The 400 Blows

The 400 Blows Literary Elements

Director

Francois Truffaut

Leading Actors/Actresses

Jean-Pierre Leaud, Claire Maurier, Albert Remy

Supporting Actors/Actresses

Patrick Auffay, Guy Decomble

Genre

Drama, Coming of Age

Language

French

Awards

Nominated for Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, Won Best Director at Cannes, Nominated for the Palm d'Or at Cannes

Date of Release

1959

Producer

Francois Truffaut

Setting and Context

Post World War II Paris, 1959

Narrator and Point of View

The POV is that of Antoine Doinel

Tone and Mood

Serious with elements of humor from realistic circumstances. Playful, recreating the innocence of childhood.

Protagonist and Antagonist

Protagonist is Antoine. Antagonist is Sourpuss (The French Teacher), Doinel (Antoine's stepfather), and his mother

Major Conflict

Antoine continues to run away from home, steal, and do poorly in school. The adults in his life don't know how to make him behave.

Climax

Antoine is confined to the observation center, and then runs towards freedom.

Foreshadowing

We see "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity" engraved on the walls of the school just as Antoine leaves school after believing he's been betrayed by his classmates. This foreshadows the constant betrayals—of loved ones as well as of ideals—that will occur in the film.

Understatement

Truffaut doesn't give the full details of Antoine's past until the end. All we know is that he is a troubled kid, and the director understates his parents' lack of care for him.

Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques

A part of the French New Wave, Truffaut didn't shoot in studios, only on location, and used hand-held cameras to shoot in narrow spaces and hallways, and mounted cameras to cars driving through actual streets, all of which creates a reality in film that hadn't been seen commonly. There are also very long tracking shots, unusual soundtrack choices, and experimentally composed shots throughout.

Allusions

Allusions to Balzac.

Paradox

Even when Antoine is honest and trying his best, he is punished.

Parallelism

The opening title sequence of the film is that of the Eiffel Tower, and the final shot is Antoine at the sea. They represent a journey that one must go on, a journey in search of one's dreams, love and passion as well as the freedom one obtains by setting a course towards them.