Working on the Group Discussion leading for HFTV on Monday, Shawn & I decided to watch a French New Wave film by Francois Truffault called The 400 Blows.

The movie was supposed to be an autobiography of his life. A mirror of his I guess. It centres around this kid, called Antoine Doinel. He doesn't really like to study in school and does badly. Pretty mischevious, heh. Well, guess the teachers built up a perception that he was a naughty kid from past experience.

Not much different at home. His mom doesn't really treat him that well, she thinks he's a nuisance. In fact, his step dad cares more about him than his mom does. Ha! And they want him to do well. Fast forward a little. He skips school, has a nice day all over Paris. There was this shot of a Centrifuge ride that didn't seem to fit into the story at all. Heh, even film makers digress.

And he goes to school next day, says his mom died. And, guess who turns up at school? That's right! Mom and dad. Heh, busted! And he leaves home, his mom misses him and takes him home. He tries to be good but its no good. The teacher's perception is set and even though he really tried to do something good for his composition, he's still the lowest scorer in class.

He goes to sleep over at his friend's place, steals a type writer thinking that they could pawn it. But, unfortunately they couldn't and he gets caught when returning it. Its his dad's office, step-dad I mean, and gets sent to the police station. His parents have had enough of him and he is sent to a juvenile deliquency centre.

When playing soccer, the ball goes out of the field and he volunteers to throw it back in for his team. After that, he dashes towards the fence and ducks underneath it and escapes the facility. The last shot shows him at the sea, something he's wanted to see for so long. The frame freezes and zooms in on Antoine's still face.

I really liked the closing shot, that close up still and the words "FIN" slowly appearing on it. Classic! References to other movies and a director were also made. Like Jacques Rivette's film "Paris Belongs To Us", another French New Wave film. And Claude Chabrol was also mentioned, in a rather humorous way. A teacher calls out in the yard, "Chabrol, you need any help?". Why humourous? I think it sorta refers to Chabrol needing help with his films, lol. All in all, 400 blows was a satisfying open ended movie. I like French movies!

Also watched bits of Pulp Fiction, Resevior Dogs and Kill Bill vol. 1. I like Tarantino's style of using anime in his films. Nice!