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Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Critic Consensus: No consensus yet.
All Critics (29) | Top Critics (8) | Fresh (27) | Rotten (2) | DVD (2)
Godard frames and edits his shots, moves the camera, uses music, and deploys his actors in ways that still seem radical -- even as several generations of directors since have cribbed and stolen from him.
Godard mixes titles, unusual use of sound, and long scenes of dialog. He is brilliantly served by his wife, Anna Karina, in this film. Karina gives the girl a ring of truth and depth.
Star Anna Karina was in the brutal early rounds of marriage to her director, who was never more doting and egghead-condescending than in this showpiece.
This 1962 film isn't the most stimulating of Godard's early work, but it does show him beginning to pull away from traditional cutting patterns and sequence arrangement.
Twelve Brechtian tableaux chronicle the life and death of a whore, starting out as a documentary on prostitution, ending as a Monogram B movie.
Mr. Godard is a bold experimenter, but it's time he picked himself a stronger theme.
"My Life to Live" has just as much social currency today as the day it was released if its gangster trope ending lets Godard off the hook all too easy.
At once severe and incandescent, rigorously distanced yet close enough to touch the lenses
To Live Her Life is, to this very early point in his career, Godard's crowning achievement.
truly exhilarating
Godard's ode to a hooker remains a bleak, sexy and heartbreaking work of art
A fine example of Godard's experimental affronts to cinematic conventions, his exploration of the human condition, and his concern for social issues. [Blu-ray]
Good...it's a little out there...but then again what do you expect from a Godard movie?Kudos to the machine gun jump cuts and the rockin song they play on the juke box...anyone know what it is?
Super Reviewer
Out of all the films by Jean-Luc Godard I've seen so far, "VIVRE SA VIE" is one of the best, and undoubtedly the most accessible. Anna Karina just radiates on screen (as per usual) and Godard gives his characters room to breathe and tones down his signature stylistic flair to refreshing effect. Some of the most interesting and witty dialogue I've heard from Godard is present here, and feels pulled from a movie made tomorrow (so ahead of it's time). I didn't care for the film's abrupt ending at all, but it was pivotal for the point Godard was trying to make about the subject of prostitution.
the list of actresses that are so polarizing on screen that you cant take your eyes off of them is short, but anna karina belongs on the short list with stars like monroe, jolie, and johannson. she is mesmerizing to watch, and in this film the camera never really leaves her. the final scene is completely nonsensical, but the rest of the film leading up to it was interesting enough and the camera angles godard chooses for many of his shots adds an entire element on interest to the film. the plot and dialogue are reductively simple, but overall the film is very watchable, especially for godard or karina fans.
I watched about 6 Godard movies in a week's time a few years ago, so they kind of blur. However I remember liking this one...
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