François Truffaut’s first feature, The 400 Blows (Les quatre cents coups), is also his most personal. Told through the eyes of Truffaut’s life-long cinematic counterpart, Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), The 400 Blowssensitively re-creates the trials of Truffaut’s own difficult childhood, unsentimentally portraying aloof parents, oppressive teachers, petty crime, and a friendship that would last a lifetime. The film marks Truffaut’s passage from leading critic of the French New Wave to his emergence as one of Europe’s most brilliant auteurs.

• 1 hr 40 min
• Directed by

  Francois Truffaut

• Starring

  Guy Decomble

  ,

  Claire Maurier

  ,

  Jean Pierre Léaud

  ,

  Monsieur Doinel

  ,

  Patrick Auffay

  ,

  Georges Charlot

  ,

  Marcel Moussy