Friday, February 07, 2020
RENDEZ-VOUS WITH FRENCH CINEMA 2020
FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER AND UNIFRANCE
PRESENT
25TH RENDEZ-VOUS WITH FRENCH CINEMA
25TH RENDEZ-VOUS WITH FRENCH CINEMA
MARCH 5-15 2020
Opening Night
Hirokazu Kore-eda’s
THE TRUTH
starring Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche, and Ethan Hawke,
with Binoche and Hawke in person
Confirmed to appear in person at the fest are:
Stéphane Batut, Juliette Binoche, Pascal Bonitzer, Lucie Borleteau,
Maïmouna Doucouré, Bruno Dumont, Ethan Hawke, Mehdi Idir, Cédric Klapisch,
Claude Lelouch, Chiara Mastroianni, Mounia Meddour, Safy Nebbou,
Nicolas Pariser, Sarah Suco, Alice Winocour, and Rebecca Zlotowski.
UPDATE 3/5/2020
"UniFrance has suspended international travel for Rendez-Vous with French Cinema festival guests due to health concerns related to COVID-19 (Coronavirus). The festival’s screenings will continue as planned, but unfortunately, most in-person appearances will be canceled."
For more information, please see:
https://www.filmlinc.org/daily/update-on-rendez-vous-with-french-cinema-2020-appearances-events/
UPDATE 3/5/2020
"UniFrance has suspended international travel for Rendez-Vous with French Cinema festival guests due to health concerns related to COVID-19 (Coronavirus). The festival’s screenings will continue as planned, but unfortunately, most in-person appearances will be canceled."
For more information, please see:
https://www.filmlinc.org/daily/update-on-rendez-vous-with-french-cinema-2020-appearances-events/
The 2020 Opening Night selection is the New York premiere of The Truth, the first-ever French-language film from Japanese auteur Hirokazu Kore-eda. Featuring screen legends Catherine Deneuve and Juliette Binoche as a strained mother-daughter duo, The Truth is a dynamic family drama co-starring Ethan Hawke. Binoche and Hawke will appear in person at the festival for opening night, and for a special conversation about their collaboration with Kore-eda.
Highlights of the 22-film lineup include a number of prizewinning titles and festival hits, including
- Christophe Honoré’s fantastical On a Magical Night, for which Chiara Mastroianni won an award in Cannes’s Un Certain Regard section;
- Quentin Dupieux’s absurdist satire Deerskin starring Oscar winner Jean Dujardin and Adèle Haenel;
- Bruno Dumont’s Joan of Arc, which received a Cannes Special Jury Mention;
- Mounia Meddour’s Papicha, an unflinching story of young women’s resistance set during the Algerian Civil War;
- Alice Winocour’s space drama Proxima starring Eva Green;
- Prix Jean Vigo–winner Burning Ghost, a supernatural tale of love and loss from Stéphane Batut;
- Nicolas Pariser’s sharp political drama Alice and the Mayor;
- Damien Manivel’s transfixing Locarno prizewinner Isadora’s Children;
- The Specials, from the directing duo behind The Intouchables, Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano, and starring Vincent Cassel and Reda Kateb;
- Maïmouna Doucouré’s vibrant hip-hop dance drama Cuties, which premiered at Sundance; and more.
For the first time ever, the festival is introducing an Audience Award, sponsored by Air France, allowing moviegoers the chance to give a prize to their favorite film.
Associate Director of Programming Florence Almozini said "This year's edition of Rendez-Vous brings a global perspective to French cinema, with the first French-language film from Japanese master Hirokazu Kore-eda alongside films that explore the traumas of Algerian Civil War, cultural differences and integrations in French suburbia, or environmentalism all the way to the Arctic Circle.
"Rendez-Vous showcases the strength of French cinema today and tomorrow, with exciting new work from returning filmmakers like Pascal Bonitzer, Rebecca Zlotowski, Quentin Dupieux, and Christophe Honoré; remarkable debut films from Stéphane Batut, Sarah Suco, Mounia Meddour, and Maïmouna Doucouré; and stunning performances from some of France's greatest actresses, including Juliette Binoche, Catherine Deneuve, Chiara Mastroianni, and Eva Green."
