Godard's career was never accessible, but by the time he reached the 80's his inaccessibility kind of went off the deep end and he eventually got to making his strange experimental documentary mini series 'Histoire(s) du cinema', which is a study of film and it's various histories (the plural in the title comes across as rather important and is one aspect among many of this overall work that is highly unique). This is the first episode and it really shows us that Godard is not afraid to immediately disorient and potentially alienate the viewer. It's a collage of sound and film w/clips from all sorts of films and the occasional rambling, semi-philosophical narration by Godard himself, mixed in w/some footage of Godard going through a bookshelf and typing up what I gather is the script of the very work we are watching. The editing is wild, Godard not only discusses cinema but also war, Nazism, sex, communism, and it's all peppered w/playfulness and darkness in equal measure. Godard is clearly having fun with his insanely experimental approach, and it makes for what is definitely a real experience that goes above and beyond a majority of most experimental cinema even. It can be annoying, but it never fails to be fascinating, and it has compelled me quite a bit to dive into this mini-series of his and see where it takes me.
Review of Toutes les histoires
