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Le Petit Soldat (The Little Soldier) (1960)

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Critic Reviews: 2
Fresh: 1 | Rotten: 1

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Average Rating: 3.7/5
User Ratings: 2,315

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Movie Info

This controversial spy-romance tale by Jean-Luc Godard was banned from release in France for three years because it refers to the use of torture on both the French and Algerian sides during the Algerian struggle for independence. The story focuses on Bruno Forestier (Michel Subor), a young, disillusioned man who becomes involved in politics, yet in spite of the fact that he stands up to torture and commits murder because of this involvement, he does not have deep political beliefs. Also featured

Dec 11, 2001

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All Critics (13) | Top Critics (2) | Fresh (8) | Rotten (3) | DVD (4)

Gradually it becomes clearer that, starting with Le Petit Soldat, Godard was forging his own individualistic art and becoming the most relevant director of our time.

April 17, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | Comment
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

ubor's contemplative voice-over and Raoul Coutard's somber cinematography make this seem severe compared to the jazzy exuberance of Breathless.

April 17, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comment
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Godard's followup to Breathless is both lesser and greater than its forefather.

July 13, 2011 Full Review Source: Daily-Reviews | Comment
Daily-Reviews

Le Petit Soldat is far more confusing than Breathless, jumping in and out of scenes without letting the audience get a grasp on the narrative.

August 29, 2006 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | Comment
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Looked at in the context of Godard's later, militant work, this film's analysis is at once naive and fascinating.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

Interesting historically, much less so artistically.

July 5, 2005 Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | Comment
Filmcritic.com

A lean and witty piece of politically engaged filmmaking that combines all the drive of a thriller with Godard's own, singular, New Wave aesthetic.

May 24, 2003 Full Review Source: Film4 | Comment

Godard is most clear in showing that the Left and Right are two sides of the same coin.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | Comment
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
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Audience Reviews for Le Petit Soldat (The Little Soldier)

I much prefer Godard's early work, Le Petit Soldat being his first political film and as far as I've seen, his best. First off, it looks great, new wave at its best. There is the romance between the two leads like in Breathless and there is intrigue like in Alphaville but Le Petit Soldat is never quite as accomplished

July 8, 2011
SirPant

Super Reviewer

An early Jean-Luc Godard film that was made on a shoestring budget about a young revolutionary, Bruno, living in Geneva who is fighting against French involvement in the war in Algeria, only to run into Veronica (Anna Karina).Shot like a newsreel, much of the film is photographed with a hand-held camera, with sound

June 25, 2008
DrBenway
El Hombre Invisible

Super Reviewer

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Foreign Titles

  • The Little Soldier (Le Petit Soldat) (DE)
  • The Little Soldier (Le Petit Soldat) (UK)
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