Jean-Luc Godard's self-portrait film is a humorous and melancholy reflection on the state of cinema and the world. It is not an autobiography -Godard does not recount the story of his life, but he uses the film to present himself the way a painter would in a self-portrait. Instead of presenting a retrospective of his career, Godard refers to his earlier films in the images of JLG/JLG. As in many of Godard's later films, the dialogue and voice-over are unattributed quotations from works of literature, science, and philosophy. Godard cuts and pastes these quotations into passages on art, film, and politics. JLG/JLG was shot in and around Godard's house in Lausanne along the border of France and Switzerland. The region's wintry lake and forests, so familiar to fans of Godard's work in the 90s, provide a beautiful setting for the film's episodes.
by Louis Schwartz
synopsis
