For me, the two great liberators of cinema are John Cassavetes and Jean-Luc Godard. Why do I call them “liberators”? Because they both took movies from the studios to the streets. They revolutionized how we make films and demonstrated that all you need to make good cinema is a camera and the will to do so. Without Cassavetes and Godard, I don’t believe there would be a Scorsese, Coppola, Tarantino or even Spielberg.
In 1959, Shadows and Breathless were made, one in America and the other in France. Any filmmaker committed to making movies must see these. As I said before, they re-shaped the way we make movies and the way we watch them as well. It is not important whether you enjoy either of the films. If you’re a director/actor/writer or some involved deeply in some other aspect of cinema, you cannot continue to act like a regular audience member. Watch Shadows and Breathless to understand the evolution of your craft and to be inspired by some of the most dynamic independent filmmaking.
Filmbar, a great local theater in Phoenix, is hosting a screening of Breathless on Wednesday Nov. 30th at 6:30 pm. I hope that local Phoenix filmmakers will support screenings of great movies like this one and that the film community in Arizona will support Filmbar.
-TM
