Apres mai

631 Words2 Pages

“Something in the Air”, a French film directed by Olivier Assayas, follows high school students after the May 1968 events. The film begins in 1971 and the spirit of revolt is still in the air. A group of high school students begin to take part in the revolution in Paris. The story is told from the perspective of Gilles, an aspiring artist and filmmaker, and follows the lives of himself and his friends.
The film is a coming of age story of students trying to discover themselves in a time of turmoil. Political ideology and rebellion presents things that the students must grasp. They must understand where they stand on these pressing issues in their world. The students experiment with sex, drugs, and politics throughout the film as they also transition into adults.
Coming of age, the transition from childhood to adulthood is a universal theme in all cultures and societies, whether it is a story or a ritual. With any coming of age story, teens are trying to figure out their place in the world. This is evident in each of the paths the students take after the vandalism that took place at school. The students join the movement, but people like Gilles seem to be torn between the life he wants to live, as an artist, and the revolution. It almost appears as if some of the students are simply taking part in the movement for the sake of rebelling. It comes as no surprise that this is so. Teens typically want to rebel and be a part of a movement that is bigger than them.

Students battle between understanding radical ideas such as anarchy and Marxism, and understanding their own place within the world they live.Gilles and his friends plan to vandalize their school one night as a form of protest. They are nearly captured by the security gua...

... middle of paper ...

... passion for revolution. . As they work together at school with the protests and live with each other for the summer, they begin a romantic relationship that does involve sex. Sex is viewed as a very a casual thing for the youth to during that time. It ties along with nudity throughout the film.
Nudity is viewed more as art than over sexualized. Several times throughout the film, women are topless and at one point a man is completely nude. At each of these moments, you can hear the audience gasp and make comments, this is mostly the younger audience. Compared to the United States during this time, the French youth are more liberal and free when it comes to nudity and sex. Sexuality and nudity were embraced as opposed to earlier in history. Nudity was almost a symbolic revolt of the earlier generations and their authority because they were more modest conservative.

Show More
Related

  • Baseball Saved Us Rhetorical Analysis

    1341 Words  | 3 Pages

    It deals with obstacles in life and the ways they are over come. Even if you are different, there are ways for everyone to fit in. The injustices in this book are well written to inform a large audience at many age levels. The book is also a great choice for those people who cheers for the underdogs. It served to illustrate how the simple things in life can mean everything.

    Read More

  • Higher Learning - Film Analysis

    1334 Words  | 3 Pages

    Development: The narrative follows part of these students' lives during a year at college, they are in each other's lives whether they know it or not. There are parallels drawn between them as the narrative progresses: Peace V War, Aggression V Pacifism, sides are taken and the racial lines are clear- stick to your own group like glue. How they fit in with the rest of the college population, Malik does this better than Remy and Kristen- he heads straight for the black population.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Movie Walkout

    716 Words  | 2 Pages

    This movie is based on changing the lives of Mexican Americans by making a stand and challenging the authority. Even when the cops were against them the whole time and even with the brutal beatings they received within one of the walk out, they held on. They stuck to their guns and they proved their point. The main character was threatened by the school administrators, she was told if she went through with the walkout she would be expelled. While they wanted everyone who was going to graduate to simply look the other way, the students risked it all and gave it their all to make their voices

    Read More

  • The Dalton Trumbo: An Exceptional Film

    281 Words  | 1 Pages

    An exceptional film revolving around Dalton Trumbo and many other Hollywood artists. In 1947, Dalton Trumbo and many Hollywood figures were blacklisted for their political beliefs. This film depicts the effects that the blacklist and those who enforced it had on the lives of the communist in America; particularly those in Hollywood. Trumbo gathers his fellow Hollywood writers and tries to prove to said enforcers that their beliefs are theirs alone and does not affect their ability to produce great films. This film does exactly what its set out to do; it brings you to the time when amazing writers were blacklisted for believing in something other than the norm, and fighting for their right to believe in whatever they choose.

    Read More

  • The 60s (movie)

    2037 Words  | 5 Pages

    This movie is a wonderful production starting from 1960 and ending in 1969 covering all the different things that occurred during this unbelievable decade. The movie takes place in many different areas starring two main families; a very suburban, white family who were excepting of blacks, and a very positive black family trying to push black rights in Mississippi. The movie portrayed many historical events while also including the families and how the two were intertwined. These families were very different, yet so much alike, they both portrayed what to me the whole ‘message’ of the movie was. Although everyone was so different they all faced such drastic decisions and issues that affected everyone in so many different ways. It wasn’t like one person’s pain was easier to handle than another is that’s like saying Vietnam was harder on those men than on the men that stood for black rights or vice versa, everyone faced these equally hard issues. So it seemed everyone was very emotionally involved. In fact our whole country was very involved in president elections and campaigns against the war, it seemed everyone really cared.

