2008
Guests:
Jocelyn Quivrin - Actor in 99 Francs, Alice Taglioni - Actress, Franck Mancuso - Director of Contre-Enquête, Patrick Gimenez - Producer of Contre-Enquête,
Jean-Marie Téno - Director of Le Malentendu Colonial, Boris Van Gils - Assistant Director of CowBoy
Films:
Chats Perchés
Director : Chris Marker
Screenplay : Chris Marker
Cast : Gerard Rinaldi (Narrator)
Running time: 58 min
Distributor: First Run / Icarus
Synopsis:
This film takes the viewer meandering through Paris over the course of three years--2001 to 2004--ostensibly in search of a series of mysterious grinning cats whose stenciled image has sprung up in the most unlikely places: high atop buildings all over the city. The film begins in November 2001 in a Paris still fresh from the shock of the September 11 attacks on the U.S., and where newspaper headlines read "We are all Americans." Over the next year, in the lead-up to the Iraq war, the city's youth march in numerous demonstrations for all manner of causes as the filmmaker continues his pursuit of the mysterious cats. He finds them again, to his surprise, showing up as the emblem of the new French youth movement : "Make cats not war!" Street art is the flip side of the idealism and exuberance driving the young people marching in protests, the likes of which Paris hasn't seen since the mythic events of May 1968.
Le Malentendu Colonial
Director/Producer/Screenwriter: Jean-Marie Teno
Running time: 1hr 13min
Distributor: Les films du raphia
Synopsis:
Teno's film looks into the complexities arising from European colonialism in Africa, focusing on Namibia and Cameroon in particular. He illustrates the role of missionaries in colonization, interviewing modern historians and professors to dig to the bottom of an issue deeply rooted in African history, one that has shaped the way of life in many formerly colonized nations.
The film elucidates how much bearing the history of Africa continues to have on its present day challenges, and thus opens an important discussion about the role of religious movements in the project of imperialism and cultural transformation.
Molière
Director: Laurent Tirard
Screenplay: Laurent Tirard and Grégoire Vigneron
Cast: Romain Duris, Fabrice Luchini, Laura Morante, Edouard Baer, Ludivine Sagnier, Fanny Valette
Running time: 2h
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Synopsis:
In 1658, playwright and actor Molière is back in Paris after touring the kingdom of France with his company of players, having been given a theater in the capital by the King. One day, a young lady asks him to follow her to the deathbed of her mother, reviving a moment in the playwright’s past that would become critical to his future success. Thirteen years earlier, Molière already had a theatrical troupe but was thrown into prison for bankruptcy. His debt is covered by Monsieur Jourdain, a rich man who wants him to help him rehearse a one-act play he has written. Jourdain is married to Elmire, is the respectable father of two daughters, and he wants Molière to be introduced into the house as Tartuffe, an austere priest, instead of as a disgraced theater scribe. As a result, all manner of misunderstandings and misadventures ensue...This film is a fictional rendition of a mysterious part of Molière’s life, from which filmmaker Laurent Tirard was inspired to “orchestrat[e] an imaginary meeting between the author and its work .”
Les Amitiés Maléfiques
Director : Emmanuel Bourdieu
Screenplay : Emmanuel Bourdieu
Cast : Malik Zidi, Thibault Vinçon, Alexandre Stéger, Thomas Blanchard, Natacha Régnier, Jacques Bonnaffé
Running time: 1hr 40min
Distributor: Strand Releasing
Synopsis:
Eloi, a reserved but passionate literature student and son of a well-known writer, befriends André, a brilliant and charismatic student who vehemently criticizes his peers for their desire to write and publish. Mesmerized by André’s impressive intelligence, Eloi and his friends, Alexandre and Edouard, let André become their mentor. When André’s influence proves corrosive, the situation becomes tumultuous for all.
