Posted in Film on November 20, 2021| 2 Comments »
Browsing in an English charity shop, I came across ‘Mississippi Mermaid’, a film from the 60s by Francois Truffault. It tells the story of a bachelor in la Reunion played by Jean-Paul Belmondo. Lonely, he advertises for a prospective marriage partner and eagerly rushes to greet the Mississippi, the boat bringing her to the island. Enter Catherine Deneuve.
The pair find themselves travelling to France, where they decide to stay in Aix! (more…)
Posted in Film on May 29, 2021| Leave a Comment »
I read that there’s an avalanche of around 250 films ready to pour forth into French cinemas after they have been dark for so long; so a chance now to catch up with Oscar winners and nominees.
‘Nomadland’ which won three Oscars including best film has its premier on 6th June at 16.20 at the Renoir before being on general release from the 9th.
Also on show ‘Promising Young Woman’ and ‘The Father’.
Check them out: https://www.lescinemasaixois.com/films/alaffiche
Posted in Event, Film, News on May 18, 2021| 1 Comment »
Great cover there Télérama! And welcome back to all who are finally opening doors tomorrow. I know there have been big sighs of relief at Aix’s cinemas. Here’s their programme:
https://www.lescinemasaixois.com/
Posted in Film on May 8, 2021| Leave a Comment »
It’s sometimes difficult to find a suitable French film to watch so I was delighted to stumble across
One of the 65 films free to stream on this website
https://frenchflicks.com/home.html which is a guide to over 1000 French films available for streaming on Netflix, Amazon, TV5 Monde, You Tube etc. It also has links to 65 titles to stream free. (more…)
Posted in Film on April 8, 2021| 2 Comments »
Posted in Book, Film, News on February 5, 2021| 2 Comments »
Today’s Guardian has a good piece on Marseille today: its overview of the city’s culture is underscored with links to books, films and TV series, precious memories for those of us who are, at present, far away from this vibrant city: https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2021/feb/05/marseille-virtual-tour-books-film-food-music-photography
Most visitors to the city will soon feel the passion for the local football team, the legendary Olympique de Marseille. In fact bars right across Provence are decorated with scarves and mascots in the team’s colours. But there’s trouble at the Velodrome right now – so much so that it’s knocked the global pandemic off the front pages of La Provence this week, with words like ‘catastrophe’ 
peppering its prose. I’d lost the plot so thanks again to the Guardian for sportingly providing a resume today. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2021/feb/03/marseille-title-contenders-chaos-andre-villas-boas-ligue-1
I hope Marseille soon gets back to a team they are proud of….Allez l’OM!
Posted in Film on January 16, 2021| 2 Comments »
‘Lupin’ is a French crime drama starring Omar Sy as a Parisian janitor who hatches a plan to steal Marie Antoinette’s necklace from the Louvre.
The five-part series follows Assane Diop (Omar Sy), who was inspired by the stories of fictional thief Arsène Lupin, to organise the theft to avenge his father’s death 25 years beforehand. It’s very fast-moving, witty and engrossing television (the trailer below will give you a taste). (more…)
Posted in Film on December 5, 2020| Leave a Comment »
Just after my post on Thursday about hopes that ‘Wonder Woman 1984s’ release on 16 Dec will pull in crowds to Aix’s newly opened cinemas, Warner Bros announced that all 2021 releases would be streamed on HBO Max at the same time as their cinema release.
Starting with Wonder Woman, the move will enable film fans to stream the forthcoming sci-fi epic Dune, the Matrix sequel, Godzilla vs Kong, Mortal Kombat and The Suicide Squad instead of travelling to the cinema. (more…)
Posted in Film on December 3, 2020| Leave a Comment »
The three Aix cinemas will re-open on 15th December with the programme that was showing when the new lockdown came into being. But hopes are pinned on a blockbuster to draw in the crowds, and ‘Wonder Woman 1948’ may just be the ticket.
And talking about tickets, you should hang on to yours if you go to a film in the evening as it will serve as an attestation to get you home: the cinemas can stay open til 21:00hrs. (more…)
Posted in Film, Patrimoine on November 17, 2020| Leave a Comment »
The BBC have just screened a documentary on the fire at Notre Dame which had me on the edge of the sofa.
When the raging fire started in the 14th century cathedral on 15 April 2019, there were fears that the priceless structure would be burned to the ground. The pompiers arrived fast and viewers shared their efforts to prevent catastrophic damage to the building’s interior. This documentary analyses how the fire began, featuring footage from film-makers the Naudet brothers and testimony from the firefighters themselves.
The head of the Paris Fire brigade was shown making literally life-or-death decisions; we saw a young pompier only just qualified, on her first call-out climbing the tight spiral staircase in intense heat with 30kg of equipment on her back; the arrival of a shell-shocked President Macron was filmed; and we witnessed the complex saving of relics which included Christ’s crown of thorns.
The pompers wielding high-pressure hoses eventually saved the church from complete destruction and the spontaneous applause of the crowds as 
they drove back to base was so moving.
‘Storyville: the Night Notre Dame Burned’ is 90 minutes of excellent documentary-making. Available on BBC i-Player for the next year. English subtitles for all French interviews.
The South of France. Enchanted by the deep blue of the Mediterranean, the olive trees, poppies, irises and that dazzling light, artists found their creativity flourished under the hot sun. My new book takes you on a journey visiting museums and galleries as well as artists’ studios and their favourite painting spots. From Van Gogh in Arles, to Signac in Saint-Tropez; from Cézanne in Aix, over to Nice for Renoir and Matisse, the story unfolds of artists who knew each other and painted together in the warm south. Prepare too to meet colourful local artists who captured their beloved Provence for us to enjoy.
Buy: in Book-in-Bar, Aix, or online. Please click here: /art-in-the-south-of-france-the-inside-story/paperback/product-23586102.html
aixcentric 