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Anna Karina, Saddy Rebbot, André S. Labarthe, Guylaine Schlumberger, Eric Schlumberger ... see more see more... , Gérard Hoffman , Brice Parain , Monique Messine , Henri Attal , Dimitri Dineff , Odile Geoffrey , Paul Pavel , Gilles Quéant , Jean-Luc Godard , Peter Kassovitz , Laszlo Szabo

Vivre Sa Vie presents 12 episodes in the life of a young woman who turns to prostitution to pay her rent. Each episode features a theatrical scene preceded by a title that lists the characters in the ... read more read more...episode, its location, and a brief summary of the action. As he would throughout his career, director Jean-Luc Godard uses prostitution as a metaphor for both economic life in general and the position of the filmmaker under capitalism. Vivre Sa Vie stars Anna Karina, who was married to Godard at the time. Her performance was largely improvised as Godard refused to give Karina her lines until just before each scene was shot. In order to maintain the freshness of the performances, Godard rarely made more than one take of each shot. The film is shot in stunning black-and-white by Raoul Coutard. The improvised acting and fragmented story give the viewer the impression of watching a documentary about a woman's life that is also a series of essays about aesthetics and economics. In addition, the film's camera style presents a catalogue of alternatives to conventional shooting strategies. ~ Louis Schwartz, Rovi

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92% liked it

6,712 ratings

Critics

93% liked it

28 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 25 min.

Directed by: Jean-Luc Godard

Release Date: September 20, 1962

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DVD Release Date: August 11, 1998

Stats: 448 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (448)

  • SirPant
    October 24, 2011
    SirPant
    Jean-Luc Godard made some astounding films in the 60's, his impact on the New Wave in France at the time was crucial to its success and he remains to this day, a very influential and important film maker. He didn't always get it right though and for me, Vivre sa vie isn't one of ... read morehis greats. However, he did do two very important things right. Firstly, he hired Raoul Coutard to shoot the film in beautiful black and white, Paris never looked so good. Secondly, he gave his then wife, Anna Karina, the freedom (if you can call it that) of improvisation. A move that cemented her newly acquired status as the up and coming actress to look out for and also it gave her the confidence she didn't have in her earlier films. It's certainly a turning point in her career which is obvious when comparing her before and afters. Jean-Luc Godard, the epitome of love/hate.
  • kenstachnik
    August 27, 2011
    kenstachnik
    Good...it's a little out there...but then again what do you expect from a Godard movie?

