Tonight's Wednesday night Screening is "Les Chansons D'Amour." Showtime @ 7. Tentatively being served with Cherry Clafoutis, a French dessert described as an "exquisite French classic" that apparently hails somewhere from the Limousin region. Oui Oui.
I was blessed (yes, blessed) enough to see Les Chansons D'Amour (Love Songs) at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival. Directed by one of my favorite new French directors, Christopher Honore, the film is a musical in the tradition of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. And funnily enough, this film stars Chiara Mastroainni, the daughter of Catherine Deneuve (who starred in Umbrellas). Honore is quite the auteur, in my mind. He amazed me with his perverse adaption of Georges Bataille's Ma Mere starring the incomparabale Isabelle Huppert and his second feature, Dans Paris was also an excellent little drama. Honore loves to feature Louis Garrel (son of director Philippe Garrel) and Garrel has been in all three of his films. Love Songs also stars Clotilde Hesme (The Grocer's Son) and burgeoning French It-girl, Ludivine Sagnier (Water Drops on Burning Rocks; Swimming Pool; 8 Women). Oddly enough, in Toronto '07, I caught the premiere of A Girl Cut In Two, the new Chabrol film also starring Ludivine. I must say, she was quite stunning (she didn't show up to my screening of Love Songs).
Anyhow, I don't usually champion the genre known joyously around the world as the "musical," however, I loved Love Songs. Chronicalling the menage trois-ish relationship of several Parisian twenty-somethings, the film is strange little ode to love. With excellent music and entertaining performances, the film is an exciting romp through the streets of Paris. I have attached a link for a lovely review from the San Francisco Chronicle:
No comments:
Post a Comment