This film is part of Rentals
Pierrot le Fou
Godard’s stunning, colour widescreen account of the wild journey of ‘the last romantic couple’, Pierrot (Jean-Paul Belmondo) and his lover Marianne (Anna Karina).
Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Overview
Inspired by Lionel White’s novel Obsession, and stunningly photographed in colour and ’Scope by Raoul Coutard, Godard’s tale of ‘the last romantic couple’ follows Pierrot (Belmondo) as he abandons the routine of his comfortable Paris existence for adventure on the road with lover Marianne (Karina).
By his tenth feature, Godard’s playful, postmodern style has begun to incorporate some of the more confrontational and political techniques that would categorise his post-'68 work; yet Pierrot remains one of Godard’s most accessible and fun films.
With its protagonists’ blasé attitude to violence, pop culture references and restless editing style, Pierrot le Fou established the fugitive-lovers formula further distilled by Quentin Tarantino in his 1990s thrillers True Romance and Natural Born Killers.
Ranked joint 84th in the 2022 Sight and Sound Great Films of All Time poll.
Related
Triple 9 Triple 9
Crime 2015 115 mins Director: John Hillcoat
Chiwetel Ejiofor, Casey Affleck, Kate Winslet and Woody Harrelson make up the heavyweight cast for John Hillcoat’s (The Proposition) stunning heist thriller.
Nightcrawler Nightcrawler
Crime 2014 118 mins Director: Dan Gilroy
Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a crime journalist scouring the streets of after-dark LA in a stylish thriller that examines the morals of mass media.
Mr. Holmes Mr. Holmes
Crime 2015 104 mins Director: Bill Condon
Ian McKellen plays the august detective, now a 93-year-old whose principle case is trying to unravel the mysteries of his own past.
If Beale Street Could Talk If Beale Street Could Talk
Crime 2018 119 mins Director: Barry Jenkins
Barry Jenkins follows his Oscar®-winning Moonlight with an audacious, distinctive and assured adaptation of James Baldwin’s account of love, injustice and racism in America.
The Rover The Rover
Crime 2014 103 mins Director: David Michôd
Guy Pearce and Robert Pattinson star in a post-apocalyptic thriller set in the Australian outback, from the director of Animal Kingdom.
Neds Neds
Crime 2011 124 mins Director: Peter Mullan
Peter Mullan's forceful drama about a boy who becomes embroiled in gangland life in 1970s Glasgow, peppered throughout with a rich vein of black humour.
Lady Macbeth Lady Macbeth
Period drama 2017 89 mins Director: William Oldroyd
Florence Pugh shines in this exceptional British debut of a young wife's need for freedom, whatever the cost.
Custody Custody
Drama 2016 94 mins Director: Xavier Legrand
Myriam (Drucker) has recently left husband Antoine (Ménochet). She doesn’t want her youngest, Julien (Gioria), to see a father she claims is violent. But the judge rules otherwise, and the boy becomes a pawn in a bitter parental conflict…
The Miseducation of Cameron Post The Miseducation of Cameron Post
Drama 2018 92 mins Director: Desiree Akhavan
Chloë Grace Moretz is the girl who finds her tribe with fellow ‘sinners’ at a religious camp where they are told to pray the gay away.
The Wife The Wife
Drama 2018 100 mins Director: Björn Runge
Glenn Close and Jonathan Pryce are the spouses with a secret in a tight, taut drama of ego and legacy.
First Man First Man
Drama 2018 141 mins Director: Damien Chazelle
Ryan Gosling stars as Neil Armstrong in this powerful and sometimes petrifying biopic from the director of La La Land.
Boys on Film 19: No Ordinary Boy Boys on Film 19: No Ordinary Boy
Anthology 2018 137 mins Director: Leon Lopez and Marco Alessi
The Boys on Film series reaches the end of its teenage years with another compilation celebrating male desire in all its forms.
Breathless [À bout de souffle] Breathless [À bout de souffle]
Film noir 1960 90 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard’s extraordinary debut feature, an insouciant and iconoclastic crime film that paved the way for the French New Wave.
Une femme est une femme Une femme est une femme
Drama 1961 84 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Godard’s colourful and exuberant tribute to the Hollywood musical, with Anna Karina, Jean-Paul Belmondo, and Jean-Claude Brialy.
Alphaville Alphaville
Detective drama 1965 99 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard’s venture into sci-fi pits secret agent Lemmy Caution (Eddie Constantine) on a mission to destroy the malevolent supercomputer, Alpha 60.
Une femme est une femme Une femme est une femme
Drama 1961 84 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Godard’s colourful and exuberant tribute to the Hollywood musical, with Anna Karina, Jean-Paul Belmondo, and Jean-Claude Brialy.
Breathless [À bout de souffle] Breathless [À bout de souffle]
Film noir 1960 90 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard’s extraordinary debut feature, an insouciant and iconoclastic crime film that paved the way for the French New Wave.
Le Mépris Le Mépris
Drama 1963 103 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard conducts an autopsy of love and the creative process, as a boorish film producer dismantles a seemingly strong marriage.
Alphaville Alphaville
Detective drama 1965 99 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard’s venture into sci-fi pits secret agent Lemmy Caution (Eddie Constantine) on a mission to destroy the malevolent supercomputer, Alpha 60.
Une femme est une femme Une femme est une femme
Drama 1961 84 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Godard’s colourful and exuberant tribute to the Hollywood musical, with Anna Karina, Jean-Paul Belmondo, and Jean-Claude Brialy.
Goodbye to Language Goodbye to Language
Drama 2014 70 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard’s typically innovative and playful meditation on technology, love and language was acclaimed one of the best films of 2014.
A Century of French Cinema A Century of French Cinema
Documentary 1995 50 mins Director: Anne-Marie Miéville and Jean-Luc Godard
Six regions, six films appraised for cultural and historical meaning. Produced by Jean-Luc Godard.
Timestalker Timestalker
Comedy 2024 89 mins Director: Alice Lowe
Alice Lowe's time-jumping fantasy rom-com is a colourful, darkly funny treat.
South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic
Documentary 1919 81 mins Silent Director: Frank Hurley
An extraordinary story of survival in the wastes of Antarctica.
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
The Ballymurphy Precedent The Ballymurphy Precedent
Documentary 2018 108 mins Director: Callum Macrae
John Pilger's film on the conflict in Northern Ireland is a skilful mix of investigative journalism, documentary storytelling and reflections on contemporary history.
Utopia Utopia
Documentary 2013 111 mins Director: John Pilger and Alan Lowery
John Pilger's portrayal of the oldest continuous human culture is also an investigation into a suppressed colonial past, and rapacious present.
The Coming War on China The Coming War on China
Documentary 2016 113 mins Director: John Pilger
John Pilger’s prescient 60th film for ITV is both a warning and an inspiring story of resistance.