IMDb > À bout de souffle (1960)
À bout de souffle
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À bout de souffle (1960) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
8.0/10   18,366 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
No change in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Jean-Luc Godard
Writers:
Jean-Luc Godard (screenplay)
François Truffaut (story)
Contact:
View company contact information for Breathless on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
7 February 1961 (USA) more
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:
more
Awards:
Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 1 nomination more
NewsDesk:
(26 articles)
Tao Ruspoli's Top Ten Films of All Time
 (From ioncinema. 3 November 2009)

10 Awesome Foreign Actresses in Movies You Must See!
 (From The Movie Fanatic. 25 September 2009, 6:29 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
French New Wave for Dummies more (123 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)
Jean-Paul Belmondo ... Michel Poiccard

Jean Seberg ... Patricia Franchini
Daniel Boulanger ... Police Inspector Vital
Jean-Pierre Melville ... Parvulesco
Henri-Jacques Huet ... Antonio Berrutti
Van Doude ... Himself
Claude Mansard ... Claudius Mansard

Jean-Luc Godard ... An Informer
Richard Balducci ... Tolmatchoff
Roger Hanin ... Cal Zombach
Jean-Louis Richard ... A Journalist
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Liliane David ... Liliane
Jean Domarchi ... A Drunk
Jean Douchet ... A Journalist
Raymond Huntley ... A Journalist
André S. Labarthe ... A journalist
François Moreuil ... A journalist
Liliane Robin ... Minouche
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Breathless (UK) (subtitle) (USA)
By a Tether (UK) (informal title)
Åndeløs (Denmark) [da]
Acossado (Brazil) [pt]
Al final de la escapada (Spain) [es]
Außer Atem (Germany) (reissue title) [de]
Ausser Atem (West Germany) [de]
Do poslednjeg daha (Serbia) [sr]
Do utraty tchu (Poland) [pl]
Fino all'ultimo respiro (Italy) [it]
Katte ni shiyagare (Japan) [ja]
Kifulladásig (Hungary) [hu]
Me kommeni tin anasa (Greece) [el]
O Acossado (Portugal) [pt]
Serseri asiklar (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Sin aliento (Argentina) [es]
Till sista andetaget (Sweden) [sv]
Viimeiseen hengenvetoon (Finland) [fi]
more
Runtime:
90 min
Country:
France
Language:
French | English
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Despite reports to the contrary, Jean-Luc Godard did not shoot the film without a script; however, he did not have a finished script at the beginning, instead writing scenes in the morning and filming them that day. See also Pierrot le fou (1965). more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Michel Poiccard: After all, I'm an asshole. After all, yes, I've got to. I've got to!
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in L'héritier (1973) more

FAQ

What is the significance of Michel rubbing his lips with his thumb?
What does Michel say at the end of the movie?
Who did the movie's soundtrack? Is it available to buy?
more
122 out of 177 people found the following comment useful.
French New Wave for Dummies, 8 December 2004
9/10
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 À bout de souffle (1960)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Which director now reminds you of the early Godard? kBillysuperSounds
What's with the 'jumpy' editing? fellini812
Who could you see playing the characters today? TucoTheUgly66
This should be imdb's no.1 film! tapping_eddie
Has French new wave cinema survived in the face of Hollywood domination? steph_houston
great film but Jean Seberg's french was like nails on a chalkboard myusuf19
more

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