Two in the Wave is the story of a friendship and of a break-up. Jean-Luc Godard was born in 1930; Francois Truffaut two years later. Love of movies brings them together. They write in the same magazines, Cahiers du Cinema and Arts.
When the younger of the two becomes a filmmaker with Les 400 coups (The 400 Blows), which triumphs in Cannes in 1959, he helps his older friend shift to directing, offering him a screenplay which already has a title, A bout de souffle (Breathless). Through the 1960s the two loyally support each other.
History and politics separate them in 1968 and afterwards - when Godard plunges into radical politics but Truffaut continues his career as before. Between the two of them, the actor Jean-Pierre Léaud is torn like a child caught between two separated and warring parents. Their friendship and their break-up embody the story of French cinema.
Exploring the letters, personal archives and films of the two New Wave directors, Two in the Wave takes us back to a prodigious decade that transformed the world of cinema.
Official selection, Cannes Classics 2009
A continually fascinating documentary
Philip French, The Observer Full review
★★★★
‘Archive photographs, interviews and film clips make this a fascinating history lesson.’
Derek Malcolm, The Standard
‘The two men’s progress from firebrand critics to era-defining filmmakers is narrated with economy and elegance. Some of the newsreel footage and old movie clips are delectable…’
Sukdev Sandhu, The Daily Telegraph
‘Makes you want to spend all day doing nothing but hop from cinema to cinema’
Dave Calhoun, Time Out
★★★★
‘A treat…a fascinating biography.’
The film itself is playful… informative without ever feeling didactic… entertaining and an almost perfect introduction to the New Wave.’
‘If you've an interest in film, or film-making,…then this film is commended to you.’
Andrew Robertson, Eye for Film
Interview in Sight and Sound
Interview in Static Mass
Read Illuminations Review
Read the Financial Times article by Tobias Grey
“CRITICS’ PICK!
“Wonderful”
“ (The film) gathers newspaper clippings, newsreel footage and movie clips to assemble a present-tense essay that is both time capsule and collage... A powerful reminder of just how exciting that work remains.”
– A.O. Scott, The New York Times. Click here to read full review
“CRITICS’ PICK! This offbeat doc about their complex relationship – as artists, critics, and friends –effectively conveys the energy of that dramatic period in pop-cultural history.”
– Bilge Ebiri, New York magazine
“Wonderful early newsreel and interview footage of the budding young auteurs… Those were heady days, the stuff of future legend and
an inspiration to innumerable aspiring filmmakers for decades to come”
Todd McCarthy, Variety Click here to read full review
“Last year marked the 50th anniversary of the French New Wave…in keeping with this anniversary, director Emmanuel Laurent has produced a documentary...
”Eye-opening revelations.”
Stephen Farber, The Hollywood Reporter
“Thrilling…a meditation on two masters and their influence.”
Joe Neumajer, New York Daily News
“Kicks up a good splash. A tangy array of printed documents and archival footage. Smartly selected clips from films by Godard and Truffaut reveal surprising parallels in their work.”
– Richard Brody,
The New Yorker