What do you think?
Rate this book
Godard on Godard: Critical Writings
Jean-Luc Godard, like many of his European contemporaries, came to filmmaking through film criticism. This collection of essays and interviews, ranging from his early efforts for La Gazette du Cinéma to his later writings for Cahiers du Cinéma, reflects his dazzling intelligence, biting wit, maddening judgments, and complete unpredictability. In writing about Hitchcock, Welles, Bergman, Truffaut, Bresson, and Renoir, Godard is also writing about himself—his own experiments, obsessions, and discoveries. This book offers evidence that he may be even more original as a thinker about film than as a director. Covering the period of 1950�1967, the years of Breathless, A Woman Is a Woman, My Life to Live, Alphaville, La Chinoise, and Weekend, this book of writings is an important document and a fascinating study of a vital stage in Godard’s career. With commentary by Tom Milne and Richard Roud, and an extensive new foreword by Annette Michelson that reassesses Godard in light of his later films, here is an outrageous self-portrait by a director who, even now, continues to amaze and bedevil, and to chart new directions for cinema and for critical thought about its history.
300 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
67 people are currently reading
3,157 people want to read
About the author
Jean-Luc Godard
99books251followersJean-Luc Godard is a French and Swiss filmmaker and one of the founding members of the Nouvelle Vague, or "French New Wave".
Godard was born to Franco-Swiss parents in Paris. He attended school in Nyon, Switzerland, and at the Lycée Rohmer, and the Sorbonne in Paris. During his time at the Sorbonne, he became involved with the young group of filmmakers and film theorists that gave birth to the New Wave.
Many of Godard's films challenged the conventions of Hollywood cinema, and he was often considered the most extreme New Wave filmmaker. His films often expressed his political ideologies as well as his knowledge of film history. In addition, Godards' films often cited existential and Marxist philosophy.
Godard was born to Franco-Swiss parents in Paris. He attended school in Nyon, Switzerland, and at the Lycée Rohmer, and the Sorbonne in Paris. During his time at the Sorbonne, he became involved with the young group of filmmakers and film theorists that gave birth to the New Wave.
Many of Godard's films challenged the conventions of Hollywood cinema, and he was often considered the most extreme New Wave filmmaker. His films often expressed his political ideologies as well as his knowledge of film history. In addition, Godards' films often cited existential and Marxist philosophy.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
July 16, 2019
Godard on Godard is just that, a reflective assortment of pieces, a bit of manifesto, a great deal of analysis and a brilliant homage. The Thanks to Henri Langlois is an especially moving tribute to the his friend and great archivist. The timeline concerns his work at Cahiers before his spectacular debut. Critical pieces, dazzling as he probes. These taper off and are replaced by interviews and then other incidental musings. The interviews are grounded yet speculative. Godard admits often that he has a "taste for quotation." Thus a description of a frame can reference Balzac, Turner and Howard Hawks. It is what he does. I can relate. I love him. Humane people don't start revolutions, they start libraries. And cemeteries. That line is from Notre Musique (one of my favorite films of his), the final phrase is uttered by Juan Goytisolo. We have all been alerted to JLG's warts, his biases but he's an artist and he's humane.
September 9, 2007
If you are going to get one book on Jean Luc Godard, then it has to be this one. Godard is a poet posing as a film critic. I wished that there were more people who love their subject matter as Godard. What's missing today is passion, and now I find a lot of people are pretending to have passion.
So to remind me of 'real' passion I read Godard's little film reviews and commentary.
So to remind me of 'real' passion I read Godard's little film reviews and commentary.
December 22, 2018
Made up of Godard’s film reviews and articles for Cahiers du Cinema starting in 1950, this is a mostly interesting collection.
The reviews are the most interesting parts and you will find yourself noting down titles for films based on Godard’s recommendations. He has an interesting way of describing a film, and for the most part he does a great job of selling you his ideas.
The other interesting sections are essays and notes by Godard on his own films. These are what I was most interested in when I picked up this book, but honestly they don’t reveal much and in the later sections say very little.
The last quarter of the book has more essays and articles by Godard, as well as interviews with him, and they tend to be more on the ranting and indecipherable side. Think Godard’s essay films. While these are somewhat disappointing for how little they say, at least the extensive footnotes allow for some context.
Overall this is worth picking up for the reviews, and Godard’s Films of the Year which are included from 1956-1965.
The reviews are the most interesting parts and you will find yourself noting down titles for films based on Godard’s recommendations. He has an interesting way of describing a film, and for the most part he does a great job of selling you his ideas.
The other interesting sections are essays and notes by Godard on his own films. These are what I was most interested in when I picked up this book, but honestly they don’t reveal much and in the later sections say very little.
