A friend and fellow Francophile recently sent me a link to the Jacques Dutronc music video for “Les gens sont fous, les temps sont flous” (which translates roughly as “The people are crazy, the times are vague”). Thus began an immediate obsession with the songwriter turned singer turned actor, who, in the 60s wrote hits for his then girlfriend, later wife, Françoise Hardy while at Vogue Records. He went on to become a star in his own right with his first chart-topper,“Et moi et moi et moi." Dressed to perfection in suit and tie at a time when most musicians were growing beards and donning bell-bottoms, Dutronc’s live performances were characterized by a wink and a nod to the audience, his sly, bemused expression transforming his particular brand of pop into a subtle parody of the genre itself.

It’s no surprise then, that Dutronc later went into acting, eventually starring in Jean-Luc Godard's 1980 meta-film Every Man For Himself, in which the pop star plays an filmmaker, also named Godard, who is grappling with the dissolution of his marriage. A brand new 35mm print of the film has recently been pressed and will be shown in Chicago later this week and in Vancouver at the beginning of next month. See links for dates and times: Chicago & Vancouver.

Text by Anna Wittel for Pas Un Autre