Jerry Lewis: The comedian Jean-Luc Godard called “a painter”
As one of the key pioneers of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside the likes of François Truffaut and Agnes Varda, Jean-Luc Godard remains a towering champion of European cinema, widely praised for his unique film techniques and philosophical and social insights.
Godard’s films, including Breathless, Contempt, Band of Outsiders and Alphaville, are true artistry and provide a refreshing counterbalance to the kind of offerings of Hollywood and the Western world by pushing the boundaries of storytelling through fragmented narratives and delivering intellectual critiques of society.
As a bastion of European creativity in the cinematic medium, Godard’s fans will be surprised to learn of his love for one of the most significant names of American comedy, which feels like a far cry from his tastes. But the truth is that Godard was indeed a great fan of Jerry Lewis, the King of Comedy.
“Jerry Lewis, I’ve seen his last movie, Hardly Working, which I think has not appeared in [America],” Godard once told Dick Cavett. “To me, he is a great director. Well, he’s more a painter, maybe, than a director. He probably doesn’t ever know. He is a great continuator of Harry Langdon and Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin.”
“He’s working with space,” the director added. “He’s not working like all those so-called modern moviemakers and making fancy with the camera. He’s just interested in framing. He’s a very good framer, like a painter. He has a good sense of geometry. To be a comic, you have to be very capable in geometry.”
Lewis, actor, director, and comedian extraordinaire, left an eternal impression on global entertainment, not only in his United States home country but also in Godard’s France. Known for his slapstick humour, physical comedy, and over-the-top facial expressions, Lewis was a true hero of the comedy circuit.
As an actor, he starred in 16 musical comedy movies with his partner Dean Martin before transitioning to a solo star, performing in the likes of It’s Only Money, The Nutty Professor, The Family Jewels and later Martin Scorsese’s The King of Comedy, many of which he also took the directorial reins.
Signing off on his thoughts on Lewis, Godard noted, “Today, his last picture, Hardly Working, even the title is very honest. It’s difficult to make a good picture, and he knows. I think he should be supported, and I’m one who is a supporter. I also think he’s very funny, and when it’s not funny, it’s still very funny because that [in itself] is funny.”
