Brigitte Bardot and the French New Wave
How a Blonde Bombshell Triggered a Cinematic and Social Revolution
The label “New Wave” was a journalistic slogan for a sociological phenomenon occurring in post-war France, during which traditions of clothing, lifestyle, culture, and social and sexual behaviour were examined and radically changed. Blonde bombshell Brigitte Bardot was more than just a participant; she triggered change and for a short period became its icon.
The New Wave’s emphasis on challenging established conventions of authority provided a natural rally point for the youth of 1950s France. Their disillusionment in the face of a hard-working, war-tested, older generation proved fertile ground for sweeping change. In cinematic terms, the New Wave was a period of experimentation. Established conventions of filmmaking were explosively challenged: mobility of camera, natural lighting, small crews and budgets, unknown actors and modern representations of France, women and youth were some of these new practices.
While critics such as Michel Marie place the “birthdate” of the New Wave at the commercial release of Claude Chabrol’s two films, Le Beau Serge and Les Cousins in February and March of 1959 respectively (2003: p12), there were certain transitional films already exhibiting some of its defining elements. Roger Vadim’s And God Created Woman (1956) was one of these, a film which propelled to stardom a young Brigitte Bardot.
Initials B. B.
Bardot was an ideal star for such a transitional film. Her youth, naturalness and provocative sexuality offered a representation of woman that liberated female sexual desire, aggressiveness and spirituality. France’s first true mass media star, Bardot inspired a commercial, cinematic and social obsession, and her impact upon attitudes towards sexual behaviour, prescribed roles of womanhood, fashion, convention and authority was considerable.
A trained dancer and established model, Bardot’s acting career evolved from distinctly modern origins. She lacked the refined elocution and intonation of her rivals; her pouting and childlike delivery was often monotonous, and her ad-libbed ‘Bardot-isms’ and gestures mocked traditional acting methods. Her abilities were criticised by purists and defended by the avant garde. However, none could rival her screen presence. Bardot became the first French star with brand power. Her fashion icon status rose with the growing consumer power of the younger generation. Her loose dress, uncoordinated colours and tumbling mass of unkempt hair lent her a spontaneity which defied the neat ensembles of the fashion magazines.
Hunter and Prey
Bardot’s sexual aggression on screen, and promiscuity off-screen, was revolutionary, causing Simone de Beauvoir to write that she was “as much a hunter as she is prey” (1962: p30). Bardot often appeared to ‘offer’ herself to the camera, holding poses designed to enhance her figure; yet her childish innocence prevented her becoming a predator. Ginette Vincendeau writes that “she is both traditional sexual object and agent of her own sexuality” (Hill and Church Gibson, 1998: p496). Bardot’s appeal was in the tensions resulting from her successful combination of these contradictions. Unlike Marilyn Monroe’s dumb blonde, Bardot was natural, confident and real.
Despite paving the way for a sea change in feminine representations on-screen, Bardot’s super stardom proved too great for French national cinema. To the emerging New Wave directors, Bardot became, commercially at least, the epitome of the over-commercialised, mass culture they wanted to overthrow, in favour of fresh, unknown actors allowing spontaneity and unfettered direction.
The Bardot Legacy
Once her novelty and scandal had worn off, Bardot rapidly lost her appeal and the site of the cinematic revolution moved to a more moderate, sophisticated femininity. Nevertheless Bardot inspired a reactionary representation of femininity that took cinema into a new era. Meanwhile her confident sexuality and iconic, natural style ensure her continued stay among the brightest and most contradictory stars of European cinematic history.
Further reading
See Michelle Strozykowski's article on the French New Wave
References
Marie, Michel. Trans. Richard Neupert. The French New Wave: an artistic school. Oxford: Blackwell, 2003.
De Beauvoir, Simone. Brigitte Bardot and the Lolita syndrome. London: First Four, 1962.
Hill and Church Gibson, eds. Oxford Guide to Film Studies. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998
