Students of French, if your instructor permits Language Center credit for viewing movies, then be sure to check out one of the many French-language DVD's available in R-403. Movies offer a window into a culture's soul, as well as giving you an opportunity to hear French as it is spoken in its "native habitat". Here's a sample of some of the selections available, check them out in full in the Language Center:
First up: Entre les murs (The Class):
In an inventive adaptation of his novel about his experiences working in one of the roughest neighborhoods in Paris, François Bégaudeau stars as a replica of himself -- a passionate French teacher who presides over a classroom of diverse young minds. Not your standard drama or documentary but something in between, this Oscar-nominated film used three cameras during a largely improvisational shoot and features real students rather than actors.
First up: Entre les murs (The Class):
In an inventive adaptation of his novel about his experiences working in one of the roughest neighborhoods in Paris, François Bégaudeau stars as a replica of himself -- a passionate French teacher who presides over a classroom of diverse young minds. Not your standard drama or documentary but something in between, this Oscar-nominated film used three cameras during a largely improvisational shoot and features real students rather than actors.
Next comes a comedic farce: La Placard (The Closet):
A milquetoast accountant (Daniel Auteuil) is about to get fired from his job for literally being a bore. But at the last minute, a helpful neighbor (Michel Aumont) concocts a "new life" for him as an out-of-the-closet (read: intriguing) homosexual, and suddenly everything changes. Gérard Depardieu co-stars as a homophobic officemate who might be masking a few feelings of his own in writer-director Francis Veber's foreign language comedy.
Last but not least, here's a psychological thriller:
Caché
(Hidden):
Winner of the Cannes Best Director Award, Michael Haneke's psychological thriller centers on wealthy French couple Georges (Daniel Auteuil) and Anne (Juliette Binoche), who begin receiving threatening videotapes and phone calls that threaten to ruin their relationship. Georges realizes who the perpetrator is but refuses to tell Anne. Yet childhood flashbacks reveal the mystery, a story that illuminates France's damaged relations with Algeria.
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