Sergei Parajanov: The director Jean-Luc Godard called “the master”
The French New Wave was one of the most significant movements in film history, emerging in the late 1950s and continuing to thrive in the 1960s. France is often considered the birthplace of cinema due to most of the medium’s earliest pioneers hailing from the country, so it is no surprise that a group of French auteurs would help redefine cinema through a string of highly influential works.
Fed up with traditional French cinema, filmmakers such as François Truffaut, Eric Rohmer, Claude Chabrol, Jacques Rivette and Jean-Luc Godard, all of whom were associated with the magazine Cahiers du cinema, decided to bend the rules. The French New Wave also included groundbreaking directors like Agnes Varda, Chris Marker and Jacques Demy, although these were considered part of the Left Bank – not working as closely with the Cahiers group.
Out of all of the French New Wave filmmakers, Godard is perhaps the best-known, responsible for the iconic 1960 movie Breathless. The director used unconventional techniques, such as handheld cameras and jumpcuts, which marked Godard out as a unique and innovative artist. He followed it with Une femme est une femme, starring his soon-to-be wife Anna Karina, whom he considered his muse.
From Vivre sa vie to Bande à part and Le Mepris, the 1960s was incredibly fruitful for Godard, who has gone on to greatly inspire everyone from Wes Anderson to Martin Scorsese and Gaspar Noé. As he found himself becoming more politically minded as the years progressed, he made many movies that promoted his beliefs in communism, many of which explored Maoism.
Whether you love or loathe Godard, who continued to make experimental movies until his death in 2022, the director innovated techniques that have shaped cinema into its current form. His desire to make movies in the first place came from a deep love of cinema, citing a wide range of filmmakers as his favourites, from Samuel Fuller to Jean Cocteau.
As outspoken as he was, Godard sometimes delivered some movie opinions that were hard to argue with. He once said, “In the temple of cinema, there are images, light, and reality. Sergei Parajanov was the master of that temple.” The Armenian filmmaker was clearly held in high regard by Godard, who often had less-than-positive things to say about his contemporaries. Parajanov was born in 1924 and faced an extremely difficult life, fighting to be able to make the projects he wanted to make.
The Soviet Union only allowed artists to create art in a social realist style that, in turn, promoted their ideal doctrine. However, Parajanov decided to break these barriers and make the Ukranian-language film Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors in 1965. Considered magical realism, the film landed Parajanov in trouble with many members of the USSR, although international critics hailed it as a masterpiece.
Throughout his career, Parajanov was frequently attacked for his cinematic projects and ‘unconventional’ lifestyle – he was bisexual – and in 1973, desperate for a reason to silence him, he was accused of rape (widely presumed to be false) and imprisoned by The USSR. Many filmmakers and actors campaigned for his freedom, including Godard, Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, Michelangelo Antonioni, and Francis Ford Coppola.
He was released four years later and continued to make films, although he is best remembered for his pre-imprisonment work The Colour of Pomegranates, an incredible take on the life of poet Sayat-Nova. Highly experimental, it has influenced countless directors, as well as providing inspiration for music videos by artists like Madonna. It is one of the most visually striking movies ever made, and it is not hard to see why Godard was such a fan.
