Alphaville

Jean-Luc Godard's Alphaville is a science-fiction film that deviates from other films in his catalogue. While the film contains the usual characteristics of a New Wave film by Godard - i.e. tracking shots that take forever, out-of-sequence shots that make no sense, and severe manipulation of sound, the premise of the film is very odd. Godard is known for coming up with some very weird stories in his films. Keeping that in mind, even this film is a stretch for him. The film is shot in modern-day France (at the time, of course) and is supposed to represent a futuristic society. Godard even uses small inferences to make reference to the present time we live during the film. Caution mentions that he drives a Ford Galaxy, - a somewhat comedic reference to both the present and to signify they are in the future.

There are hardy any shots in the film that take place during the day. The final sequence of the film shows Caution and Natasha driving away from Alphaville (in his Galaxy) on a highway at night. The overhead shooting of the scene, along with the lighting that the street lights provide, attempts to give the illusion of driving away in space. Given the time in which the film was produced, it is an effective shot for the film. As the narrative unfolds on screen, it becomes more and more difficult to take the film seriously. In Alphaville, women are treated as nothing more than sex slaves and servants for an obviously extremely male-dominated society. Even the computer that controls Alphaville, Alpha 60, has the voice of a raspy man. All of the women are branded by numbers and have a very weird tendency to say "I'm well, thank you" to men even when they are not even asked. Instead of coming off as shocking and unbelievable to us, it comes off simply as just being weird and almost comical. Granted that outside of some very intense Star Wars fans, there are not that many people when watching a sci-fi film they actually feel like that are in some alternate universe. With that being said, I do not expect to become lost into a different world when watching a film such as this. The only realistic expectation anyone can make is that we hope to be entertained somehow. Don't get me wrong, I was entertained, just not exactly in the way as Mr. Godard would have hoped.