Compulsive vagrancy

Towards the end of the 1950s, a film movement known as the “New Wave” emerged in France. François Truffaut was one of its key founders and most influential figures. Truffaut, who entered the world of cinema with the support of French film critic André Bazin, began his career as a writer for the magazine Cahiers du cinéma. Despite being banned from the Cannes Film Festival due to his sharp criticism and occasional insults, he went on to win the Best Director award at Cannes a year later for his feature film The 400 Blows (1959). André Bazin, who saved him who always faced problems in his life, in a real sense. He is honored with “Dedicated to André Bazin” mark in first feature-length autobiographical film of the author.

“François Truffaut is the only director of the French New Wave to win an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. Additionally, ‘The 400 Blows’ was the first film shot in France using the widescreen format (2.35:1).”

François Truffaut, while committed to classical film traditions, is known for the sentimentality that pervades his stories. His film “The 400 Blows” emerges from the director’s own pain and is the first in a series of semi-autobiographical films featuring actor Jean-Pierre Léaud in all. This series includes “Love at 20” (1962), “Stolen Kisses” (1968), “Bed and board” (1970), and “Love on the Run” (1979). Each film reflects aspects of Truffaut’s life, showcasing how he transformed his personal trauma into cinematic art. It is for this reason that Truffaut’s biographical films were successful. If we look at his life, we will see that he is a self-raised person. In this film, as if he shows his bitterness towards the society, the blow he received from them. Truffaut, much like his protagonist Antoine Doinel, was raised by his grandmother and later lived with his mother and step-father. He never met his biological father and was known by his step-paternal surname. In his films, Antoine’s journey mirrors Truffaut’s own search for escape from personal difficulties, illustrating how art can provide solace and resolution.

Movies featuring child protagonists are often intended for adults.

The title “400 Blows” refers to a phrase meaning to lead a wandering life, to piddle around in some regions of France. In the film, we observe that the protagonist does not choose to be a vagrant voluntarily; rather, he is a teenager forced into this life. Antoine is not simply a mischievous adolescent but a young boy thrust into difficult circumstances, perhaps a random child “not born with love”. Despite his challenges, Antoine remains spirited, retaining his innocence, and continuing to laugh and find joy. He strives to create a better world for himself amid his struggles and search for ways for this goal. He wants more than anyone to do his part, gets better and change everything for the better. Far from being a “problematic child,” Antoine’s struggles are reflective of the broader human experience. He is no different from any of us, and all he needs is care and support. Antoine is, in fact, too good for the harsh environment he has been given. 

Throughout the film, we learn about Antoine’s lack of value within his family. He has never truly been a part of the family and is often seen as a burden, whether it’s during daily tasks or vacations. His bed and even his pyjamas underscore his marginal place in their lives. His mother shows him affection only once in the film, and even then, it is primarily for her own benefit. Antoine escapes his loveless family environment and school troubles by finding solace in a world he creates for himself.

In the film, home, school, and the correctional center – each takes him to a sin and represent environments that trap and constrain Antoine, resembling prisons more than places of refuge. The correctional center, in particular, is portrayed as a place that exacerbates rather than alleviates his problems. Early scenes, such as the teenager’s desire to escape, the little girls being placed in a framed yard, and Antoine being beaten for eating his own bread, highlight the grim realities of these institutions and provoke reflection on their failings.

Each hero of the film – parents, teachers, policemen – is angry, Antoine and his friend René are the most innocent among them. Throughout the film, we learn about Antoine’s value to his family. He has never been a member of the family and is always a hindrance when it comes to things to do and vacations to go. Her bed, even the nightgown she wears, shows her place in her family’s life. Only once in the film does his mother show him “caress”, “love”, and here also because she spends it on herself. He escapes from his loveless family environment and problems at school and finds peace in the world he created for himself. In this film, the home, the school, the correctional camp – each in itself is a place that leads to sin and resembles a prison. We see that the house of correction will not save anyone, on the contrary, some things will get worse. In the first scene, the teenager who wants to run away, the little girls in the yard being framed, Antoine being shot for eating his own bread, etc. gives reason to think about them.

Antoine runs away from everything, driven by a desire to escape the monotony and dissatisfaction that surrounds him. It is the environment that forces him to run away and drags him to “vagrancy”. He escapes from harsh teachers and uncaring parents and wends his way to freedom and infinity.

The core issue in Antoine’s life is not Antoine himself but the lack of love within his family. The only moment of familial happiness occurs after a house fire, when they go to the movies together. This brief respite highlights the mother’s yearning for happiness and suggests that the root of the family’s problems are connected to her own unfulfilled life. Family members can be happy when she wants.

The mother is portrayed as a nagging figure, perpetually dissatisfied. Even Antoine’s father, though kinder and more affectionate towards his son, seems to feel the mother’s coldness. The father’s attempts to connect and bring warmth to the family “freeze” with the mother’s detachment. It is no coincidence that the suggestion to place Antoine in an orphanage comes from his mother. Antoine’s lie about his mother’s death reflects his deep-seated wish to escape her. This word he uttered is perhaps his hidden desire in his heart. When he interacts with her, he looks up as if unable to believe in the conversation, sensing it as hollow and insincere.  

His parents, who accuse him of lying, are lying themselves. His father claims they never hit him, yet we saw him hit him at school in the previous scene. All Antoine wants is care and love, but his parents, from whom he seeks affection, are themselves “poor” in terms of love. The fact that their house is too small symbolizes that everyone living there is trapped.

The only person who brings Antoine happiness and with whom he can share his dreams and problems is his friend René. It is particularly highlighted that both children escape from their harsh reality and find solace in a dream, a fictional world—cinema. For them, movies represent their own sanctuary. Similarly, Truffaut, as a child, found his escape from harsh reality through filmmaking.

We learn about various aspects of Antoine’s life through his conversation with a psychologist while he is in the correctional center. In this scene, he confesses sincerely and without reservation. Often, we are more open with strangers than with our own family. We feel more comfortable sharing with strangers because we are sure they won’t judge us, while we do the same for others. We permit to strangers to have heart-to-hart talk with us.

At the end of the film, the hero’s journey is depicted in detail. He looks directly at the camera, and the film concludes with a freeze frame. This open-ended finale also freezes the viewer, it leaves the viewer confronted with a range of emotions, as the gaze creates a direct and unsettling encounter. These enigmatic looks are directed at the audience, with their interpretation left up to them. The gaze seems to suggest that the audience bears some responsibility for the unfolding events, implying a sense of culpability for their negligence. This moment also conveys both a sense of freedom and tension. Is the hero fleeing from us, or is he reflecting on his own life? Who is he looking at? Why did he stop? What is the significance of this moment, and what will happen next? Were they unable to capture him? These questions linger and keep the film in your thoughts. The direct address to the camera is a rare cinematic technique, carrying a unique weight and significance.

Antoine approaches the sea, a sight he has never before witnessed, perhaps seeking both the freedom and the love he has longed for. From previous scenes in the film, we know he has a deep affection for the sea and a strong desire to see it. However, there is another, more profound reason for his rush towards it. In French, the words for “mother” and “sea” are pronounced similarly. The film has explored the theme of a mother’s absence and the impact of this lack of maternal affection from the very beginning. By reaching the sea, Antoine finds both the freedom he seeks and a symbolic “mother.” The sea, with its romantic and hopeful qualities, as if it- lightens the film’s heavy atmosphere. This film is often recommended as one of the top of the must-see films for parents and educators as a powerful tool for understanding children’s psychology and their approach.

Ulviyya Ahmedova