This year’s lineup also features a number of new works from returning Rendez-Vous filmmakers, including
- Claude Lelouch with The Best Years of a Life, a sequel to his Palme d’Or–winning classic A Man and a Woman, reuniting Jean-Louis Trintignant and Anouk Aimée;
- An Easy Girl, a sumptuous coming-of-age tale from Rebecca Zlotowski, set on the beaches of Cannes;
- Safy Nebbou’s catfishing drama Who You Think I Am starring Juliette Binoche;
- Cédric Kahn’s Happy Birthday, starring Catherine Deneuve and Emmanuelle Bercot;
- Lucie Borleteau’s thriller Perfect Nanny;
- almost-romantic drama Someone, Somewhere from Cédric Klapisch;
- and Pascal Bonitzer’s update of a Henry James ghost story, Spellbound.
Confirmed to appear in person at the fest are: Stéphane Batut, Juliette Binoche, Pascal Bonitzer, Lucie Borleteau, Maïmouna Doucouré, Bruno Dumont, Ethan Hawke, Mehdi Idir, Cédric Klapisch, Claude Lelouch, Chiara Mastroianni, Mounia Meddour, Safy Nebbou, Nicolas Pariser, Sarah Suco, Alice Winocour, and Rebecca Zlotowski.
Special events and free talks include a rare opening day conversation between Binoche and Hawke on March 5; Alice Winocour in conversation with a surprise guest about exploring space on film; a discussion and book signing with UniFrance President Serge Toubiana upon the release of his new book on the legendary cinema figure Helen Scott; and a filmmaker panel focusing on adapting literature to the screen in partnership with French in Motion and IFP.
The 2020 festival, as always, places a focus on young people, with school screenings of School Life and Spread Your Wings for middle and high schoolers, as well as college students. In conjunction, the festival is holding a contest for cinephiles under 30: interested writers can submit a review of a Rendez-Vous film of their choice, and the best critique will win a round-trip flight to Paris and a free one-year subscription to TV5MONDE. Visit filmlinc.org in the coming weeks for more information. Additionally, the festival is expanding its industry-facing events with a day-long networking event to bring together French sales agents, French producers, and key American industry players on Friday, March 6.
Organized by Florence Almozini with UniFrance.
Tickets go on sale Thursday, February 20, with early access for Film at Lincoln Center members beginning Tuesday, February 18. Tickets are $17; $12 for members, students, seniors, and persons with disabilities; Opening Night tickets are $25; $20 for members and students. Learn more at filmlinc.org.
FILMS & DESCRIPTIONS
All screenings take place at the Walter Reade Theater (165 W 65th St) unless otherwise noted.
Opening NightThe Truth / La vérité
Hirokazu Kore-eda, France/Japan, 2019, 106m
French and English with English subtitles
New York PremiereIn his follow-up to the Palme d’Or–winning Shoplifters, Hirokazu Kore-eda casts two titans of French cinema, Catherine Deneuve and Juliette Binoche, in a film structured around the rippling tensions underlying a family gathering. With controlled intensity, Deneuve plays Fabienne, a screen icon preparing to publish her memoirs. The version of her life as presented on the page, however, is critiqued by her daughter Lumir (Binoche), visiting Fabienne’s secluded home with her American TV actor husband (Ethan Hawke) and their young daughter. Resentments seep out—and eventually explode—as Fabienne and Lumir confront the reality of their dynamic; meanwhile, their drama begins to affect Fabienne’s next project, in which she uneasily shares the screen with a rising young actress (Manon Clavel). Kore-eda deftly grapples with aging, memory, and guilt, while locating a tenderness that can thaw even the deepest-rooted conflicts. An IFC Films release.
Thursday, March 5, 6:30pm (Introduced by Juliette Binoche and Ethan Hawke)
Thursday, March 5, 9:15pm
Hirokazu Kore-eda, France/Japan, 2019, 106m
French and English with English subtitles
New York PremiereIn his follow-up to the Palme d’Or–winning Shoplifters, Hirokazu Kore-eda casts two titans of French cinema, Catherine Deneuve and Juliette Binoche, in a film structured around the rippling tensions underlying a family gathering. With controlled intensity, Deneuve plays Fabienne, a screen icon preparing to publish her memoirs. The version of her life as presented on the page, however, is critiqued by her daughter Lumir (Binoche), visiting Fabienne’s secluded home with her American TV actor husband (Ethan Hawke) and their young daughter. Resentments seep out—and eventually explode—as Fabienne and Lumir confront the reality of their dynamic; meanwhile, their drama begins to affect Fabienne’s next project, in which she uneasily shares the screen with a rising young actress (Manon Clavel). Kore-eda deftly grapples with aging, memory, and guilt, while locating a tenderness that can thaw even the deepest-rooted conflicts. An IFC Films release.
