America as Seen by a Frenchman

First of all, it’s crazy that a film of this quality is so obscure. One of the few results that come up when you google this Doc is a 2022 Harvard Film Archive screening, as part of a series on “Forgotten French New Wave Directors”. Fair Enough. The incredible restoration that I watched is only about a year old, so maybe it’s popularity will rise over time. 

Secondly, a lot of other reviews bemoan the lack of a central point, that the commentary on America wasn’t incisive enough. I couldn’t disagree more. Perhaps I have a higher threshold for ambient footage than the average person, but I found these stunningly shot vignettes of 50s American life absolutely grabbing. If we give the leeway to poetry, paintings, or photography to be evocative, beautiful, and emotionally resonant - than why should film not get that freedom without being calling “intellectually light”? (as one top review for this film says) 

Perhaps I would have felt differently had I viewed the film in 1960. But, as a viewer from the future, I appreciated the opportunity to take in these images and make sense of them myself. I think the trippy part of a documentary like this, is that it allows you to reach back into time and get a glimpse into what 1950s life in America was truly like. (Unlike watching a 50s Hollywood movie, which shows you what life in the 50s was like, through a funhouse mirror). Film can be the most powerful primary source out there - moments taken out of time and replicated for infinity. But every piece of added commentary transforms the footage from a primary to a secondary source. Suddenly you’re no longer watching a snapshot of life in the 50s, you're watching a snapshot of this specific directors opinions on life in the 50s.

First of all, it’s crazy that a film of this quality is so obscure. One of the few results that come up when you google this Doc is a 2022 Harvard Film Archive screening, as part of a series on “Forgotten French New Wave Directors”. Fair Enough. The incredible restoration that I watched is only about a year old, so maybe it’s popularity will rise over time. 

Secondly, a lot of other reviews bemoan the lack of a central point, that the commentary on America wasn’t incisive enough. I couldn’t disagree more. Perhaps I have a higher threshold for ambient footage than the average person, but I found these stunningly shot vignettes of 50s American life absolutely grabbing. If we give the leeway to poetry, paintings, or photography to be evocative, beautiful, and emotionally resonant - than why should film not get that freedom without being calling “intellectually light”? (as one top review for this film says) 

Perhaps I would have felt differently had I viewed the film in 1960. But, as a viewer from the future, I appreciated the opportunity to take in these images and make sense of them myself. I think the trippy part of a documentary like this, is that it allows you to reach back into time and get a glimpse into what 1950s life in America was truly like. (Unlike watching a 50s Hollywood movie, which shows you what life in the 50s was like, through a funhouse mirror). Film can be the most powerful primary source out there - moments taken out of time and replicated for infinity. But every piece of added commentary transforms the footage from a primary to a secondary source. Suddenly you’re no longer watching a snapshot of life in the 50s, you're watching a snapshot of this specific directors opinions on life in the 50s.