The principal rival to Les Cahiers du cinéma, Positif is a film journal founded in 1952 by Bernard Chardère. The journal has had a long and fairly prestigious run. Its critical view is often at odds with that of Les Cahiers du cinéma. It did not embrace the Nouvelle Vague or New Wave at all, for example, but rather condemned it, as may be expected from a journal that has also criticized the entire notion of the auteur. The journal is put out by a committee of unpaid writers, many of whom are filmmakers themselves. Most notable among them is Michel Ciment. The journal, in general, is defined by a strong sense of political engagement, and it has often featured critiques of films rooted almost entirely in what the critics perceive as an irresponsible social message. Many of the critics at Positifhave inherited a vision of cinema and film poetics that belongs to an older generation, such as that of Louis Delluc, to whom it once devoted an edition, and the surrealist movement, although there is a fair range to the writings presented over the history of the journal.
Historical Dictionary of French Cinema by Dayna Oscherwitz & Mary Ellen Higgins
Guide to cinema. Academic. 2011.