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Elää elämäänsä

Original title: Vivre sa vie: Film en douze tableaux
  • 1962
  • (Banned)
  • 1h 20m
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
34K
YOUR RATING
Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
Criterion Collection trailer
Play trailer2:22
1 Video
76 Photos
Drama

Twelve episodic tales in the life of a Parisian woman and her slow descent into prostitution.Twelve episodic tales in the life of a Parisian woman and her slow descent into prostitution.Twelve episodic tales in the life of a Parisian woman and her slow descent into prostitution.

  • Director
    • Jean-Luc Godard
  • Writers
    • Marcel Sacotte
    • Jean-Luc Godard
  • Stars
    • Anna Karina
    • Sady Rebbot
    • André S. Labarthe
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.8/10
    34K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Jean-Luc Godard
    • Writers
      • Marcel Sacotte
      • Jean-Luc Godard
    • Stars
      • Anna Karina
      • Sady Rebbot
      • André S. Labarthe
    • 78User reviews
    • 84Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 1 nomination

    Videos1

    My Life To Live
    Trailer 2:22
    Watch My Life To Live

    Photos76

    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)
    Anna Karina in Elää elämäänsä (1962)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Anna Karina
    Anna Karina
    • Nana Kleinfrankenheim
    Sady Rebbot
    • Raoul
    • (as Saddy Rebbot)
    André S. Labarthe
    • Paul
    • (as André Labarthe)
    Guylaine Schlumberger
    • Yvette
    • (as G. Schlumberger)
    Gérard Hoffman
    • Le chef
    Monique Messine
    Monique Messine
    • Elisabeth
    Paul Pavel
    • Journaliste
    Dimitri Dineff
    • Dimitri
    Peter Kassovitz
    Peter Kassovitz
    • Jeune homme
    • (as Peter Kassowitz)
    Eric Schlumberger
    • Luigi
    • (as E. Schlumberger)
    Brice Parain
    • Le philosophe
    Henri Attal
    Henri Attal
    • Arthur
    • (as Henri Atal)
    Gilles Quéant
    • Premier client
    Odile Geoffroy
    • La serveuse de café
    Marcel Charton
    • L'agent de police
    Jack Florency
    • L'homme dans le cinéma
    Alfred Adam
    Alfred Adam
      Mario Botti
      • L'italien
      • (uncredited)
      • Director
        • Jean-Luc Godard
      • Writers
        • Marcel Sacotte
        • Jean-Luc Godard
      • All cast & crew
      • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

      Storyline

      Edit

      Did you know

      Edit
      • Trivia
        The whole movie script fit on one page, where the sequence of episodes was recorded. The text was not written in advance, and the actors said what was appropriate for the situation.
      • Goofs
        When Nana is in the café, writing a letter and then talking with Raoul, the street view behind her is shown several times. None of the cars or pedestrians are moving.
      • Quotes

        Nana: The more we talk, the less the words mean.

      • Connections
        Edited into Bande-annonce de 'Vivre sa vie: Film en douze tableaux' (1962)
      • Soundtracks
        Ma Môme
        (uncredited)

        Music by Jean Ferrat

        Lyrics by Jean Ferrat

        Sung by Jean Ferrat

      User reviews78

      Review
      Review
      Featured review
      10/10
      Godard has a great piece of Parisian character-fiction
      (minor spoilers ahead)

      I've started to get a little more used to Godard, and now by My Life to Live I know I can expect anything from him, though it's sometimes a style that he presents frankly, stylishly, or in an experimentally real approach. Along with his masterful cinematographer Raoul Coutard, the mis en scene he creates in each episode is equally satisfying. And there is a terrific balance in how the camera may just stay for minutes at a time on a character before moving and how the camera may show off (impressively) for the viewer.

      For example, there's a moment when Nana (played by Godard's wife Anna Karina) is a café, and gun shots are heard outside, the camera seems to cut - or move - to the sounds and beats of shots being fired, tracking like this all the way across the bar to the window. It was stunning to see that being done, not just for the sake of the scene's twist to intensity, but it perfectly skims the line of stage-ness and reality- if you were positioned in that café, how would you see things as your head turns to look to the street? Godard raises and answers some film-making questions that pay off in the best new-wave type fashion. His dialog, too, is fascinating, and a philosophical discussion between two characters gives me an indication as to what might have inspired Richard Linklater, perhaps.

      Then there's Anna Karina as Nana, a woman who leaves her husband and child (you have to listen sharp to note when the child's mentioned) and gets kicked out of her home by the concierge. She has a job in a record store, but doesn't keep it, wanders the streets, sees a movie (very emotionally touching scene), and tries to get an acting job, or some money together. Then she gets drawn into, without an ounce of remorse, the prostitution ring-around, learning that there isn't nearly as much emphasis on lawbreaking in the business in Paris as there is with medical concerns. Karina, with a face, eyes, hair, and body that has a sweet level of (distant) attraction, plays Nana in a wonderful way- we get inklings that she can be happy (dancing to music in a pool-hall is the highlight), though she's at best when she hides it under her demeanor. She smokes, she has a lot of sex, she has talks that sometimes don't go anywhere, but is the viewer ever let in to who she really is or what her motives are day to day? This is a credit to her, as well as Godard, in creating this memorable figure in the early 60's New-wave of French cinema.

      Credit should also be given to Michael Legrand's theme (though repetitive, has a sort of purpose for many scenes).
      helpful•20
      10
      • Quinoa1984
      • Jan 8, 2004

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      FAQ1

      • What does the title mean?

      Details

      Edit
      • Release date
        • February 22, 1963 (Finland)
      • Country of origin
        • France
      • Official site
        • Les Films du Jeudi (France)
      • Language
        • French
      • Also known as
        • Vivre Sa Vie
      • Filming locations
        • Paris, France
      • Production companies
        • Les Films de la Pléiade
        • Pathé Consortium Cinéma
      • See more company credits at IMDbPro

      Box office

      Edit
      • Budget
        • $64,000 (estimated)
      • Gross US & Canada
        • $24,517
      • Opening weekend US & Canada
        • $8,336
        • Jun 1, 2008
      • Gross worldwide
        • $24,517
      See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

      Technical specs

      Edit
      • Runtime
        1 hour 20 minutes
      • Color
        • Black and White
      • Sound mix
        • Mono
      • Aspect ratio
        • 1.37 : 1

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