Frances Ha

Frances Ha
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Noah Baumbach
Written by	Noah Baumbach Greta Gerwig
Produced by	Noah Baumbach Scott Rudin Lila Yacoub Rodrigo Teixeira
Starring	Greta Gerwig Mickey Sumner
Cinematography	Sam Levy
Edited by	Jennifer Lame
Production companies	RT Features Pine District Pictures Scott Rudin Productions
Distributed by	IFC Films
Release dates	September 1, 2012(2012-09-01)(Telluride Film Festival) May 17, 2013(2013-05-17)(United States)
Running time	86 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3 million
Box office	$11.3 million

Frances Hais a 2012 Americanblack-and-whitecomedy-dramafilm directed byNoah Baumbach.It is written by Baumbach andGreta Gerwig,who also stars as Frances Halladay, a struggling 27-year-old dancer. The film premiered at theTelluride Film Festivalon September 1, 2012, and was given alimited theatrical releasein the United States on May 17, 2013, byIFC Films.

Plot

Frances Halladay is a 27-year-old dancer who lives inNew York Citywith her best friend from college, Sophie. Her life is upended when Sophie tells her she plans to relocate fromBrooklyntoTribeca,which Sophie considers her dream neighborhood, with a different friend. Frances, a struggling would-be dancer working as an apprentice at a dance company, is unable to afford the Brooklyn apartment alone and is forced to find someplace else to live.

She moves toChinatownand shares an apartment with her friends Lev and Benji for a brief period. Sophie and Frances's relationship struggles as Sophie and her boyfriend, Patch, grow closer. Frances learns that the dance company does not need her to work their Christmas show, which means Frances can no longer afford the apartment. She visits her hometown ofSacramentoforChristmaswhere she sees her family and reconnects with high school friends.

Rachel, a fellow dancer in the company, lets Frances stay with her for a few weeks. During dinner with Rachel's family, Frances discovers that Sophie has quit her job atRandom Houseand is moving toTokyowith Patch. Frances, on a whim, decides to spend an uneventful couple of days inParisthat she pays for with a credit card. She returns toVassar,heralma mater,to work as a waitress and summerresident assistant.Overworked and not allowed to take classes, Frances reads Sophie's blog of her life in Tokyo.

One night, Sophie and Patch are at an alumni auction where Frances is waitressing. Frances learns they are engaged and sees the couple get into a fight. She lets a drunk Sophie stay with her in the dorm room she's been given, where Sophie reveals that she suffered amiscarriagewhile in Japan and is unhappy in her relationship. Sophie goes back to New York City the next morning, leaving a note for Frances. Some time later, Frances returns toWashington HeightsinManhattan.

Frances eventually reconciles with Sophie and enjoys a modest but satisfying existence as a fledgling choreographer, teaching dance to young children, and as abookkeeperfor her former dance company. She rents her own apartment. Upon moving in, Frances writes her name down onto a slip of paper in order to mark her new mailbox. Her full last name does not fit, so she folds the paper to read: "Frances Ha".

Cast

• Greta Gerwigas Frances Halladay
• Mickey Sumneras Sophie Levee
• Adam Driveras Lev Shapiro
• Michael Zegenas Benji
• Patrick Heusingeras Reade "Patch" Krause
• Michael Esperas Dan
• Charlotte d'Amboiseas Colleen
• Grace Gummeras Rachel
• Josh Hamiltonas Andy
• Maya Kazanas Caroline
• Justine Lupeas Nessa
• Britta Phillipsas Nadia
• Juliet Rylanceas Janelle
• Dean Warehamas Spencer

Production

Frances Hawas directed byNoah Baumbach,and written by Baumbach and Greta Gerwig. Gerwig, who also stars in the film, announced it in April 2012, though Baumbach's involvement was not revealed until the film's listing in theTelluride Film Festival's lineup. Gerwig had starred in Baumbach's 2010 filmGreenberg,and they decided to collaborate again.They exchanged ideas, developed characters and eventually co-wrote the script. Gerwig has said that she did not anticipate starring in the film as well, but Baumbach thought she suited the part. Filming locations includedNew York City,Sacramento,Parisand atVassar Collegein Poughkeepsie, Baumbach's alma mater.

Gerwig citedJoseph Conrad's novellaThe Shadow LineandWoody Allen's filmAnnie Hall(1977) as inspirations for the film. Baumbach and Gerwig also have cited the films of theFrench New WaveandWoody Allenas influences, as well asSomething Wild(1986) andLost in America(1985) which they watched during the production.

In the bonus features on the home-video release, the filmmakers said that the film was shot in the style ofFrench New Wavecinema, with the tools of a student filmmaker. Even though the production had both the budget for and access to professional-levelcinema camerasand lenses, they chose to use theCanon EOS 5D Mark II,a consumer-grade photographic camera that can recordhigh-definition video.Instead of adapting professional cinema lenses, as other cinematographers have done when working with that camera, they used Canon L-series EFprimeandzoom lensesdesigned for still photography. They mostly used a50mm prime lensand a70–200mm zoom lens,rarely employing35mmand85mmprime lenses because they lacked the mechanics and features common amongcinema lenses(when paired with the camera’s largefull-framesensor, they make it difficult tomaintain focus). By using a very small camera and extremely limited lighting equipment, the production could quickly and easily move locations without attracting much attention. Without large crews, elaborate sets, and special visual effects, the production could afford to shoot around the world on a fairly limited budget.