The last quarter of the book has more essays and articles by Godard, as well as interviews with him, and they tend to be more on the ranting and indecipherable side. Think Godard’s essay films. While these are somewhat disappointing for how little they say, at least the extensive footnotes allow for some context.
Overall this is worth picking up for the reviews, and Godard’s Films of the Year which are included from 1956-1965.
September 16, 2022
'I improvise, certainly, but with material which goes a long way back. Over the years you accumulate things and then suddenly you use them in what you're doing. My first shorts were prepared very carefully and shot very quickly. A Bout de Souffle began this way. I had written the first scene (Jean Seberg on the Champs-Élysées), and for the rest I had a pile of notes for each scene. I said to myself, this is terrible. I stopped everything. Then I thought: in a single day, if one knows how to go about it, one should be able to complete a dozen takes. Only instead of planning ahead, I shall invent at the last minute.'
May 20, 2021
We are in a new shift, and it would behoove the critic-historian-cinéastes of the streaming era to revisit what JLG � the ultimate mad lad of ciné � had on the crazy quilt of his mind. I reject him, I embrace him, we cannibalize and so on.
December 15, 2020
måtte skippe mange af hans anmeldelser/essays om specifikke film for ikke at spoile mig selv, men stadig let at fordybe sig i 😌
May 4, 2025
Godard doesn't write anything longer than a few pages, so moments of profundity are few and far between, but still so damn fun(/ny). Always going to be excited to look into The Best to Do It.
November 3, 2024
Reading this book constantly reminded me of Godard's documentary Historie(s) du Cinema. It is there that I discovered Godard as a film critic for the first time. And it's thanks to that documentary that I came to discover this book - a compilation of his critical writing.
The book is like a testament of his deep knowledge of film and literature. I cannot imagine how much time I will need to get to know all the movies and directors he enlists or references in this book. That's probably the best part of this book, that I will continue opening it to find new (and old) names and to look at them in a different light.
The book is like a testament of his deep knowledge of film and literature. I cannot imagine how much time I will need to get to know all the movies and directors he enlists or references in this book. That's probably the best part of this book, that I will continue opening it to find new (and old) names and to look at them in a different light.
Read
August 22, 2023I enjoyed Vivre Sa Vie. My eyes have scanned the wikipedia page dedicated to Jean-Luc Godard. He’s been mentioned and cited in other books I’ve read. This is where my context stops and lays down. I’m a newbie to Godard, not only as a filmmaker, but as a person in general. You may wonder why I would even choose to pick up Godard on Godard, in that case. I chose it due to intrigue and curiosity. As I’ve mentioned countless times in previous reviews, I take pleasure in learning new things from new writers, and over the last year or two this pleasure has led me to purposefully seek out writings from new minds on various topics. Merely the act of learning is an excitement. My understanding of cinema is quite niche, in that I enjoy underground works of an obscurest nature, and I have very little background knowledge in French and 1950s/60s cinema. This therefore felt like a new pie to sink my teeth into - and that’s exactly what happened.
The book is split into various sections, with a chronological layout of Godard’s writings and articles, starting with his early texts and moving into his criticism pieces, followed by rumination on cinema in general, with the structure of this being in the form of interviews taking place between Godard and Cahiers du Cinéma (the magazine he wrote for on a number of occasions). We are warned within the introduction from Tom Milne (the book’s editor) that we will notice Godard’s rawness in his early work. This is totally evident, however I found it to be a positive addition to the book, as we see the genius of Godard as he grows into his art choices and he becomes more convicted and focused in his opinions and his way of thinking.
Despite my rudimentary understanding of Godard, I can say that I come away from his writing with a closer awareness and connectivity to the principles of prose, poetry, and writing in general, with Godard and his outlook on these subjects providing deep navigation for this. Godard is, in his language and critique, completely ingrained with a passion for art, and every word contains a truth that modern criticism and commentary simply does not hold. Whether this natural passion comes from the time in which these writings were thought up, or whether it’s simply the brain of Godard at play (I lean towards the latter), it makes for instant captivation. As the reader sits in the room with Godard while he muses upon his art and the directional choices he takes, influence seeps upon Godard’s guest.
The longest interview in the book - which spans some 25 pages - felt like a dip in the attention grabbing aspects that I’ve just praised. I doubt this dip will taint the experience for the majority of those who pick up this collection, as a reader is bound to enter with a foundational understanding of Godard and his films; I, however, did not. My very new and basic knowledge of Godard and his work, as highlighted at the top of this review, has almost certainly impacted my feelings on this hefty portion of the publication. Technicality is where I stumbled. While there were nuggets of interest that could be mined from the interview, the more technical writing was lost on me. Blame lies solely at my feet here, as it is to be expected that a filmmaker would go into prolonged detail about making films.
