Thursday, July 19, 2012

The Avon Theatre and the Alliance Francaise of Greenwich present French Cinematheque Thursday, July 19




 
The Avon Theatre and the Alliance Francaise of Greenwich
present French Cinematheque
The Avon Theatre and the Alliance Francaise of Greenwich present the French Cinematheque series at The Avon, featuring the best of new and classic French cinema. On Thursday, July 19 at 7:30 p.m. French Cinematheque presents Children of Paradise. On Thursday, August 16 at 7:30 p.m. French Cinematheque presents Polisse. On Thursday, September 20 at 7:30 p.m. French Cinematheque presents the 75th anniversary restoration print of Grand Illusion followed by a discussion with SUNY Purchase professor Anne Kern. One lucky audience member at each show will win a prize from WFUV public radio. Ticket prices are as follows: Carte Blanche: FREE, Avon & AFG Members: $6, Students & Seniors: $8, Nonmembers: $11. Call the Avon business office at 203-661-0321 or the box office at 203-967-3660 for tickets.

 
ABOUT CHILDREN OF PARADISE:
Les Enfants du Paradis, released as Children of Paradise in North America, is a 1945 French film directed by Marcel Carne, which was made during the German occupation of France during World War II. Set among the Parisian theatre scene of the 1820s and 30s, it tells the story of a beautiful courtesan, Garance, and the four men who love her in their own ways: a mime artist, an actor, a criminal and an aristocrat.

 
ABOUT POLISSE: Winner of the Jury Prize at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival and nominated for 13 César Awards, POLISSE follows the daily lives of a tight-knit team of men and women working in the Child Protection Unit of the Parisian police. Basing her richly textured script on real child investigation cases, writer/director/actor Maïwenn has gathered an accomplished ensemble cast of French actors who convey the emotional strain of the unit's work with gritty realism. They not only deal with the stress of their jobs but the inevitable fall-out in their personal lives - breakdowns, divorce and adulterous relations within the force. In between, there are frequent flashes of humor as the team attempts to diffuse daily realities. As the cases, confessions and interrogations pile up, the squad members have only each other
as support as they face an uphill battle against both criminals and bureaucracy.

 
ABOUT GRAND ILLUSION: In 1916 a French fighter plane is shot down over German territory. Aboard are Lieutenant Maréchal, a mechanic in civilian life, and Captain de Boeldieu, an aristocratic career officer. While waiting for them to be picked up by military police, Captain von Rauffenstein, the Junker who shot them down, invites them to lunch in the officer's mess. Transferred to the POW officers' camp at Hallbach, Boeldieu and Maréchal are assigned to room with four fellow officers: Cartier, a music hall performer; Rosenthal, a wealthy Jewish couturier; a land surveyance engineer; and a provincial schoolteacher. The men get along well, united by a common desire to escape and return to the fray. They plan their escape during the night, but before they can make their move, the officers are transferred to a new camp. After a series of transfers and string of escape attempts, Maréchal and Boeldieu are sent to the "escape-proof" fortress at Wintersborn, where they are reunited with Rosenthal only to try once again to escape.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER: Anne M. Kern is Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Cinema Studies at Purchase College, State University of New York. She has published work on European and American cinema, surrealism and psychoanalysis, including a new essay on three early Renoir films forthcoming in A Companion to Jean Renoir, edited by Alastair Phillips and Ginette Vincendeau (Wiley-Blackwell, 2012). She is currently completing a book-length project titled A Sense of Play: Instances of the Ludic in Twentieth Century European Film & Theory. Dr. Kern also serves as a Board Member of both the Alliance Française of Greenwich and the Focus on French Cinema film festival.


 
ABOUT THE AVON: The Avon Theatre is a member-supported, non-profit cultural hub, dedicated to presenting film in its highest form, and thriving because of the support of our patrons and community. In addition to an exciting slate of new releases that are hard to find anywhere else, The Avon brings you phenomenal special events and monthly programs. We are proud to provide a forum for in-person, community dialogue with directors, actors and other luminaries in a vibrant "Main Street America" setting.

 
Avon Theatre Film Center
272 Bedford St
Stamford, CT 06901
Box Office: (203) 967-3660
Business Office: (203) 661-0321
Twitter: @avontheatre

 

 

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