Category: Movies

Bertrand Belin polishes the tour of his new album “Persona” in Le Havre

It is in Le Havre that the musician Bertrand Belin chose to refine and begin the tour of his sixth album. He then leaves on the roads of the hexagon with “Persona”. A personal album, imbued with literature and strange creatures.

A crooner’s voice, a dandy rock look, Bertrand Belin travels the planet of words and notes with an elegance both light and serious. With “Persona”, the singer remains faithful to a swaying score that kicks and invites to dance. That’s good, Bertrand Belin goes on the road of concerts with this sixth album. After the studio it’s in Le Havre that he tweaked the adjustments of the live. It promises us new but also older pieces.
A scene apart
For nearly fifteen years, the Breton musician has been cultivating a singular language. His linguistic delusions flirt with surrealist poetry. On stage, Bertrand Belin embarks the public, between improvisation and exquisite corpses.

“O time, suspend your flight” and let yourself go into the languid vapors dream the artist. These compositions, always imbued with melancholy, give their view on life, solitude, society. By choosing simple but fair words.

It is the pleasure of arranging, of creating with the minimum of words, the maximum of effect. This is my little “dada”!

Bertrand Belin

If 2018 has been written with a big A (two albums of the excellent Dominique A), 2019 starts with a double B.  Bertrand Belin launched himself in this new year . “Persona” was released on January 25 on the label Cinq 7, an appearance at the cinema in “My life with James Dean” by Dominique Choisy which he signs the soundtrack and ” Great Carnicores ” his fourth novel (POL editions), a once again hailed by critics.

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“My Polish Honeymoon”

Directed by : Elise Otzenberger
Produced by : Rectangle Productions
Genre: Fiction – Runtime: 1 h 28 min
French release: 12/06/2019
Production year: 2018

Anna and Adam, a young Parisian couple with Jewish origins, are about to travel to Poland for the first time. They are just married and technically speaking this will be their honeymoon. They will attend a ceremony in memory of the Jewish community in the village of Adam’s grandfather, which was destroyed 75 years ago. Adam is not really enthusiastic, but sees it as an occasion to spend some quality time with his wife, away from their baby boy. Anna, on the other hand, is both extremely anxious and overly excited about the trip to her grandmother’s country. She is hoping to reconnect with her roots and finally discover more about her own family’s history, which was always a mystery…

My Polish Honeymoon

Domestic abuse film ‘Custody’ sweeps board at France’s Cesar awards

“Custody”, a film about domestic violence and a divorced couple’s battle over their son, was the big winner at the “French Oscars” — the Cesars — on Friday, where veteran US actor and director Robert Redford was presented with an honorary award.

Released in France under its original title of “Jusqu’à la garde”, “Custody” is director Xavier Legrand’s first feature-length movie and took home four awards including best film and best original screenplay.

It also earned a best leading actress award for Lea Drucker, who plays Miriam, a brave but fragile mother struggling to recover after her separation and fighting to protect her son from his violent father.

“When we made the film in 2016, 123 women were killed by their partner or ex-partner” in France, Legrand said as he picked up his award.

“Since January 1, 2019, 25 women have been killed, which means we’ve gone from one woman every three days, as it was in 2016, to one every two days.”

The awards ceremony, the biggest of its kind recognising French cinema, is now in its 44th year and was held at a glittering gala celebration in Paris.

“I would like to dedicate this award to all the Miriams, all the women who are not living a fiction but a tragic reality,” Drucker said as she collected her statuette.

Source: Domestic abuse film ‘Custody’ sweeps board at France’s Cesar awards

The Berlinale presents the Grand Jury Prize to François Ozon for “Thank God”, his film on pedophilia in the Church

On Saturday evening, the Berlin Film Festival awarded the Jury Grand Prize to French director François Ozon’s film “Grace to God” on pedophile scandals in the Catholic Church. The Grand Prix is ​​the second major award of the Berlinale after the Golden Bear. This prize was awarded before a court decision Monday on a possible postponement of the release of the film in France.François Ozon shares the prize with his heroes

“This film tries to break the silence of powerful institutions” on these cases of sexual abuse of children, said François Ozon receiving his reward. “I want to share this award with the free men who inspired me” who “were victims of a pedophile priest,” he added, moved. “Alexandre, François and Pierre-Emmanuel, you are my heroes,” greeted the 51-year-old French director.

“Thanks to God” tells the birth of the association of victims The liberated Word, founded in Lyon in 2015 by former scouts abused by a pedophile priest, Bernard Preynat. In total, the association lists nearly 85 victims of this priest. The film follows three victims, incarnated on the screen by the actors Melvil Poupaud, Denis Ménochet and Swann Arlaud.
The subject is in full relevance in France, while held in early January in Lyon the trial of Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, Archbishop of Lyon, and five other people for not denouncing pedophile sexual assault in this case, so-called Barbarin case . The judgment is expected on March 7th. Charged with sexual assault since January 2016, Father Preynat could be tried this year.
 

Source: The Berlinale presents the Grand Jury Prize to François Ozon for “Thank God”, his film on pedophilia in the Church

Pas de Merde Film Fav: “The Kid With the Bike”

The Kid With the Bike (2011)

Abandoned by his father, a young boy is left in a state-run youth farm. In a random act of kindness, the town hair-dresser agrees to foster him on week-ends.
Directors: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Writers: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Stars: Thomas Doret, Cécile de France, Jérémie Renier

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Le gamin au vélo (2011)
Image result for Cécile de France The Boy with the bike
Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne and Cecile De France 

French priest files to delay release of sex abuse victim film premiering in Berlin 

The French release of a film based on real-life cases of sex abuse allegedly committed by a French priest, which is being premiered Friday at the Berlin film festival, could be delayed. Lawyers for the priest in question, who is accused of molesting more than 80 boys, say the film should not be shown until after his trial later this year.

Director Francois Ozon’s film By The Grace Of God tells the story of a group of survivors of abuse at the hands of Lyon-based priest, Bernard Preyant. Ozon worked in secret with several members of a survivor’s group that has gathered testimony of dozens of people who claim to have been abused by Preynat in Lyon.

Preynat is to be tried on sexual violence charges involving ten children. The allegations came out after a former scout, Francois Devaux went public in 2015 with allegations that the priest had abused him as a child 25 years earlier.

Preynat was suspended by the church later in 2015, and it later emerged that Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, the archbishop of Lyon, had confronted him about the allegations five years earlier, and later went to the Vatican, but never contacted law enforcement authorities.

Barbarin and five other church officials and members are waiting for a verdict on charges of covering up the abuse and failing to protect children.