A particular highlight follows immediately after this slight dip, with Godard’s response to the many criticisms levelled at Les Carabiniers, his drama/comedy release of 1963. While technical speak is evident here, as with the Cahiers interview, and maybe even more so than that, it feels well placed for the piece of text. Godard’s responses of explanation are direct and honest, allowing us to see the more human elements of the icon as the artists is backed into multiple corners. I would not describe Godard’s language here as accepting of the barrage of critique he received for Les Carabiniers, and I believe that he made a conscious choice to elucidate on criticism in a technical and detailed manner, in order to bubble wrap himself from the critical eyes upon him. Still, my critique of his reason to explain himself does not take away from the total enjoyment I took from reading his honesty as he boxes his way out of a tight spot.
I would recommend anyone interested in cinema to pick this book up, you’re bound to find genius in its pages. If you have little to no interest in cinema, you’ll still cut diamonds from the genius of Jean-Luc Godard’s mind.
The book is split into various sections, with a chronological layout of Godard’s writings and articles, starting with his early texts and moving into his criticism pieces, followed by rumination on cinema in general, with the structure of this being in the form of interviews taking place between Godard and Cahiers du Cinéma (the magazine he wrote for on a number of occasions). We are warned within the introduction from Tom Milne (the book’s editor) that we will notice Godard’s rawness in his early work. This is totally evident, however I found it to be a positive addition to the book, as we see the genius of Godard as he grows into his art choices and he becomes more convicted and focused in his opinions and his way of thinking.
Despite my rudimentary understanding of Godard, I can say that I come away from his writing with a closer awareness and connectivity to the principles of prose, poetry, and writing in general, with Godard and his outlook on these subjects providing deep navigation for this. Godard is, in his language and critique, completely ingrained with a passion for art, and every word contains a truth that modern criticism and commentary simply does not hold. Whether this natural passion comes from the time in which these writings were thought up, or whether it’s simply the brain of Godard at play (I lean towards the latter), it makes for instant captivation. As the reader sits in the room with Godard while he muses upon his art and the directional choices he takes, influence seeps upon Godard’s guest.
The longest interview in the book - which spans some 25 pages - felt like a dip in the attention grabbing aspects that I’ve just praised. I doubt this dip will taint the experience for the majority of those who pick up this collection, as a reader is bound to enter with a foundational understanding of Godard and his films; I, however, did not. My very new and basic knowledge of Godard and his work, as highlighted at the top of this review, has almost certainly impacted my feelings on this hefty portion of the publication. Technicality is where I stumbled. While there were nuggets of interest that could be mined from the interview, the more technical writing was lost on me. Blame lies solely at my feet here, as it is to be expected that a filmmaker would go into prolonged detail about making films.
A particular highlight follows immediately after this slight dip, with Godard’s response to the many criticisms levelled at Les Carabiniers, his drama/comedy release of 1963. While technical speak is evident here, as with the Cahiers interview, and maybe even more so than that, it feels well placed for the piece of text. Godard’s responses of explanation are direct and honest, allowing us to see the more human elements of the icon as the artists is backed into multiple corners. I would not describe Godard’s language here as accepting of the barrage of critique he received for Les Carabiniers, and I believe that he made a conscious choice to elucidate on criticism in a technical and detailed manner, in order to bubble wrap himself from the critical eyes upon him. Still, my critique of his reason to explain himself does not take away from the total enjoyment I took from reading his honesty as he boxes his way out of a tight spot.
I would recommend anyone interested in cinema to pick this book up, you’re bound to find genius in its pages. If you have little to no interest in cinema, you’ll still cut diamonds from the genius of Jean-Luc Godard’s mind.
January 2, 2011
Välillä tätä lukiessa tulee fiilis, että Godard on parempi kirjoittamaan kritiikkiä kuin ohjaamaan elokuvia, ihan yhtä taidokasta tulitusta. Harmittaa, etten osaa ranskaa niin hyvin, että kykenisin lukemaan alkuperäiskielellä, voin kuvitella mitä sanataidetta tekstit silloin on. Pohjaa vie vähän se, että kritisoiduista elokuvista vain murto-osan olen itse nähnyt. Teos, johon pitää palata myöhemmin.
October 9, 2007
گودار یکی از پیشروان سینمای فرانسه در نیمه ی دوم قرن بیستم میلادی ست. نام او یکی از شاخص های فهرست سینمای مولف است و سینمایش در چند دهه پیروان و علاقمندان بسیار داشت. شاید برخی ها گودار را در فیلم هایش خشک و بی روح ببینند و بخوانند. تصور می کنم اگر فیلم نامه یا نوشته ی او را پیش از دیدن فیلم بخوانید، بیشتر به یک آدم احساساتی و سخت معتقد بر می خورید.
June 15, 2012
It definitely changed and re-shaped my perspective on writing prose, poetry, commentary, etc.
