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New York's Rendez-Vous With French Cinema · 2020

New York's Rendez-Vous With French Cinema 2020

Full line-up

Programme

22 films · 9 reviews

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Alice And The Mayor (Alice et le Maire)

The mayor of Lyon, Paul Théraneau, is in a delicate position. After 30 years in politics, he is running out of ideas... his solution is to hire a new employee, who has very different ideas to his own.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Nicolas Pariser; Writer: Nicolas Pariser; Stars: Fabrice Luchini, Anaïs Demoustier, Nora Hamzawi, Léonie Simaga, Antoine Reinartz, Maud Wyler, Alexandre Steiger, Pascal Rénéric, Thomas Rortais, Thomas Chabrol, Gwenaëlle Simon, Sébastien Autret, Fabrice Luchini, Anaïs Demoustier, Nora Hamzawi)

NYC premiere

An Easy Girl (Une fille facile)

Naima is 16 years old and lives in Cannes. While she gives herself the summer to choose what she wants to do in life, her cousin Sofi comes to spend the holidays with her. Together, they will spend an unforgettable summer.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Rebecca Zlotowski; Writer: Rebecca Zlotowski, Teddy Lussi-Modeste; Stars: Benoît Magimel, Clotilde Courau, Nuno Lopes, Zahia Dehar, Lise Lomi, Mina Farid, Cédric Appietto, Henri-Noël Tabary, Nico Max Tedeschi)

North American premiere

The Best Years Of A Life (Les Plus Belles Années D'Une Vie)

Review preview for The Best Years Of A Life

Dreams, memories and reality all intermingle to rather intoxicating effect

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
A sequel, set decades later, to Un Homme Et Une Femme.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Claude Lelouch; Writer: Claude Lelouch; Stars: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Anouk Aimée, Souad Amidou, Antoine Sire)

Full review See: Claude Lelouch in conversation on working with Anouk Aimée and Jean-Louis Trintignant, influencing Terrence Malick, not knowing the end, and his last film , Claude Lelouch, Anouk Aimée and Monica Bellucci talk The Best Years Of A Life in Cannes , Conversation with Claude Lelouch about La Bonne Année, Un Homme Et Une Femme, Un Et Une and Roman De Gare , Focus on French Cinema conversation with Claude Lelouch

NYC premiere

Burning Ghost

Juste wanders the streets of Paris looking for people only he can see. He collects their last memory before helping them into the afterlife... until one day he meets a woman who changes his perspective.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Stéphane Batut; Writer: Stéphane Batut, Christine Dory, Frédéric Videau; Stars: Thimotée Robart, Judith Chemla, Saadia Bentaïeb, Djolof Mbengue, Marie-José Kilolo Maputu, Cecilia Mangini, Babakar Bâ, Bernard Mazzinghi, Frédéric Bonpart, Antoine Chappey, Jacques Nolot, Daphne Koutsafti, Mohamed Lamouri, Jeanne Gorin, Nusch Batut)

US premiere

Cuties

Review preview for Cuties

The complex interactions between the girls are beautifully captured.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Amy, 11 years old, meets a group of dancers called "Cuties”. Fascinated, she initiates herself to a sensual dance, hoping to join their band and escape family dysfunction...

(Country: France; Year: 2020; Director: Maïmouna Doucouré; Writer: Maïmouna Doucouré; Stars: Maïmouna Gueye, Fathia Youssouf Abdillahi, Demba Diaw, Medina El Aidi, Esther Gohourou, Ilanah Cami-Goursolas, Myriam Hamma, Maïmouna Gueye, Fathia Youssouf Abdillahi, Demba Diaw, Medina El Aidi, Esther Gohourou, Ilanah Cami-Goursolas, Myriam Hamma)

Full review

NYC premiere

The Dazzled (Les éblouis)

When promising 12-year-old acrobat Camille performs in a sketch that seems to make light of prayer, the church’s leader asks her parents to withdraw her from circus training. The youngster will have to fight to retain her freedom.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Sarah Suco; Writer: Nicolas Silhol, Sarah Suco; Stars: Camille Cottin, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Éric Caravaca, Céleste Brunnquell, Laurence Roy, Daniel Martin, Spencer Bogaert, Benjamin Gauthier, Suzanne De Baecque, Armand Rayaume, Jules Dhios Francisco, Agathe Dronne, Eva Ristorcelli, Victoria Mege Bond, Sophie Mege Bond)

NYC premiere

Deerskin (Le Daim)

Review preview for Deerskin

The director proves a master of the tragicomic as he observes one man's slip from midlife crisis to madness by way of obsession.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Georges, 44, and his jacket, 100 per cent deerskin, have a plan.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Quentin Dupieux; Writer: Quentin Dupieux; Stars: Jean Dujardin, Adèle Haenel, Albert Delpy, Pierre Gommé, Laurent Nicolas, Coralie Russier, Stéphane Jobert, Franck Lebreton, Marie Bunel, Panayotis Pascot, Youssef Hajdi, Simon Thomas, Tom Hudson, Maryne Cayon, Thomas Blanchard)

