Along with Godard's Bout De Souffle (also made in 1959), François Truffaut's debut spearheaded the cinematic revolution of the French New Wave.
Antoine Doinel, superbly played by a young Jean-Pierre Lèaud, is unhappy in school and at home, being misunderstood by both the teachers and his parents, and so resolves to leave home and see life for himself.
Now considered to be one of the classic coming-of-age films, this portrait of Lèaud's troubled Parisian adolescence is still vibrant, visually exciting and emotionally resonant.