The Father of my Children
Vive La France! The BFI 53rd London Film Festival is flying the flag for its neighbours residing across the pond this year, with a continental mix of evocative and stylish films, including the poignant and compelling Father of My Children.
Showcased as part of the event’s Galas & Special screenings, alongside a host of heavyweight offerings including Fantastic Mr Fox, and The Men Who Stare at Goats, is Father of My Children. Director Mia Hansen-Love’s emotive follow up to her 2007 feature Everything Is Forgiven, is a bittersweet tale of struggling to make life, love and a career work in present day Paris.
Gregoire (Louis-Do de Lencquesaing) is the high flying owner of a film company, who has a privileged life at home with a loving wife and three children. However, when his company falls into debt, Gregoire begins to lose his way, forcing his family to pick up the pieces. With a shocking twist half way through, Hansen-Love’s ability to grip her audiences at all the right moments and avoid any predictable outcomes, makes this film a significant attribute to this year’s festival.
The Girl on the Train
Hot on the heels of Hansen-Love and headed up under the aptly titled French Revolutions – a strand of the festival devoted to French films – comes a string of features from acclaimed directors such as, Claire Denis, Catherine Corsini and Andre Techine.
Andre Techine’s The Girl on the Train is a firm favourite at LOVEFiLM HQ, for its brazen and confident depiction of modern day life in the Parisian suburbs. Actress Emilie Dequenne, who plays Jeanne, brings a splash of red, white and blue to this stark morality tale. After meeting the outspoken Franck (Nicolas Duvauchelle) Jeanne’s world is sent into a spiral and she soon finds herself at the centre of an anti-Semitism scandal. Holding each story strand together perfectly stands actor Michel Blanc, whose even and gentle performance as Jewish lawyer Samuel Bleistein softens the edge of this socio-political drama. With a love story at the helm, hindered by shame and deceit – we beg the question, what more could you possibly ask for?
We’ve got our pulse on the French films at this year’s event, so stay tuned for more ooh la-la moments with the LOVEFiLM editorial team.
One of the surprises of spending holidays in France is the English language cinemas in the big towns!
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