Rent Vagabond (1985)

Classic of Cinema History - Vagabond review by CP Customer

Vagabond is a fascinating film in every way. The direction, the narrative and the acting all combine to produce a timeless work of art.

It is interesting to imagine how this tale of a young female drifter would play out today, and to speculate how much has changed over the last 30+ years since Varda made the movie. It was made when society was moving towards a harsher time, with the new dominance of neoliberal capitalism. The film shows elements of a kinder, more tolerant world along with the nastier developments.

Mona's character and presence is an important moment for feminism in art. She challenges many of the people she encounters, and she challenges us as well. Her fate (which we know from the start) kept reminding me of the Richard Thompson song "Beeswing": "...maybe that's the price you pay for the chains that you refuse".

Well worth watching the extras too: the short film about the soundtrack music; and the wonderful little piece about the old lady.

Less a vagabond more a vagrant - Vagabond review by Promessi

Unpleasant young woman drifts around sleeping rough and smelling dreadful. She never has a word of gratitude for those who help her nor does she ever do a single thing which is not for self self self. You could suggest that the other characters project their needs and failings onto her, or that they construct fantasies about her soi disant freedom, but really, I couldn't be bothered. It isn't well acted either.

Raw, Poetic and Quietly Devastating. - Vagabond review by griggs

Vagabond opens with the lifeless body of a young woman lying in a ditch. From there, Agnès Varda unspools her final weeks in fragments—through strangers’ memories, passing encounters, and a shifting sense of truth. It’s raw, poetic, and quietly devastating.

 Mona, played with brutal honesty by Sandrine Bonnaire, is a drifter. One woman remarks, “She’s got character. She knows what she wants.” For much of the film, that seems spot on. Mona is defiant, free, and almost untouchable in her disdain for convention. She crashes through fields and lives with equal disregard. Women admire her for it—see in her a freedom they’ve denied themselves. Men, meanwhile, either try to dominate her or push her away, frightened by her refusal to play nice.

 But the strength we see starts to crack. Her pride weakens. Her smile fades. Independence isn’t enough when the world refuses to make room for you. Mona exists on the fringes—present but always peripheral.

 It’s a quietly shattering watch. Varda captures not just a life but the space a person leaves behind. There is no sentimentality, no false redemption—just the harsh poetry of a life unravelled. This is Varda at her most potent, weaving rage, empathy, and beauty into something unforgettable.