April 1, 2009
One of my favorite books about film. I re-read it all the time.
Read
July 16, 2024Jean Luc Godard, the Great French Director, Scenarist, Writer, explains everything about the story of his cinema life since his youth, on his writings on the cinema, his films, his observations on the French cinema history, in his book: "Godard on Godard". Jean Luc Godard says in his book: "I wrote in Chairs du Cinema about ten years every month, on the new films from the world, ten years later when I began to make films I was very relax, I was ready to make films, like my friends in the New Wave, Resnais, Truffaut, Chabrol, others, we directed films very easily! Because writing on the cinema was like film directing for me, I used my keyboard like a camera, I was directing my films on the paper, writing was directing films on the pelicule". Jean Luc Godard's very rich film adventure, his very strong - charismatically- filmography, in his book, can be followed by the sentences, the pages of Jean Luc Godard. Jean Luc Godard doesn't see a contradiction between his writing passion on the cinema and his making films which reflects his passion for the cinema, Godard loved both his two works, writing on the cinema, then, directing, making films. Jean Luc Godard writes on the New Wave of French Cinema very objectively, although he was one of the New Wave Cinema Directors, Godard's rationalism on the cinema can be seen in his book: "Godard on Godard".
December 31, 2018
Godard's criticism and film scripts are, of course, one of a kind.
Though there are passionate conversations in the later periods, such as the one between him and J-P Beauviala, there should have been more material bridging les années Mao and les années 80 and vidéos. We glide from Tout va bien to Sauve qui peut in a few pages, with relatively little coverage of his années télé. I'd have also liked more interviews from mainstream media, where the dialogue typically tends to be less mystifying (though perhaps less fertile too). Single-minded (and frustrating) in its belief that Godard's own words are the only channels into his mind and life.
Great photos.
Though there are passionate conversations in the later periods, such as the one between him and J-P Beauviala, there should have been more material bridging les années Mao and les années 80 and vidéos. We glide from Tout va bien to Sauve qui peut in a few pages, with relatively little coverage of his années télé. I'd have also liked more interviews from mainstream media, where the dialogue typically tends to be less mystifying (though perhaps less fertile too). Single-minded (and frustrating) in its belief that Godard's own words are the only channels into his mind and life.
Great photos.
March 5, 2024
Consuming art made by men often requires a decent tolerance for dogmatic grouchiness, but for whatever reason I have a little less patience for Godard’s than for, say, Steve Albini’s. That made the first half of this tough going, but as the essays are organized chronologically, I appreciated the way his combativeness lessens a bit over time, even if his certitude doesn’t. The later essays don’t showcase humility by any stretch, but certainly give a better sense of an artist who thinks deeply and obsessively about his art form. They’re fascinating to read in parallel to the films, too, even though his commentary is too abstract to really serve as a direct explication of anything.
October 13, 2022
Excellent when read in conjunction with Richard Brody’s “Everything is Cinema.� Godard’s most insightful texts are located within the Marginal Notes While Filming chapter, which contains two long-form interviews (among other texts) with Godard that illustrate his wide-ranging and eclectic stances on theories of cinema, histories of cinema, and futures of cinema. That chapter is worth the price of admission alone, but the earlier chapters are full of occasional kernels of filmic knowledge interesting in their own right (but certainly more meaningful when placed in context alongside Brody).
April 1, 2018
Found this at a used bookstore. Weekend is on the cover. This is a compilation of film criticisms and interviews from Godard. The great himself speaks. And it is indeed great. The best and deepest film criticism I have ever read. And as an aspiring filmmaker, I picked up so much about filmmaking from it.
May 13, 2022
Godard’s early polemical criticism is much more joyful to read than his petulant responses to criticism once he begins to exist primarily behind the lens � but I’ll forever appreciate a spirit moving toward the Tashlinesque.
September 14, 2022
In light of Godard’s passing, I believe this book to be necessary for cinephiles. Godard’s writing was, and continues to be, both entertaining and insightful. While the highfalutin language and endless historical references are an obstacle, your perseverance will be rewarded.
September 4, 2022
Life isnt a godard film 😝😟
February 1, 2023
I learned quite a lot about cinema and about Godard, but it was a painful and torturous way to learn.
June 20, 2023
Explosive ! Riveting ! Magnificent !
May 9, 2024
Yeah, that tracks.
July 15, 2024
lots of good film criticism and interesting interviews collected in this one
PDF:
PDF:
Read
August 8, 2024Fraud on Fraud
January 6, 2025
Less Godard on Godard and more Godard on films. Still excellent.
February 2, 2025
It’s like a magazine about reviews of films, not a book
February 13, 2025
Family Video Store� is committed towards a diversity goal of 50% of all hired employees, contractors, or day laborers representing Minority Persons and/or Women.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.