"I'm going to try to live my own life . . .When I'm a man, I'll return and we'll talk about everything."

Though not strictly autobiographical, this vanguard of the French New Wave is clearly inspired by the childhood of it's director. Truffaut would openly state that he owed his salvation from a youth of loneliness and dereliction to his great friend and mentor, film critic André Bazin (to whom he dedicated this film).

Truffaut released his first feature effort to a world whose social and political landscapes had been radically re-configured in the wake of World War II. Many films considered revelatory at the time grappled with society's uncertainty and the cynicism it fostered. Premiering at Cannes in 1959, The 400 Blows  didn't presume to rationalize an uncertain world, yet it sparked a movement that shook the film world to its core. What was most revolutionary about this film (its considerable technical achievements notwithstanding) was the blunt, emotional clarity of its content.

Truffaut's vision was decidedly pure. His poignant story of a juvenile delinquent is void of juvenile sentimentality, and it is one of cinema's most emotionally engaging achievements. The film candidly presents intimate pangs of unrequited, youthful longing, and it does so with an eye-level intimacy of compassion. This is a deeply personal story told by a man who, in many ways, lived it himself; yet we don't see an auteur's self-indulgence. We feel the passionate truths pouring from his heart.

essay by David Tlapek
panel discussion following the screening:  Jack Hafer, Mandy Updegraff, Doug Cummings