Jain’s official video for her song “Makeba” – wonderful !
Author: THE HOBBLEDEHOY
Michael Stevenson, aka Dai Bando, Johnny Foreigner, Monsieur Pas De Merde, is a blogger of French and British culture. His blogs "Pas De Merde" and "The Hobbledehoy" have been called "marvelous" by some, and "meh" by others.
Oscar Nominations for French Films!
The official Oscar nominations were announced Tuesday, January 24th. French films represent seven categories, with nine total nominations!
Oscar nominees for the 89th annual awards were announced on Tuesday morning during a live-streamed event filmed in six cities around the globe.
The Academy Awards, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel for the first time, will air live on ABC on Feb. 26. French and French Language films represent seven categories, with nine total nominations!
Read Full Story: Oscar Nominations for French Films! | French Culture
Valentine’s day in Paris
Plan the most romantic Valentine’s possible with our guide to love in the city of light, Tuesday February 14 2017
Valentine’s Day in Paris should be foolproof, but then the reality kicks in – where can you find a romantic hotel that doesn’t cost hundreds of Euros a night? Which of the city’s thousands of restaurants is a good bet for an intimate dinner? And what can you see and do in the city in mid-February that will be in keeping with the mood?
Don’t worry – we won’t leave you to try and wring romance out of a youth hostel and a rain-sodden queue for the Eiffel Tower. Check out our selections below for the best places to sleep, eat, shop and more for the most romantic trip possible [ . . . ] Read Full Story at TimeOut Paris
Chanson Du Jour: Where Are We Now?
Bertrand Belin performs a cover of David Bowie’s “Where are we now?”
Isabelle Huppert – “The French Meryl Streep”
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert welcomed the greatest actress in France today, Isabelle Huppert.
Under the Covers
By Michael Stevenson
Occasionally an artist remakes a classic film or an iconic song, and the effort makes me wonder, “why bother in the first place?” I’ve always felt that it makes more sense to remake lousy movies or records, and try to make these into something halfway decent.
Why remake a masterpiece such as Hitchcock’s Psycho, or James Ivory’s A Room With a View? Wouldn’t it be better to remake Cameron Crowe’s recent films – Elizabethtown, We Bought a Zoo, and Aloha – and make these something watchable? And why would a singer make a record titled “[insert name here] Sings Frank Sinatra” or “[insert name here] Sings Patsy Cline”?
Sometimes the Cover or Remake Works
Philip Kaufman’s remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers was superior to the 1956 original, as was Coen Brothers’ version of True Grit. The Wizard of Oz that we all know and love (1939) was actually a remake of a 1925 bomb. As for music, the late Joe Cocker recorded a song off the Beatles’ Sgt. Peppers, and made it his own. The Beatles themselves forever swiped “Twist and Shout” from the Isley Bothers.
Forgive my Rachel Maddow-like preamble, but I now present Rodolphe Burger’s cover of Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” – a ballsy and brilliant remake of one of the most iconic songs belonging to a true American music legend.
Give it a listen and tell me – what do you think
