Breathless, Band of outsiders(Bande à part) and Pierrot le Fou are the godard movies that I think are highly metaphorical or symbolic.
In spite of Godard's and Breathless' popularity, I have never read an appreciation that looks past the superficial elements of that film. It is not my intention to suggest that the superficial is in anyway inferior to deeper layers. The mere non-existence of such an appreciation is the question.
Breathless is not the story of Michel Poiccard, instead the story is about Patricia. Michel is just a representation her adventurous side. The side of her that animalistic, full of life and beyond morality. Michel goes anti-social, he is hunted and killed by the society. I viewed it as a metaphorical expression of how we are all forced to conform. Patricia being the young girl she is, is forced to hide her animalistic, pre-moral self to conform to the rules of the society. Her repressed side gave birth to the character Michel, who sadly, gets killed in the end. leaving Patricia to now say good bye to her adventurous self. It also marks the end of youthfulness in her in a way. It is time she grew up, matured, so to speak. Michel's death marks the beginning of a more ordered life that focuses on leading "a successful life" for her.
Pierrot Le Fou was about a married man eloping with an old time lover. To me it represented an artist's need for following his art. But peril and pain awaits one who tries to truly follow his art.
In Band of Outsiders, a man's dual nature, the animal and the social being are portrayed by two characters- Franz and Arthur. As expected, the animal gets killed in the end, leaving Odile with the gentler poetic Franz. Love and passion are triggered by danger and the dangerous. Yet when it comes to a relationship, one must kill one's dangerous side.
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