MovieChat Forums > À bout de souffle (1961) Discussion > great film but Jean Seberg's french was ...

great film but Jean Seberg's french was like nails on a chalkboard

posted 17 years ago by mlkyusuf
50 replies | jump to latest

now before some of you complain let me just tell you that im not french and my french isnt that great, but the way that Seberg butchered the language just ruined the film in my eyes. i mean why couldnt godard have gotten an american girl who could speak french instead of one who's american accent is so thick when speaking french that it doesnt sound at all like shes speaking in french. it annoyed the hell out of me and i was wondering if anyone felt the same.

[–] ChimpCadet 17 years ago

it was more real to me the way it was made. it would have been artificial if hed cast someone who spoke better french. i think he achieved what he was trying to; he knew what he was doing.

"Don't ever listen to anyone on IMDb except ChimpCadet."

[–] beckiedbmd 17 years ago

i completely agree. i am living in france at the moment, and i imagine that i sound exactly like that! it is very realistic, i think, and that makes it great.

[–] mlkyusuf 17 years ago

"it was more real to me the way it was made. it would have been artificial if hed cast someone who spoke better french. i think he achieved what he was trying to; he knew what he was doing. " - ChimpCadet

how would it have been artificial??? she was meant to be fluent in french yet her accent was worse than that of a complete beginner. i'm not asking for him to have cast someone who spoke in a proper accent but merely someone who could have spoken french that you can understand and who doesn't detract from the whole parisian ambiance.

[–] ChimpCadet 17 years ago

i think it is perfectly plausible that she is an american who probably hasnt been living there that long, and hasnt yet got a handle on the language. it makes her seem more american. if she spoke better french, she wouldnt seem as american. the contrast serves the film.

and godard nearly made a career out of exploring the effects of American culture on the world. to me, her character is another reflection of that.

"Don't ever listen to anyone on IMDb except ChimpCadet."

[–] s0562168 17 years ago

I don't think she's supposed to be fluent, as she's always asking questions about the language - "Qu’est-ce que c’est, 'dégueulasse'?" etc.

[–] plamenix 17 years ago

Exactly! And that was a part of the point of the whole movie - she being american, he being french; she liking one thing, he liking something else; often she talks about one thing while his mind is somewhere else and vice versa; and yes, her far from perfect knowledge on french - these all express the miscommunication that exists in the modern world which was what Godard was trying to convey. A miscommunication that leads to detachment, to nihilism and ultimately to detesting life as it is...

[–] ring911 14 years ago

I just don't know how you got the impression that she was supposed to be fluent in French. Everything in the movie suggested the complete opposite.

[–] kriege10 17 years ago

He liked her in Otto Preminger's "Bonjour, Tristesse", so he put her in this movie.

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] nanalebrun 17 years ago

I do speak french, and understood the use of her accent by Godard as a way to further their distance, their disconnect...In fact, I loved hearing her rumble about in her accented french...

[–] antoinebardoz 17 years ago

I'm French, and I had no problem with understanding her. She also sounded like an American who is fluent in French, which is what she was. The only reason why it would annoy you would be if you were inexperienced with the language and therefore had trouble understanding her.

[–] thatsnumberwang 16 years ago

what im primarily trying to point out is the fact that you dont get to her level of french pronouncing words as badly and as irritatingly as she does. that just seems completely implausible to me.

I totally agree. I can't speak french as fluently as she can, but I know enough to know that her pronunciation is AWFUL! Does she not listen to the native French speakers that surround her? It takes some serious effort to be that bad. You really have to WANT IT! Oy...

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[–] 16 years ago

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[–] mlkyusuf 17 years ago

she was fluent! fluency doesnt require you to know every single word in the language. it just involves being able to speak freely with ease, which is what she did. what im primarily trying to point out is the fact that you dont get to her level of french pronouncing words as badly and as irritatingly as she does. that just seems completely implausible to me. i understand the fact that she needed to seem more american, but the accent was just overdone and he shouldve gotten someone who pronounced things better.

[–] spider_guy85 17 years ago

yeh i was slightly distracted but no way ruined the movie. it was part of her charatcer after all

[–] anuox2 17 years ago

her french is awesome, and it's really cute.. it's like listening to a beautiful russian lady speaking english.. fluent but accented, it's definitely sexy.. and with that twiggy look, i wouldn't kick her out of bed...

[–] thelilfinch 16 years ago

Lets look at this, she's a 20 year old New Yorker, although she's fluent in the language she keeps asking questions about slang and such, plus she's meant to retain her American accent. I think it suits her character well.

[–] joestank15 16 years ago

Very true. I know what Godard was going for but yes. Her "Tres" was pretty damn irritating.

House - If you're happy then I'm (runs off)

[–] frako39 16 years ago

Please be aware that Jean Seberg's French was far better than the movie showed. She lived in France, had a French husband, and was quite fluent by all accounts. Godard directed her to speak that way because that was the character. French audiences, rather than being annoyed, were absolutely charmed by it.

[–] dreamonforever1 16 years ago

although my french is only 'pigeon' french - so i can't comment on her accent - it's actually her "twiggy look" that's a less-than-exciting part of this film for me. i actually find her switches from/to american english to/from french jarring in an amusing way. i guess godard liked that "twiggy look." and, looking at this film in a historical context, that look was the flip side of "hippie girl" look that paralleled it during that decade. he (godard) probably figured the character belmondo plays would go for that look more than for what would be the hippie girl look later, or the more voluptuous look from the late 50s. seberg's pretty...just not my type. i'm okay with her accent, her look doesn't do it for me, but it has never detracted from my enjoyment of this lyrically-balanced film.

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[–] spookyrat1 9 years ago

Godard directed her to speak that way because that was the character. French audiences, rather than being annoyed, were absolutely charmed by it.

I'm sure that was the case. She was lauded and generally admired by the French critics for much of her work, unlikely, if as claimed by the OP, she couldn't speak the lingo properly.🐭

[–] leosblueblanket88 16 years ago

Well...you know how some foreigners speak English in such heavy foreign accents that it's difficult to understand what they're saying? Yeah, I think that's what she's supposed to sound like to the French. So it's really quite reasonable for her to talk that way, when you think about it...

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[–] Ron in LA 16 years ago

Glad I checked this message board because I would have totally missed that aspect of the relationship. To me, I was feeling proud of myself that I understood French so well because it was so easy to understand Seberg. Didn't sound like an American accent to me.

[–] joestank15 16 years ago

That was the point of it. She was the quintessential American. I hated her but not for that. It's kind of odd, but I loved to hate her French.

House - If you're happy then I'm (runs off)

[–] Carl_Stromberg 16 years ago

God yes, I'm with joestank and most of the other posters. It's so key to the style of the thing. Her detachment from his situation, her foreign-ness; her naivity within 'his' world, even her slightly trying kookiness. Clearly if she had mastered the language she wouldn't keep needing to ask him to define words, and we wouldn't have that great last piece of dialogue.

The accent is a little OTT, but it's great that even a non French speaker can pick up this part of her character in every line she delivers.