Nouvelle Vague, his heartfelt and humorous recreation of the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s classic film Breathless. Released in 1960, that film follows Michel Poiccard (played in Godard’s Breathless by Jean-Paul Belmondo and in Linklater’s by Aubry Dillon), on the run in Paris after he murders a cop. While there, he tries to convince American transplant Patricia (Jean Seaberg, played by Zoey Deutch) to run away with him, though she’s not privy to the crimes he’s committed.

Filmed over just 20 days, Breathless is a cinematic achievement of great import and Linklater documents its making with great care and attention to detail. Nouvelle Vague is, ultimately, a hangout movie about the French New Wave, one bold enough to document the making of one of the most influential films of all time, and though it struggles to justify its existence beyond the director's own fascination, it's still an entertaining film.

Nouvelle Vague Shines Thanks To Its Stars

Their Resemblance To Those Involved With Breathless Is Uncanny

Some may wonder why Linklater didn’t just remake Breathless itself, but that was already attempted once by Jim McBride and Richard Gere in 1983, and it's best to just forget about that. Instead, Linklater uses the filming of Breathless to create an ode to all the ways Godard and his cohorts changed the landscape of cinema forever. Nouvelle Vague is charming in its simplicity, with Linklater keeping the film to a tight 90 minutes, just like Breathless itself. There’s even a scene where the merits of the 90-minute movie are briefly discussed, something that'll surely resonate with those who complain about lengthy movies.

Godard, of course, must first get the band together, and we see him finagle his way into directing duties before casting Belmondo and Seaberg in their legendary roles. Still, Nouvelle Vague might be too simple for its own good, an endearing look back rather than an examination of what has come to be, most of which is simply implied through Godard's dialogue rather than through the act of creating. The director is played by Guillame Marbeck in the film, and we never see him without his iconic sunglasses, always ready with a quip about cinema and the creative process of filmmaking.

Snippets of each day of production are shown — even when nary a shot is filmed on any particular day — and it gives Linklater the chance to recreate some of Breathless’s most iconic scenes, injecting his own sense of humor into them. Watching Seaberg Belmondo, and the rest of the cast and crew become increasingly irritated with their erratic director is the primary thrust of Nouvelle Vague's dramatic tension.

Even from behind the camera, you can tell Linklater is delighted and that kind of joy is infectious...

Deutch and Dillon are uncanny as Seaberg and Belmondo, and they really get a chance to shine when Linklater gives Nouvelle Vague room to breathe. The film has whip-fast pacing, but in the rare moments when we sit with these people for longer than a few seconds, Linklater's vision truly comes to life. The centerpiece really is the filming of the hotel scene, where Michel and Patricia lounge around in bed and have conversations about love, writing, and anything else that comes to mind.

This also gives Linklater a chance to shine a light on Godard's style of filmmaking as the director and his stars hop around the tiny hotel room as if performing a dance. Even from behind the camera, you can tell Linklater is delighted and that kind of joy is infectious as the director advocates for the freedom of the artist and contemplates how the most beautiful works can be born from chaos.

Godard’s artistic process is in full view here and one of Nouvelle Vague’s most poignant scenes comes when the director is filming the final shot of Breathless, in which Patricia brushes a finger across her lips before uttering her last line. Seaberg is irritated with Godard but those around her wonder in amazement if, in pushing Seaberg to the point of exasperation, he meant for her to get to that place of beauty all along.

New Wave premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.