    Read More

  • Erotic Objectification: Equally Degrading

    969 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...noted to consist of more sexual themes than it did thirty years ago, a fact that changes the way erotic objectification can be analyzed as it can be considered to be more frequent and general but therefore also less purposely objectifying concerning the characters sex.

    Read More

  • Social Inequality In The Outsiders

    1394 Words  | 3 Pages

    Especially to teenagers who are feeling unjust and angry at the world. They think that it is unfair that they are treated like children, but are supposed to act like adults, as well as the inability of being unable to support themselves.This anguish is further multiplied by comments by not just other students, but adults as well. These comments often come in the form of taunts and actual violence, in addition to racism. Furthermore, this is further increased by the gap between the rich and the common people. All of this show the persecutions on teens as well as the social inequalities. In short, some of the reasons for persecution start with something that they were born into, such as

    Read More

  • The Latino Culture in America

    1081 Words  | 3 Pages

    The adolescent rebelled. "Speaking out is an exercise of privilege. Speaking out takes practice. Silence ensures invisibility. Silence provides protection (Montoya 282)." Graffiti tagged cracks seeped in blood, it remind the young of their battle with an invisible division. In Octavio P...

    Read More

  • A Frank Piece of Pie

    1110 Words  | 3 Pages

    A teen sex comedy is a comedy with a target audience age of about fifteen to twenty-five. It is a comedy that relates to its target audience and deals with its problems. The movie takes place in either a school or function that deals with people in this target audience. The film shows all of the aspects of this age groups life showing confrontations with sex, drugs, parties, police, parents and friends. “American Pie” is the most frank and vulgar when showing sexual tension, questions about sex and sex in general. Movies like this have been around for a while, but never one so frank and vulgar. Not every movie shows a guy chug back on semen filled beer, which they refer to as the “Pale Ale.”

    Read More

  • Mental Health Case Study

    1840 Words  | 4 Pages

    The mental health field has a long history of institutionalization, poor conditions, stigma, and involuntary treatment. Through advocacy, there have been many changes and progress to the systems put in place. However, the reduction of stigma as well as reevaluating current policies in place would help to progress the mental health field further.

    Read More

  • The Controversy Over Abortion

    473 Words  | 1 Pages

    The controversy over abortion has been going on for years. This movie portrays how the debate has changed over the decades in a befitting manner. It is about three different women who come upon having to make the choice of terminating their pregnancies. The setting takes place in the same house during the course of 40 years where a different women deals with the option of aborting her fetus. This movie shows the various reasons woman want to get abortions, each being a valid reason in a liberal point of view.

    Read More

  • Pornography and The Decline of Sexual Morality

    1175 Words  | 3 Pages

    sex scene. Even Forrest Gump, a highly acclaimed movie, had a sexual act and nudity

    Read More

  • Through the Eyes of a Teenager in A & P, A Short Story by John Updike

    1105 Words  | 3 Pages

    Teenagers often find themselves going through the motions of doing what they are told when they are told to do it. In conforming to societies norms teenagers begin to feel as if they blend in and nothing is really special about them. John Updike was able to write a coming of age story in which his main character Sammy gets shoved into adulthood rather quickly over spontaneous decision. Through Sammy’s thoughts, intense observations, and his actions we are able to see his deep depravity and his longing to stand out from the crowd.

    Read More

  • The Bible Movie

    945 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...f this film include sexual content, violence and graphic details. But, when viewing this film we have to be aware of this and only let children see this movie if the adults feel that it will not affect them in any way, such as making them feel that this behavior is appropriate or any other thing that might be in their minds.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Mental Health

    1545 Words  | 4 Pages

    Many factors contribute to the negative notion of mental illness from the stigmas associated with the illness and the lack of attention surrounding the subject. Although the previously discussed issues surrounding mental illness are very important, through my short yet intense experience as an intern at the West Oaks Outpatient Clinic, I became aware of the lack of knowledge as it relates to mental health on a micro level which then spills over to the macro level of social work, which is a social issue that is of great concern to me.

    Read More

More about Apres mai

Open Document