this technical mumbo fool you, I did my thesis on Godard and would happily bore the ass off you with a lecture in great detail about this film, but the fact is, it's a stormer.

Grips you by the throat and shakes the hell out of you, and it doesn't let go until the final breath.

Fantastically, artistically magnificent. If Godard wanted to make his debut picture to show how well he understood American ideals and the history of cinema, he couldn't have made a better picture.

Top stuff French guy.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Breathless (1960)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Is there a character in movie history that smokes more than Michel? BigDanTeague
Existential or just plain meaningless? little_ste
Come on, people. Get this into the Top 250. phxsns1
How has Godard influenced film makers today? rsg47
This film is so sexist liveandletdie-189-174252
My review whooo99
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