Cannes 2025: Linklater’s ‘Nouvelle Imprecise’ is a Zany Tribute to Godard
by Alex Billington Could 18, 2025
Linklater you mad genius! The Austin, TX-based filmmaker is again at a second movie pageant this yr together with his different film in 2025. Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon premiered on the 2025 Berlin Movie Competition earlier within the yr, and his subsequent movie Nouvelle Imprecise simply premiered on the 2025 Cannes Movie Competition. Nouvelle Imprecise is Linklater’s very first movie shot fully in French – as a result of it is a spunky tribute to the long-lasting French filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard, who handed away in 2022 at 91 years outdated. Nouvelle Imprecise, which interprets merely to New Wave in English, is concerning the French New Wave of the Nineteen Sixties. Particularly concerning the making of Godard’s first full-length movie titled Breathless (or À bout de souffle in French). Whereas making it that they had no thought if it could be any good, however the movie went on to debut on the 1960 Cannes Movie Competition after which affect cinema eternally because the defining French New Wave movie on the time. That is Linklater’s meta tribute to Breathless by recreating the making of Godard’s movie with the very same artsy B&W type as the unique.
Nouvelle Imprecise is fantastique! Filmmaking enjoyable! Inspiring and entertaining and so geeky! It is as if Linklater time traveled again to 1959 and made a documentary about Godard being a kooky madman filming all these photographs on the fly and pulling off Breathless. It is immensely satisfying in so many various methods – not solely as an train in mimicking type and as a filmmaking problem by painstakingly recreating Paris in 1959 and casting lookalikes for each single particular person concerned in cinema in France on the time. But additionally as a enjoyable take a look at how loopy (and filled with himself) Godard was and but how he one way or the other pulled off making Breathless with out writing any script and simply winging it throughout each capturing day for 20 days. He broke each rule and did not even care and but one way or the other modified cinema eternally! I imagine that Linklater is honoring and bowing right down to Godard and the bold French New Wave cinema motion, whereas additionally mocking and making enjoyable of them (in a really playful, loving manner in fact). Maybe some Godard die-hard followers will probably be bothered by this, however I discovered it laugh-out-loud humorous all through. Linklater doesn’t shrink back in exhibiting how eccentric and audacious and ridiculous he’s – it is all in there and we get to get pleasure from Monsieur Godard being a cinema prick.
A confession: I’m completely not a fan of Godard as a director and I’m additionally not a fan of the movie Breathless both. That mentioned, I can definitely respect and recognize and admire his filmmaking, and I perceive how a lot he influenced cinema. And it is fascinating to look at him engaged on Breathless, as a result of regardless that he is just about a full-on pretentious asshole all through many of the shoot, you are additionally form of questioning if being a creative genius and being an asshole actually do go hand-in-hand. In staying true to the unique movie, Linklater solid unknown first-time French actors for each single position on this movie (apart from Jean Seberg, who’s performed by already well-known American actress Zoey Deutch, additionally referencing how Serberg was already well-known on the time she agreed to star in Breathless). Guillaume Marbeck stars as Jean-Luc Godard, with Aubry Dullin as Jean-Paul Belmondo, Adrien Rouyard as François Truffaut, and Matthieu Penchinat as cinematographer Raoul Coutard (my favourite character in Linklater’s movie he is the very best). There have been occasions whereas I used to be watching Nouvelle Imprecise the place I assumed for positive Linklater is definitely attempting to point out us that this man was completely loopy. However on the finish of the day he’s paying tribute to him, reminding us filmmakers might be like this however so long as they’re nonetheless creating extremely distinctive cinema that’s what issues essentially the most…
To me, Linklater’s Nouvelle Imprecise looks like an homage to Godard but additionally a reminder that you just shouldn’t be frightened about following guidelines and doing what is anticipated if you wish to be a very progressive filmmaker. Linklater has made all types of various motion pictures of all sizes and budgets, and I’m positive he desires to remind younger filmmakers of right this moment to take dangers & make movies any manner they’ll. Simply go on the market and do it. That is the strongest inspiration inside Nouvelle Imprecise. Many critics in Cannes have additionally identified that watching this movie may encourage younger movie-lovers & budding cinephiles to get excited concerning the French New Wave, and to return and discover these movie & filmmakers. Remember about them! Get enthusiastic about this sort of cinema once more! And let that pleasure carry over to fashionable movie-making as effectively! Whether or not or not the movie has something intensely profound so as to add in addition to that, or whether or not you get pleasure from it or not – the recreation of this time in Paris and these scenes and the entire many individuals concerned in Godard’s shoot is actually superb. It is a masterful train in going again in time to pay tribute. And to point out us what it was like creating cinema within the Fifties and 60s. All that is additionally proof that Linklater actually is likely one of the BEST filmmakers of contemporary occasions.
Alex’s Cannes 2025 Score: 7.5 out of 10Comply with Alex on Twitter – @firstshowing / Or Letterboxd – @firstshowing
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