Hitchcock/Truffaut

Director: Kent Jones

It's hard to imagine Alfred Hitchcock's work was once dismissed as frivolous, light entertainment by the keepers of high culture. Though he had amassed an impressive body of work and contributed many of cinema's masterworks, Hitchcock's films weren't considered worthy of closer examination by the major critics of the time. But along came Cahiers du Cinema; the now famous French film periodical, whose contributors formed part of what became known as the Nouvelle Vague; Jacques Rivette, Francois Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Eric Rohmer and Claude Chabrol. The aforementioned French cinephiles--soon to become groundbreaking filmmakers--didn't share the fashionable low American regard for Hitchcock's films. Their subsequent reappraisal of Hitchcock's films helped critics, film-lovers and the industry itself reconsider the British filmmaker's cinematic contributions.
A major champion of Hitchcock's films, French New Wave director Francois Truffaut's groundbreaking book Hitchcock/Truffaut may be one of the most significant books on cinema ever. If that claim seems hyperbolic, consider Hitchcock's reputation now, and his inclusion into the great director pantheon. Truffaut himself can claim a lion's share of credit for the rehabilitation.

Truffaut's book is based on hours of interviews with the great director, which not only illuminate Hitchcock's creative process but serve as an effective companion to Truffaut's detailed film analysis, which includes frame by frame coverage that spans the director's epic career. Director Kent Jones' film details the meeting of both legendary directors that came about via a fawning letter Truffaut sent to Hitchcock outlining his plans for the interviews, which took place in Los Angeles in 1966. The book that followed and its powerful impact are discussed by numerous interviewees, which include filmmakers Wes Anderson, Olivier Assayas, David Fincher, Martin Scorcese, Richard Linklater and Paul Schrader; to name a few.
Scorsese discusses the how the book allowed his directorial peers to embrace Hitchcock's work while Wes Anderson comments on how his copy of Truffaut's book is a now a well-thumbed pile of pages. On discussing the unpretentious nature of the conversations, Paul Schrader mentions how the two directors talked about craft. The various director's incisive commentary about Hitchcock's style and camera work are a movie-lover's treat.

Jones also tells us about the two directors became life-long friends; sharing thoughts and ideas on one another's work until Hitchcock's death in 1980. It is interesting to learn that Truffaut was decades younger than his hero but died a mere 4 years after Hitchcock at the age of 52.

It seems strange that it's only now we see a film on this subject. Jones' film, like the book that inspired it, is necessary and utterly fascinating. To think that one book helped rescue a great director's creative reputation seems highly improbable. Cinephiles everywhere owe a tremendous debt to Truffaut and his French, directorial peers for their keen perception and their passion, which made a critical reassessment of Hitchcock's work possible. We also owe something to Kent Jones; a film curator for the New York Film Festival and programmer at Lincoln Center; for his wonderful documentary, that in essence celebrates two great filmmakers. In the end, it's safe to say Jones film is an appreciation of an artist who appreciated another artist.