Just as the critically and financially successful A Bout de Souffle was a tribute to gangster films, A Woman is a Woman is Godard's homage to the American Musical. The film tells of the story of the beautiful stripper Angela who wants to have a baby above all else. Her lover Emile is reluctant and tries to postpone this idea. To get rid of her, he jokingly suggests that Angela should spend a night with his best friend Alfred. Alfred, in the meantime, confesses his love for Angela. Eventually Angela will follow Emile's suggestion, joke becoming reality, with misunderstandings, jealousy and arguments ensuing. Still, Angela gets her wish. The film is simple but multi-layered. As with all of Godard's films, this film is also filled with references, insinuations and jokes. The character played by Jean-Paul Belmondo states that he's "in a hurry because" he "doesn't want to miss Godard's A Bout de Souffle" (the film that made Jean-Paul Belmondo a star.) In one scene Alfred asks Jeanne Moreau, "How is Jules and Jim going?", Moreau answers "Moderato"; Jules and Jim is the name of Truffaut's film, which was then being shot, in which Moreau was the leading actress. And Moderato is an insinuation to Moderato Cantabile, which Peter Brook directed in 1960 with Moreau and Belmondo. Alfred's last name is Lubitsch, reminding us of the famous director Ernst Lubitsch. "Emile" is the name of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's novel. In Godard's second feature, jump cuts and highly original sound editing is used, the best example being the Angela's stripping scene. A Woman is a Woman is a colourful, fast and energetic film that contains many really funny moments. As Emile says in the film, one cannot be certain whether this is a comedy or a tragedy, the only thing certain is that it is a work of genius. Ertan Yılmaz
