Sauve qui peut (la vie) [Every Man for Himself] (1980)
(On Cable TV, June 2022) In the grand overall view of Jean-Luc Godard’s filmography, 1980’s Sauve qui peut (la vie) is often regarded as his return to more conventional filmmaking after the more political and unpalatable films of the late 1960s and 1970s. This doesn’t mean a completely traditional viewing experience, though, as the film plays with three characters’ perspectives, a musical theme, some filmmaking flourishes and an obstinate refusal to hold the hand of its viewers. Plus: a focus on prostitution (always a Godard favourite) and a relentlessly downbeat finale that doesn’t exactly land hard when the rest of the film is so uninvolving. Isabelle Huppert offers a bit of starpower, but the biggest star on display remains Godard, as he gets back to a certain narrative cinema while losing none of his iconoclastic quirks, even when it’s not in the service of the viewers. Some will like it and many more won’t, but as far as I’m concerned, Sauve qui peut (la vie) is more interesting as landmark in Godard’s filmography than pleasant to watch.