Ensemble c'est tout
Director: Claude Berri
Screenplay: Claude Berri (based on the novel by Anna Gavalda)
Cast: Audrey Tautou, Guillaume Canet, Laurent Stocker, Françoise Bertin
Running time: 1h37
Distributor: Pathé Distribution
Synopsis:
From master director Claude Berri (Jean de Florette) and starring two of France’s brightest young stars, Audrey Tautou and Guillaume Canet, comes an enchanting romantic fable about a collection of misfits in Paris. Without each other, Camille, Franck, Philibert and Paulette’s lives feel empty, but through one another they rediscover their passion for life and learn to face the world. Gorgeously original, full of wry humor and razor-sharp observation, Hunting & Gathering is a story of meaningful connections and the nurturing spirit of human relationships.
L'Ivresse du Pouvoir
Director : Claude Chabrol
Screenplay : Odile Barski, Claude Chabrol
Cast : Isabelle Huppert, François Berléand, Patrick Bruel, Marilyne Canto, Robin Renucci, Thomas Chabrol
Running time: 1h 50min
Distributor: Koch Lorber Films
Synopsis:
Jeanne, a magistrate, must sort out and prepare for the trial of a complex case of misappropriation and embezzlement of public funds that implicates the president of an important industrial firm. As her investigation progresses, she uncovers a web of corruption which puts her in a position of great power. With her influence growing stronger and her life becoming increasingly public, her efforts to combat corruption and unravel the truth begin to jeopardize her private life, putting stress on her relationship with her husband. Jeanne soon asks herself two questions: how powerful can she become without clashing with a power greater than her own? to what extent can human nature resist the intoxication of power? Comedy of Power is inspired by a corporate scandal that rocked France in the 1990s, exposing extensive corruption in one of its giant oil companies.
Bluff
Directors :Marc-André Lavoie & Simon Olivier Fecteau
Screenplay : Marc-André Lavoie, Simon Olivier Fecteau & David Gauthier
Cast :, Emmanuel Bilodeau, Isabelle Blais, Raymond Bouchard, Rémy Girard, David La Haye, Pierre-François Legendre, Alexis Martin, Marc Messier, Marie-Laurence Moreau, Julie Perreault, Gilbert Sicotte
Running time: 1h 28 min
Distributor: Films Séville
Synopsis:
While opening the trap door of an apartment about to be demolished, a workman makes a discovery, which predicts the tragic end of one of the several renters who have been living in that flat over the past 15 years. The stories of the renters starts here. Among them are a thief on his final job, a couple who try to find a lost painting, a stressed job-seeking young man, and a couple trying to have a child by way of a surrogate male procreator, and a brand-new boyfriend who will have to box against his stepfather at their first meeting. Only one thing ties them together: they all have something to hide, so they bluff.
99 Francs
Director : Jan Kounen
Screenplay : Bruno Lavaine, Nicolas Charlet from the book by Fredric Beigbeder
Cast : Jean Dujardin, Jocelyn Quivrin, Patrick Mille, Vahina Giocante, Elisa Tovati, Nicolas Marié
Running time: 1h40
Distributor: Pathé Distribution
Synopsis:
Octave (Jean Dujardin) rules the world: as an ad man, he decides what you will want to buy tomorrow. His personal slogan: “Man is a product like all others…”. The agency where he works with his buddy Charlie (Jocelyn Quivrin), the Ross and Witchcraf --nicknamed “la Ross”-- is a world leader. He’s got money, girls, and drugs, and dismisses these vices most of the time with a disconcerting, provocative snort. Nonetheless, doubts creep in... Two major events, at work and in his love life, will change the course of his life. Will Octave be able to escape from his gilded cage in the end?
