PREVIEW: 2021 ALLIANCE FRANCAIS FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL

A 4K restoration of director Jean-Luc Godard’s masterpiece, Breathless (À bout de souffle; 1960) is just one of the many cinematic gems to shine as part of the 32nd Alliance Française French Film Festival, one of the largest celebrations of French cinema in the world. The 2021 edition of the festival will beguile and engage theatrical audiences nationally from March 2 until mid-April at 25 locations, all of which will be adhering to stringent Covid protocols to guarantee Festival patrons a safe cinema experience. 

Godard’s iconic film, acknowledged as one of the earliest and most potent examples of French New Wave cinema, emerged as the epitome of 60s cinematic cool, inspiring a generation of moviemakers. Based on a story by Francois Truffaut and photographed by New Wave legend Raoul Coutard, the film stars Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg (pictured, above) as narcissistic young lovers on the run from authorities following a violent and impulsive crime.

Courtesy of StudioCanal Australia, the Festival will launch with the World Premiere of Eiffel, a sumptuous, romantic, costume drama which explores the passionate love affair between celebrated engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built France’s iconic Eiffel Tower, and Adrienne, a mysterious woman from his past.  Portraying these ardent lovers will be French superstar Romain Duris (pictured, right), and the magnetic Emma Mackey.

Presented by the Alliance Française in association with the Embassy of France in Australia and key sponsor Peugeot Australia, this year’s line-up of 37 features has something to delight the most discerning French cinephile. The star-laden program brings Australian audiences the latest works from such favourites as Lambert Wilson (in Gabriel Le Bomin’s De Gaulle); Isabelle Huppert (in Jean-Paul Salomé’s The Godmother); Valeria Bruni Tedeschi (in Summer of ‘85, the latest from acclaimed director François Ozon); Omar Sy (in Anne Fontaine’s Night Shift); and, Adèle Exarchopoulos (in Mandibles, from cult filmmaker Quentin Dupieux).

Closing Night honours have gone to #Iamhere (jesuislà) an endearing culture-clash comedy from director Éric Lartigau (The Bélier Family), starring Alain Chabat as an eminent French chef who travels to the other side of the world after he falls in love via Instagram.

Other highlights of this year’s line-up include: 

ALINE (Dir: Valérie Lemercier)                                        
Cast:  Valérie Lemercier, Sylvain Marcel & Martine Fontaine. Inspired by singing sensation Céline Dion, Aline is the story of a teenager from Quebec whose powerful voice propels her onto the world stage to become the darling of millions. 

APPEARANCES (Dir: Marc Fitoussi)                                
Cast: Benjamin Biolay, Karin Viard, Lucas Englander & Laetitia Dosch. The new film from writer/director Marc Fitoussi, Appearances is a sexy, Chabrol-esque marital thriller, set against a luxe Vienna backdrop (pictured, right).

BLACK BOX (Dir: Yann Gozlan) 
Cast: Pierre Niney, Lou de Laâge & André Dussollier. Uncovering secrets carries a devastating toll in this thrilling story about one man’s determination to get to the bottom of what caused a horrifying plane crash.

CALAMITY, A CHILDHOOD OF MARTHA JANE CANNARY (Dir: Rémi Chayét)                                  
Voice Cast: Salomé Boulven, Alexandra Lamy & Alexis Tomassian. Before she was frontierswoman ‘Calamity Jane’, she was a high-spirited 12-year-old girl named Martha, fiercely loyal to her family with a defiant streak. Winner of the Feature Film ‘Cristal’ at the 2020 Annecy International Animation Film Festival. 

DELETE HISTORY (Effacer l'historique; Dirs: Gustave Kervern & Benoît Delépine) 
Cast: Blanche Gardin, Corinne Masiero, Denis Podalydès & Vincent Lacoste & Benoît Poelvoorde. If the complexities of the online world leave you feeling lost, confused or furious, then this laugh-out-loud film is for you. Directed by renegade duo Gustave Kervern and Benoît Delépine; won the 70th Silver Bear Berlinale prize at Berlin International Film Festival.  

GAGARINE (Dirs: Fanny Liatard & Jérémy Trouilh)                         
Cast: Lyna Khoudri, Alséni Bathily & Finnegan Oldfield. When the housing project that he calls home is condemned for demolition, 16-year-old aspiring astronaut Youri knows there is no way it can go down without a fight. Premiering at Cannes in 2020, Gagarine is a powerful story of class, race, imagination and wonder.

LOVE AFFAIR(S) (Les choses qu'on dit, les choses qu'on fait; Dir: Emmanuel Mouret)                             Cast: Camélia Jordana, Niels Schneider & Emilie Dequenne. When two strangers are left alone in the French countryside, they fill their time by regaling each other with stories of love gained and lost. Referred to as a “more serious Love Actually”; an entertaining and surprising exploration of the complexities of modern love. 

MISS (Dir: Ruben Alves)                                  
Cast: Alexandre Wetter, Pascale Arbillot & Thibault de Montalembert. Androgynous model Wetter plays a young boy who dreams of conquering the Miss France pageant. Miss is an inspiring, though-provoking film that tears apart our preconceptions of gender. 

POLY (Dir: Nicolas Vanier) 
Cast: François Cluzet, Julie Gayet & Patrick Timsit. Travel back to the breathtaking Cévennes region of the 1960s to meet Poly the Shetland pony, an inspiration for generations of children ever since she jumped from the pages of Cécile Aubry’s much-loved novel (pictured, right). 

SKIES OF LEBANON (Dir: Chloé Mazlo)     
Cast: Alba Rohrwacher, Wajdi Mouawad & Isabelle Zighondi.A poetic blending of the personal and political, this Cannes selection combines live action with animation to create a vivid picture of Lebanon and a heart-breaking story of love during wartime; inspired by the family history of filmmaker Chloé Mazlo.

SMALL COUNTRY: AN AFRICAN CHILDHOOD (Dir: Éric Barbier)                                     
Cast: Jean-Paul Rouve, Isabelle Kabano & Djibril Vancoppenolle. This powerful true story recounts the life of a young boy growing up in Burundi during the 1990s, experiencing the tidal wave of violence and unrest from neighbouring Rwanda. 

Screening at Palace Cinemas nationwide, the 32nd Alliance Française French Film Festival begins in Sydney (March 2-31), before seasons in Melbourne (March 3-31), Canberra (March 4-31), Perth (March 10-April 7), Hobart (March 11-20), Brisbane (March 17-April 13), Adelaide (March 23-April 20), Byron Bay (March 24-April 14) and at the Riverside Theatres in Parramatta (April 8-11).

Full event information can be found at the official website.