Full review See: Quentin Dupieux in conversation on Deerksin

NYC premiere

Happy Birthday (Fete de famille)

Family ructions break out during a matriarch's birthday celebrations.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Cédric Kahn; Writer: Cédric Kahn; Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Emmanuelle Bercot, Vincent Macaigne, Cédric Kahn, Luàna Bajrami, Laetitia Colombani, Isabel Aimé González-Sola, Alain Artur, Joshua Rosinet, Milan Hatala, Solal Ferreira Dayan, Colin Bates, Satya Dusaugey, M. Vincent, Catherine Deneuve)

NYC premiere

Isadora's Children (Les Enfants D'Isadora)

Following the death of her two children in April 1913, the legendary dancer, Isadora Duncan, created a farewell solo entitled Mother in which, in a moment of extreme tenderness, a mother cradles her child for the last time before letting him go. A century later, four women encounter the heartrending dance.

(Country: France, South Korea; Year: 2019; Director: Damien Manivel; Writer: Damien Manivel; Stars: Agathe Bonitzer, Manon Carpentier, Julien Dieudonné, Marika Rizzi, Elsa Wolliaston, Agathe Bonitzer, Manon Carpentier, Julien Dieudonné, Marika Rizzi, Elsa Wolliaston)

North American premiere

Joan Of Arc (Jeanne)

Review preview for Joan Of Arc

The whole film adheres to the director’s credo that simple story-telling does not mean a lack of depth or subtlety, or roughness around the edges.

Richard Mowe · 3 out of 5
A sequel to The Childhood Of Joan Of Arc.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Bruno Dumont; Writer: Bruno Dumont, based on the plays by Charles Péguy; Stars: Lise Leplat Prudhomme, Jean-Francois Causeret, Daniel Dienne, Fabien Fenet, Robert Hanicotte, Yves Habert, Fabrice Luchini, Christophe)

Full review See: Joan of Arc director Bruno Dumont talks about comedy, tragedy and the soul of France

US premiere

Lullaby (Chanson Douce, Perfect Nanny)

When a mum hires a nanny, she quickly develops a relationship with the family's children leading to mutual dependence and trouble.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Lucie Borleteau; Writer: Lucie Borleteau, Jérémie Elkaïm, Leila Slimani; Stars: Leïla Bekhti, Karin Viard, Antoine Reinartz, Martine Chevallier, Leïla Bekhti, Karin Viard, Antoine Reinartz, Martine Chevallier)

NYC premiere

On A Magical Night (Chambre 212)

Review preview for On A Magical Night

Deliciously and deliberately theatrical

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
After 20 years of marriage, Maria decides to leave her husband. She moves into room 212 at the hotel across the street, with a bird’s-eye view of her apartment, her husband and the life she shared with him.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Christophe Honoré; Writer: Christophe Honoré; Stars: Carole Bouquet, Chiara Mastroianni, Camille Cottin, Vincent Lacoste, Benjamin Biolay)

Full review

NYC premiere

Papicha

Review preview for Papicha

Engages with an energetic and angry vitality as well as authenticity.

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
A student becomes determined to stage a fashion show despite religious opposition.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Mounia Meddour; Writer: Fadette Drouard, Mounia Meddour; Stars: Lyna Khoudri, Shirine Boutella, Amira Hilda Douaouda, Yasin Houicha, Zahra Manel Doumandji, Marwan Zeghbib, Aida Ghechoud, Meriem Medjkrane, Samir El Hakim, Amine Mentseur, Khaled Benaïssa, Abderrahmane Boudia, Malek Ghellamat, Lina Boudraa, Slimane Bourdous)

Full review See: Interview with Lyna Khoudri about Papicha and The French Dispatch

NYC premiere

Proxima

Review preview for Proxima

The narrative manages to balance the personal with the wider world of space exploration while dealing with the issues of domesticity and family demands and the conflicts of pursuing a demanding work arc.

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
A female astronaut finds the demands of work take their toll on her single-mum relationship with her young daughter.

(Country: France, Germany; Year: 2019; Director: Alice Winocour; Writer: Jean-Stéphane Bron, Alice Winocour; Stars: Eva Green, Zélie Boulant-Lemesle, Matt Dillon, Aleksey Fateev, Lars Eidinger, Sandra Hüller)

Full review See: Alice Winocour on Proxima and bringing the film to Glasgow

NYC premiere

School Life (La vie scolaire)

A new vice principal at a school sets about freeing the untapped potential of her students.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Mehdi Idir, Grand Corps Malade; Writer: Mehdi Idir, Grand Corps Malade; Stars: Zita Hanrot, Liam Pierron, Soufiane Guerrab, Moussa Mansaly, Alban Ivanov, Antoine Reinartz, Ibrahim 'Facher' Dramé, Moryfère Camara, Gaspard Gevin-Hié, Mahamadou Sangaré, Redouane Bougheraba, Hocine Mokando, Aboudou Sacko, Blandine Lenoir, Dylan Sanches Tavares)

North American premiere

Someone, Somewhere

Romantic comedy about two loners in Paris who might just find a connection.

(Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2019; Director: Cédric Klapisch; Writer: Santiago Amigorena, Cédric Klapisch; Stars: François Civil, Ana Girardot, Camille Cottin, François Berléand, Simon Abkarian, Eye Haidara, Rebecca Marder, Pierre Niney, Zinedine Soualem, Virginie Hocq, Paul Hamy, Marie Bunel, Patrick d'Assumçao, Garance Clavel, Vincent Scalera)

NYC premiere

South Terminal (Terminal Sud)

A doctor finds life increasingly difficult as Nineties Algeria becomes a war zone.

(Country: France, Algeria; Year: 2019; Director: Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche; Writer: Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche; Stars: Ramzy Bedia, Amel Brahim-Djelloul, Slimane Dazi, Salim Ameur-Zaïmeche, Nabil Djedouani, Nacira Guénif-Souilamas, Marie Loustalot, Grégoire Pontécaille, Zahia Rahmani, Nadja Harek, Xavier Mussel, Christian Milia-Darmezin, Djemel Barek, Jacques Nolot, Régis Laroche)

US premiere

The Specials (Hors Normes)

For twenty years, Bruno and Malik have lived in a different world — the world of autistic children and teens. In charge of two separate nonprofit organizations (The Hatch & The Shelter), they train young people from underprivileged areas to be caregivers for extreme cases.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano; Writer: Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano; Stars: Vincent Cassel, Reda Kateb, Aloïse Sauvage, Mirabela Vian, Vincent Cassel, Reda Kateb, Aloïse Sauvage, Mirabela Vian)

US premiere

Spellbound

Adaptation of Henry James' The Way It Came.

(Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Pascal Bonitzer; Writer: Pascal Bonitzer, Agnès de Sacy, based on the short story by Henry James; Stars: Sara Giraudeau, Nicolas Duvauchelle, Nicolas Maury, Anabel Lopez, Iliana Lolic, Jérôme Kircher, José Luis Gomez, Laurent Pedebernard, Josiane Balasko, Sara Giraudeau, Nicolas Duvauchelle, Nicolas Maury, Anabel Lopez, Iliana Lolic, Jérôme Kircher)

North American premiere

Spread Your Wings (Donne moi des ailes)

A sulky teenager finds himself unexpectedly involved in his father's project to train a flock of geese to take a new migration path.

(Country: France, Norway; Year: 2019; Director: Nicolas Vanier; Writer: Lilou Fogli, Lilou Fogli, Christian Moullec, Matthieu Petit, Nicolas Vanier, Nicolas Vanier; Stars: Jean-Paul Rouve, Mélanie Doutey, Louis Vazquez, Lilou Fogli, Frédéric Saurel, Grégori Baquet, Dominique Pinon, Ariane Pirié, Philippe Magnan, Cédric Meusburger, Jean-Paul Rouve, Mélanie Doutey, Louis Vazquez, Lilou Fogli, Frédéric Saurel)

US premiere

The Truth (La Verite)

Review preview for The Truth

In less sensitive hands than Kore-eda's, it could have come across as cloyingly introverted but instead there is wit and warmth in the observed relationship between the two women.

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
A reunion between a French cinema star and her daughter descends into confrontation.

(Country: France, Japan; Year: 2019; Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda; Writer: Hirokazu Kore-eda, Léa Le Dimna; Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche, Ethan Hawke, Clémentine Grenier, Manon Clavel, Jackie Berroyer, Ludivigne Sagnier.)

Full review See: Juliette Binoche on working with Catherine Deneuve on The Truth , Venice Film Festival report - The Truth, Only The Animals, Joker and more

NYC premiere

Who You Think I Am (Celle que vous croyez)

Review preview for Who You Think I Am

Nebbou judges the mood of the moment to perfection.

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
A divorced teacher creates a fake Facebook page of a much younger woman and finds herself embarked on an impossible online love affair.

(Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2019; Director: Safy Nebbou; Writer: Camille Laurens, Safy Nebbou, Julie Peyr; Stars: Juliette Binoche, Nicole Garcia, François Civil, Marie-Ange Casta, Guillaume Gouix, Charles Berling, Jules Houplain, Jules Gauzelin, Francis Leplay, Pierre Giraud, Sonia Mohammed Cherif, François Genty, Claude Perron, Noémie Kirscher-Perrel)

Full review See: Newcomer François Civil talks inspiration, secrets and working with a legend , Safy Nebbou on Who You Think I Am

US premiere