This is a particularly interesting close-up shot from The 400 Blows. This photo is very powerful and gives you a bit of an uneasy feeling. This shot was when Antoine caught his mother kissing another man when skipping school. This shot captures this beautiful woman's thoughts. It is striking to me because she appears sneaky,  untrustworthy, and insensitive. Up until this point in the film the mother was very cold to her son and husband. This photo allows you to understand why the family had a difficult relationship at times. The mother does a lot of the blaming on her son, when in reality she is the one at fault. After she sees that her son saw her kiss this man, she tries to bribe him to get good grades. When capturing this shot, Francois Truffaut was very particular in the symbolism he wanted to evoke to  the viewers.

On another note, being a woman in 1959 was very difficult. My guess is that this woman felt trapped or unhappy in her marriage. Because it was frowned upon to divorce during this time, the woman fulfills her emptiness in others, even if it breaks morals.

The 400 Blows 

Les Quatre Cents Coups 

While viewing The 400 Blows I felt engaged. I thought this 1959 film would be a bit slow moving and hard to follow because the dialogue is French. I am happy to say I feel the complete opposite due to the story line and visual style. The film is about an adolescent boy who always seems to get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time constantly. The director, Francois Truffaut makes you feel for the boy, and wish you could help him throughout. The great thing about this film is that many of the characters are dynamic rather than static. You see their true characteristics which evokes emotions for the viewer.

The movie touches on many important issues such as education, moral values, punishment, etc. It's interesting to watch how the characters react to certain situations while still leaving you guessing. When watching, I was able to put myself in some of those situations and wonder what I would do. For example, Antoine Doniel, the boy in the film, witnesses his mother kissing a different man other than his father. He was skipping class at the time, so they were both in awkward situations they knew were wrong. If it was Antoine I would have to decide if I would tell my father or not. 

The movie has a lot of great visuals, which help you to connect with the film. This was said to be director, Francois Truffaut specialty.He uses a variety of camera angles that bring life to the film. He uses many high and low angles. An example of a low angle was when Antoine was on a carnival ride when skipping school. The camera was aimed downward on the spinning ride. This allowed you to feel like you were spinning with the ride. It was a very interesting shot. Throughout the film the camera is also shot high. Truffaut does this to show the city and the surroundings. Truffaut does an excellent job of doing closeups to show character emotion as well. The film is designed in a very aesthetic way that makes you feel involved. It is definitely a must see!