Soundtrack

Main article:Frances Ha (soundtrack)

The filmmakers included a number of pop songs in the film, including "Every 1's a Winner"byHot Chocolate,"Blue Sway"byPaul McCartney,"Chrome Sitar" byT.Rex,and "Modern Love"byDavid Bowie."Modern Love" is featured in a scene inFrances Hathat is a remake of a sequence inLeos Carax'sMauvais Sang,whereDenis Lavantruns through the streets.

The soundtrack includes a song byFelix Labandand references multiple French films; it contains music byGeorges Delerue,Jean ConstantinandAntoine Duhamel,who originally wrote for films of theFrench New Wave.

Release

Frances Hapremieredat theTelluride Film Festivalon September 1, 2012.TheLos Angeles Timessaid "audiences seemed pleasantly surprised by the warmth from the often-mordant Baumbach."The film also screened at theToronto International Film Festivalon September 7, 2012,after whichIFC Filmsacquired North- and Latin-American rights to distribute the film in theaters.Frances Haalso screened at theNew York Film Festivalon September 30, 2012,and at theEdinburgh International Film Festivalin June 2013.

The film had alimited releasein theUnited Stateson May 17, 2013,and was released on Blu-ray and DVD on theCriterion Collectionlabel on November 12, 2013.

Reception

Critical response

Thereview aggregation websiteRotten TomatoesgivesFrances Haa 93% approval rating based on 186 reviews, with anaveragescore of 7.80/10. The website's critical consensus is: "Audiences will need to tolerate a certain amount of narrative drift, but thanks to sensitive direction from Noah Baumbach and an endearing performance from Greta Gerwig,Frances Hamakes it easy to forgive. "Metacriticcalculated an average score of 82 out of 100 based on 35 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

Stephanie ZacharekofThe Village Voicepraised Gerwig's performance, writing, "It's a relief thatFrances Haisn't as assertively frank, in the 'Look, ma, no shame!' way, asGirls.And this is partly Gerwig's vision, too. No other movie has allowed her to display her colors like this. Frances is a little dizzy and frequently maddening, but Gerwig is precise in delineating the character's loopiness: Her lines always hit just behind the beat, like a jazz drummer who pretends to flub yet knows exactly what's up ".

Peter Debruge, reviewing forVariety,describedFrances Ha:"This modest monochromatic lark doesn't present a story—or even a traditional sequence of scenes—so much as it offers spirited glimpses into the never-predictable life of Frances, a 27-year-old dancer." He said Frances was "a character whose unexceptional concerns and everyday foibles prove as compelling as any New York-set concept picture, delivering an affectionate, stylishly black-and-white portrait of a still-unfledged Gotham gal".Sarah Galo ofMicalso noted thatFrances Ha“is really quite daring in its portrayal of female friendship. Frances and Sophie go through the motions of being BFFs to breaking up to being reunited in the end.”

TheLos Angeles Timeshighlighted Gerwig's foray as part of a trend of female actors becoming writers or co-writers; other examples includeZoe KazanwithRuby SparksandRashida JoneswithCeleste and Jesse Forever.Baumbach filmedFrances Hawith his cinematographer Sam Levy digitally and inblack-and-white,the latter to emulate, in part, collaborations byWoody Allenand his cinematographerGordon Willis,in films likeManhattan(1979).CBS NewscomparedFrances Ha's style to the works ofWoody Allen,Jim JarmuschandFrançois Truffaut.

Accolades

Year	Category	Nominee	Result	Ref.
Golden Globe Awards	Best Actress – Comedy or Musical	Greta Gerwig	Nominated
Independent Spirit Awards	Best Feature	Frances Ha	Nominated
	Best Editing	Jennifer Lame	Nominated
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards	Best Actress in a Comedy	Greta Gerwig	Nominated
British Independent Film Awards	Best International Independent Film	Frances Ha	Nominated
London Film Critics Circle Film Awards	Film of the Year	Frances Ha	Nominated
	Actress of the Year	Greta Gerwig	Nominated
	Technical Achievement of the Year	Sam Levy	Nominated
Toronto Film Critics Association Awards	Best Actress	Greta Gerwig	2nd Runner-up
Casting Society of America	Casting - Low Budget Feature	Douglas Aibel Henry Russell Bergstein	Nominated
IndieWire Critics Poll	Best Film	Frances Ha	10th Place
	Best Lead Performance	Greta Gerwig	Nominated
	Best Screenplay	Noah Baumbach Greta Gerwig	Nominated
Central Ohio Film Critics Association	Best Picture	Frances Ha	Nominated
	Best Actress	Greta Gerwig	Nominated
Bodil Awards	Best American Film	Frances Ha	Nominated
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival	Audience Award	Noah Baumbach	3rd place
Vancouver Film Critics Circle	Best Actress	Greta Gerwig	Nominated

See also

• List of black-and-white films produced since 1966

External links

• Official website
• Frances HaatIMDb
• Frances HaatAllMovie
• Frances HaatBox Office Mojo
• Frances HaatMetacritic
• Frances HaatRotten Tomatoes
• Frances Ha: The Green Girl– an essay byAnnie BakeratThe Criterion Collection