French Movies Prove to be an American Favorite

By: Emily Dauenhauer
Posted In: News

The New French Film Festival is underway and the public’s response has been overwhelming. The opening night reception welcomed around 300 movie-goers on Sunday, March 19, 2006 to view “Bon Voyage” a murder mystery set in World War II as the Germans take Paris.

“We are completely thrilled with the response by the university and the local community,” said festival committee member Dr. Katherine Lawber. “We expect attendance to maintain itself because these are such fabulous films.”

There are four movies remaining in the festival which include celebrated director Jean-Luc’s Godard’s “Notre Musique”; a daring rescue in “The Hop”; an adaptation of a classic in “La Petite Lili”; and “Le Fantome d’Henri Langlois” by the famous French film collector Jacques Richard.

Admission for the festival is free and open to the public. All students are encouraged to attend the rest of the festival or any individual movie that sparks their interest. All films are screened in French with English subtitles.

“The language difference was not a problem. For someone like me who does not speak any French, I thought the films were easy to follow and entertaining as well,” said Salve Regina junior Anne Falcetano. “The filmmakers made movies that were very fun and broke through the language barriers.”

Falcetano who came to the first two screenings said that, “The audience was very interested. There was a bit of age bias, but everyone laughed at the same parts (which bodes well for the film) and it seems as though they enjoyed their evening.”

The festival was made possible with a grant provided by the Cultural Services of the French Embassy and the French Ministry of Culture (CNC), with additional support from The Florence Gould Foundation, the Grand Marnier Foundation and the Franco-American Cultural Fund. Since 1995 the Tournees Festival has been providing grants to colleges and universities to encourage students to discover French-language films.

Special highlights provided by the grant include a closing night reception on April 4, 2006, at which director Jacques Richard will be coming from Paris to introduce his documentary, “Le Fantome D’Henri Langlois.” Afterwards, Richard will conduct a question and answer session regarding his film and other current projects.

All screenings are held in the O’Hare Academic Center at 7 p.m. For more information log onto the festivals website at: http://www.salve.edu/frenchfilm/. The schedule of remaining films are:

Thursday, March 23 at 7 p.m. – “Notre Musique”

(France, 2004) “Notre Musique” director Jean-Luc Godard produced a timeless documentary which combines poetry, journalism, and philosophy. This film explores contemporary French conflicts, war, and the legacy of the Nazis.

Tuesday, March 23 at 7 p.m. – “The Hop”

(Belgium, 2000) In “The Hop” director Dominique Stuart tells the story of a father separated from his son by immigration. By using fake terrorist threats to get police attention, director Stuart uses humor to expose the troubles of immigrant life.

Thursday, March 30 at 7 p.m. – “La Petite Lili”

(France 2003) Adapted from Anton Chekov’s classic play “The Seagull,” “La Petite Lili” directed by Claude Miller touches on passion, love triangles, seduction, and betrayal.

Tuesday, April 4 at 7 p.m. – “Le Fantome D’Henri Langlois” (Henri Langlois: The Phantom of the Cinematheque)

(France, 2004) “Le Fantome D’Henri Langlois” is the story of a visionary who co-founded the most important film archives to date. Director Jacques Richard’s movie highlights Langlois’ passion for film which ultimately changed the history of cinema.