>Back in high school I took two years of French. The first year was taught by a youngish French woman who was a little crazy, did not speak English well, and was wonderful. She still remains one of my favorite teachers. Yet, I cannot, for the life of me, remember her name; Madame something. Part way through the year she came in to class bubbling with excitement. She had just received her U.S. citizenship. I thought that was cool. As any good high school teacher will do, she would bring movies to class from time to time. French movies of course, so we could hear the language spoken properly by people other than her, and to appreciate French culture. Once she brought in Pour un Maillot Jaune, which is a documentary about the 1965 Tour de France. At the time I knew nothing of bicycle racing, so it was all strange to me. But I loved it. If you have become a fan of the Tour de France in the age of Lance, or earlier like me in the age of LeMond, then seeing something of what the tour was like in 1965 is an eye opener.

This is a great film that was innovative in its day as well. Notice the use of color to evoke various emotions. It’s also great to compare the image of cycling we have today with that of years ago.