There are lots of jumps in the film. That's not to say the movie isn't causal. Of course, we don't know the background of the girl's upbringing and can't psychoanalyze her. But she lives in Paris, she's in the Parisian crowd, so this girl is the symptom of Paris.
What time was that in Paris, 1962, the May storm had not yet begun, this year, Lawrence of Arabia was released, the famine in China had just eased, Europe was at peace, the economy began to recover strongly, the Vietnam War continued, and the global Cold War was still severe. In 1962, Sartre was still in his prime, and Foucault was not yet popular. In 1962, Godard was still talking about the lost souls of Europeans. Of course, it's all hollow. Back to the movie itself.
We have no sympathy for this girl, nor do we admire her. As a free spirit, she is also empty. Her freedom is light and airy. She was happy and numb. This is a rational movie, the protagonist does not involve any emotions, she just lives and dies freely, that is to say, this is a happy movie, a movie without any heaviness or sadness. The protagonists don’t make us think of holy angels, tragic Cinderella, feminist fighters for freedom, or hopeless life under capitalism. What we can see is that she is dancing, living, carefree.
But this kind of carefreeness gave her a magical power, that is, she was almost like a human being, but like a soul, without the shackles of the body, she lived like this freely. Young is the soul, young, unfettered, young, not afraid of death, pain, no loneliness and anxiety, just living in the city so simply, that's all.
So this is not an existential film, this is a free spirit film. Existential characters are anxiously looking for their authenticity, but in this film, life itself is all it is. She lives very easily.
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