Contre-Enquête
Director : Franck Mancuso
Screenplay : Franck Mancuso
Cast : Jean Dujardin, Laurent Lucas, Agnès Blanchot, Aurélien Recoing, Jean-Pierre Cassel , Jacques Frantz
Running time: 1h 25 min
Distributor: Pathé Distribution
Synopsis:
Malinowski, captain of a Homicide Squad, is confronted every day with the worst kinds of crimes. But when his own daughter is murdered, things take a dramatic turn. Overwhelmed by his distress, his colleagues carry out an efficient investigation, and a suspect is quickly arrested, then sentenced. From deep in his cell, the newly convicted killer claims his innocence and decides to write to Malinowski. And what if he is innocent? The doubts of a cop slowly replace the pain of a father who believed justice for his daughter had been served. For Malinowski, a solitary counter investigation begins.
Coeurs
Director : Alain Resnais
Screenplay : Alan Ayckbourn, Jean-Michel Ribes
Cast : Sabine Azéma, Lambert Wilson, André Dussolier, Pierre Arditi, Laura Monrante, Isabelle Carré
Running time: 2h
Distributor: New Yorker Films
Synopsis:
Set inside a magically snowbound Paris, six lonely souls converge and commingle in their search for lasting connections. Thierry is a real estate agent smitten with his pious assistant, Charlotte. She moonlights as a home-care attendant for the hell-raising father of widowed bartender, Lionel. Lionel works at a stylish hotel bar that is frequented by an embittered army veteran, Dan. Dan, who’s on the rocks with his frustrated fiancée Nicole, meets Gaelle, a shy young woman who lives with her brother, Thierry. A warm-hearted story about six characters longing for love in wintry Paris.
Nos Jours Heureux
Directors : Eric Toledano & Olivier Nakache
Screenplay :Eric Toledano & Olivier Nakache
Cast : Jean-Paul Rouve, Marilou Berry, Omar Sy, Lannick Gautry, Julie Fournier, Guillaume Cyr, Joséphine de Meaux
Running time: 1hr 43min
Distributor: SND
Synopsis:
Vincent Rousseau is the director of a holiday youth camp for the first time in his life. Diving into this universe, he will encounter problems both small and large, as well as the unique and exciting moments that inevitably arise when working with a horde of rambunctious adolescents. The messy atmosphere of the camp, the mercurial natures of the supervisors who work for him, and the teenagers’ behavior crowd Vincent’s days with laughter and emotion.
CowBoy
Director : Benoit Mariage
Screenplay : Benoit Mariage
Cast : Benoit Poelvoorde, Gilbert Melki, François Damien, Julie Depardieu, Bouli Lanners, Jean-Marie Barbier, Jean-Marie Grzelczyk, Christine d’Argenton, Olivier Gourmet, Philippe Nahon
Running time: 1h 36 min
Distributor: UGC
Synopsis:
Daniel Piron feels blue. His marriage is boring, his ideals have faded away… even his job as a journalist is a joke. The only idea that still excites him is to commenorate and make a film about Tony Sacchi, a revolutionary hero of his youth. Through this adventure, Daniel would like to restore the fervent and engaged young man he once was. But, alas for him, Sacchi is now a cynical gigolo… At the end of a tragic-comedic epic trip, will Daniel Piron end up by understanding that he has to accept his disillusions to finally find himself.
Lady Chatterley
Director : Pascale Ferran
Screenplay :Roger Bohbot, Pascale Ferran, adapted from John Thomas and Lady Jane, the second version of Lady Chatterley’s Lover.
Cast : Marina Hands, Jean-Louis Coulloc’h, Hippolyte Girardot, Hélène Fillières
Running time: 2hr 48min
Distributor: Kino International
Synopsis:
At the age of 23, Constance Reid marries Clifford Chatterley, an irresistible Cambridge graduate, lieutenant, and mine owner. Their honeymoon is brief. After being drafted into WWI, Clifford returns a broken man, condemned to spending the rest of his life in a wheelchair. The couple moves to the dull, rural Wragby, where Constance finds herself islolated, bored, and nostalgic for the livelier days before her marriage. It is her taciturn gamekeeper, Parkin, who awakens Lady Chatterley’s desire, one that she had never felt before. Parkin is at first hesitant to trust his mistress, bewildered as to why she would be interested a simple man such as himself.
