this movie was like that last scene of a ten-year TV series, filled with flashbacks and hardly any new content. man, this was really a disappointing movie, considering how wonderful every other one was. It really left a sour taste in my mouth- i wish i hadn't seen it as to remember antoine doinel at his best (in my opinion, at baisers voles)
shareI felt exactly the same. I adore Truffaut and love the Doinel movies but this one is just one too much. There was not enough new content in it, the flashbacks felt like a cheap way to fill another Doinel movie.
shareI disagree, disco_diamond.
As the film was a "summing-up" and the drawing of a line under the Antoine Doinel saga, it justified, no necessitated, going over 'old ground' and I personally though that the flash-backs were used successfully and found it quite touching seeing them in the context of Antoine's present day situation.
I loved the Doinel series and so I'm tempted to overlook the shortcomings of this movie, but if I'm being honest with myself then I'll admit Love on the Run is a complete failure compared with the rest of the films in the series. Even Truffaut admitted this in an interview you can find on the criterion dvd. It doesn't stand alone as the others do, it can't exist on the same plane as those films. All that being said I loved the final frames. It was magical to see Antoine as he was as a carefree kid in the 400 blows juxtaposed with the man he has become.
my last complaint: the actress that played Sabine was terrible.
i think this one was pretty good too. the extensive use of flashbacks was irritating at first (say in the first half of the movie) but around the time the old friend of his mother appears and we get to Quatre Cents Coups flashbacks, i thought it got melancholic and sweet.
(i do agree though that Baisers Voles is the best, and this unlike the others would not work at all if you hadn't seen the other instalments in the series)
In a way the flashbacks show how one dimensional Antoine is, and how he hasn't changed. Yes, it is a cop-out (for the most part) in using flashbacks, but what else could there be? Would you rather have Antoine being himself, running around doing the same things, feeling the same way he did in his twenties (in the past films)? This film is more of a response to Bed and Board, than the series as a whole.
Overall you have to take it for what it is. No film in the series can touch what The 400 Blows is, that is a fact. Truffaut did say he was disappointed that he really didn't feel that there was much sense of closure for Antoine. But in a way, that is who Antoine is, and this film shows it.
I actually didn't even mind the excessive reliance on the flashbacks (although I'm sure someone not well-acquainted with the previous films in the series would have a different opinion)... there wasn't anything particularly wrong with revisiting old territory in the context of the divorce... my problem was with the direction of the "plot" itself, which entered into cartoon-ish, obnoxiously romantic territory. And Leaud's Doinel remains as irritating as ever with his continued complete disregard for the feelings of his lovers (the way he throws himself at Colette in the train was downright cringe-worthy). He simply has no redeemable value about him but, at least, the film kinda acknowledges this.
Glad to know that Truffaut recognised that this one was a failure. It doesn't even compare to his earlier, more superior Stolen Kisses and Bed & Board, which, although featured the same character, at least featured some very strong moments in the midst of its cliche-ridden stories, thanks mostly to the character of Christine.
Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose.
It was magical to see Antoine as he was as a carefree kid in the 400 blows juxtaposed with the man he has become."The man he has become"? What are you smoking? He's still the same the narcissistic, unfaithful, whiny man-child he always was. Oh, right... he "learned" some Deep Life Meaning in this final installment, one that will help him grow. Geez, give me a break.
I felt quite the opposite. I really, really liked this. I think Truffaut used the clips in a wonderfully brilliant way and during the time -- before internet -- people hadn't of course seen the scenes so many times. So they were a necessity in order to get the hang of the story line. Nonetheless, I found this movie adorable, sweet and heart-warming. It surely isn't as great as the others by Truffaut but it's a part of his magnificent production which I adore. I also loved the theme song. It ends with love but leaves a note that love will be on the run once again. But I guess it's a matter of opinion. I totally understand if some don't like this. However, I do find this film necessary for Truffaut. After all the years he spent with his alter ego he had to had a closure.
shareTruffaut can lambast this, his own film, all he wants but its one of my favourites of the films after having visited each for the first time, once a month, over the previous five. Certainly flawed but I thought it was a fitting end and it definitely bettered Bed and Board which I personally didn't care much for.
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