    Kudos to the machine gun jump cuts and the rockin song they play on the juke box...anyone know what it is?
  • YLOWBSTARDreturns
    August 23, 2011
    YLOWBSTARDreturns
    Out of all the films by Jean-Luc Godard I've seen so far, "VIVRE SA VIE" is one of the best, and undoubtedly the most accessible. Anna Karina just radiates on screen (as per usual) and Godard gives his characters room to breathe and tones down his signature stylistic flair to ref... read morereshing effect. Some of the most interesting and witty dialogue I've heard from Godard is present here, and feels pulled from a movie made tomorrow (so ahead of it's time). I didn't care for the film's abrupt ending at all, but it was pivotal for the point Godard was trying to make about the subject of prostitution.
  • sanjurosamurai
    August 17, 2010
    sanjurosamurai
    the list of actresses that are so polarizing on screen that you cant take your eyes off of them is short, but anna karina belongs on the short list with stars like monroe, jolie, and johannson. she is mesmerizing to watch, and in this film the camera never really leaves her. th... read moree final scene is completely nonsensical, but the rest of the film leading up to it was interesting enough and the camera angles godard chooses for many of his shots adds an entire element on interest to the film. the plot and dialogue are reductively simple, but overall the film is very watchable, especially for godard or karina fans.
  • mjgildea
    November 2, 2006
    mjgildea
    I watched about 6 Godard movies in a week's time a few years ago, so they kind of blur. However I remember liking this one...
  • fb1142797643
    March 31, 2011
    fb1142797643
    This tale of a reluctant prostitute is surprisingly emotional and affecting, given the rest of Godard's catalog. Anna Karina's melancholy beauty in this role will be hard to forget. The film is also less stylistically radical than might be expected -- the main jarring elements ar... read moree the 12 scene divisions (announced with cards, silent-movie style), an oddly extended clip of "The Passion of Joan of Arc" and a rather cold, abrupt ending. Elsewhere, a prolonged conversation about the connection between thought and words is surprisingly heady, even if it somewhat shuts down the story's momentum. I was smitten with a certain snatch of melodic score that nagged throughout the film, yet was somehow compelling.
  • michaelcorleone
    January 9, 2010
    michaelcorleone
    This heartbreaking, intimately expressive piece of art graced me with one of the best theatrical experiences I'm likely to have. Instead of studying a broad political or social idea, Godard centers his story on the struggle of a single woman instead. That woman is played to perfe... read morection by the beautiful Anna Karina, whose gestures and line deliveries feel more natural than almost anything I've seen on screen. Everything that I want to see in a film is here in Godard's vision, aesthetically and thematically. A film scholar covered its importance and history in my cinematheque's pre-screening discussion, but it's the feeling driving this picture that matters to me. A masterpiece.
  • smootysveen
    May 6, 2010
    smootysveen
    A whole nother side of Godard.
  • HuskersNC949597
    March 26, 2012
    HuskersNC949597
    The most important lesson I've learned from classic French cinema is that every last goddamned woman in France is a prostitute.
  • benjaminzapata
    October 16, 2011
    benjaminzapata
    Breathtaking,fascinating 12-chapter potrait about a hapless girl in Paris who turns to prostitution,play to perfectio by Anna Karina(who was then wed to Godard),and who looks beautiful beyond words. The film seems a celluloid valentine to Karina,upon whose mere presence Godard se... read moreems to be transfixed. Close-ups of her in the film are made consciously in the tradition of Gish,Falconetti,and Louise Brook,and her dance around the billiard table is one of the greates moments in world cinema,unforgettable. And than there are those moments whe she just seems to be looking straight at you,and her conversation with real-life philosopher Brice Parain,...it's just such an amazing film,with an stunning black-and-white cinematography by Raoul Coutard,that together with Anna Karina makes for heavenly beauty. It was the discovery that Jean-Luc Godard loved Karina more in moving images than in life that may have broken their marriage later on. Truly he just can't seems to be able to take his camera-eyes from his wife,just making her immortal,eternal!

View All My Life to Live (It's My Life) (Vivre sa vie: Film en douze tableaux) Reviews

Critic Reviews

Steven Rea
November 13, 2008
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

Godard frames and edits his shots, moves the camera, uses music, and deploys his actors in ways that still seem radical -- even as several generations of directors since have cribbed and stolen from him. Full Review

Variety Staff
August 11, 2008
Variety Staff, Variety

Godard mixes titles, unusual use of sound, and long scenes of dialog. He is brilliantly served by his wife, Anna Karina, in this film. Karina gives the girl a ring of truth and depth. Full Review

Nick Pinkerton
May 27, 2008
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice

Star Anna Karina was in the brutal early rounds of marriage to her director, who was never more doting and egghead-condescending than in this showpiece. Full Review

Dave Kehr
October 24, 2007
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

This 1962 film isn't the most stimulating of Godard's early work, but it does show him beginning to pull away from traditional cutting patterns and sequence arrangement. Full Review

Bosley Crowther
May 9, 2005
Bosley Crowther, New York Times

Mr. Godard is a bold experimenter, but it's time he picked himself a stronger theme. Full Review

Roger Ebert
April 11, 2001
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

This is a great movie, and I am not surprised to find Susan Sontag describing it as 'one of the most extraordinary, beautiful, and original works of art that I know of.' Full Review

Dan Jardine
July 12, 2011
Dan Jardine, Cinemania

To Live Her Life is, to this very early point in his career, Godard's crowning achievement. Full Review

Jay Antani
August 21, 2010
Jay Antani, Cinema Writer

truly exhilarating Full Review

Corey Hall
August 12, 2010
Corey Hall, Metro Times (Detroit, MI)

Godard's ode to a hooker remains a bleak, sexy and heartbreaking work of art Full Review

Peter Canavese
May 31, 2010
Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

A fine example of Godard's experimental affronts to cinematic conventions, his exploration of the human condition, and his concern for social issues. [Blu-ray] Full Review

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