Thursday, March 5, 6:30pm (Introduced by Juliette Binoche and Ethan Hawke)
Thursday, March 5, 9:15pm
Alice and the Mayor / Alice et le maire
Nicolas Pariser, France/Belgium, 2019, 103m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereAlice (Anaïs Demoustier) leaves her Oxford philosophy professorship for a new communications post at the mayor’s office in her hometown of Lyon. But when the mayor (Fabrice Luchini) confides in her that he’s having trouble generating any ideas to improve the city, Alice realizes that her true task is to reawaken the progressive spirit that inspired his initial run for office. Directed by Nicolas Pariser (2016 Rendez-Vous highlight The Great Game) and featuring supporting turns from Nora Hamzawi (Non-Fiction) and Antoine Reinartz (BPM), Alice and the Mayor finds an unsentimental urgency in idealism, unfolding in heartfelt and thought-provoking conversations that inspire meaningful political action over empty rhetoric. A selection of the 2019 Cannes Film Festival Directors’ Fortnight.
Saturday, March 7, 1:00pm (Q&A with Nicolas Pariser)
Wednesday, March 11, 9:30pm
Nicolas Pariser, France/Belgium, 2019, 103m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereAlice (Anaïs Demoustier) leaves her Oxford philosophy professorship for a new communications post at the mayor’s office in her hometown of Lyon. But when the mayor (Fabrice Luchini) confides in her that he’s having trouble generating any ideas to improve the city, Alice realizes that her true task is to reawaken the progressive spirit that inspired his initial run for office. Directed by Nicolas Pariser (2016 Rendez-Vous highlight The Great Game) and featuring supporting turns from Nora Hamzawi (Non-Fiction) and Antoine Reinartz (BPM), Alice and the Mayor finds an unsentimental urgency in idealism, unfolding in heartfelt and thought-provoking conversations that inspire meaningful political action over empty rhetoric. A selection of the 2019 Cannes Film Festival Directors’ Fortnight.
Saturday, March 7, 1:00pm (Q&A with Nicolas Pariser)
Wednesday, March 11, 9:30pm
The Best Years of a Life / Les plus belles années d’une vie
Claude Lelouch, France, 2019, 90m
French and Italian with English subtitles
New York PremiereIn this stirring sequel to Claude Lelouch’s classic 1966 Palme d’Or–winner A Man and a Woman, Jean-Louis Trintignant and Anouk Aimée reprise their roles. Jean-Louis (Trintignant) now struggles with dementia in a nursing home, unable to recall his glory days as a racecar driver; his former lover Anne (Aimée) has retired from producing films to maintain a fabric shop in sleepy Normandy. But then Jean-Louis’s son (Antoine Sire) seeks out Anne to remind his now prickly and standoffish father of the affair that once brought him so much joy. With a thoughtful, ruminative script by Lelouch and Valérie Perrin, The Best Years of a Life weaves a career-spanning tapestry for Trintignant, Aimée, and Lelouch, and traces the indelible arc of life as it’s lived.
Saturday, March 7, 3:45pm (Q&A with Claude Lelouch and Valérie Perrin)
Claude Lelouch, France, 2019, 90m
French and Italian with English subtitles
New York PremiereIn this stirring sequel to Claude Lelouch’s classic 1966 Palme d’Or–winner A Man and a Woman, Jean-Louis Trintignant and Anouk Aimée reprise their roles. Jean-Louis (Trintignant) now struggles with dementia in a nursing home, unable to recall his glory days as a racecar driver; his former lover Anne (Aimée) has retired from producing films to maintain a fabric shop in sleepy Normandy. But then Jean-Louis’s son (Antoine Sire) seeks out Anne to remind his now prickly and standoffish father of the affair that once brought him so much joy. With a thoughtful, ruminative script by Lelouch and Valérie Perrin, The Best Years of a Life weaves a career-spanning tapestry for Trintignant, Aimée, and Lelouch, and traces the indelible arc of life as it’s lived.
Saturday, March 7, 3:45pm (Q&A with Claude Lelouch and Valérie Perrin)
Burning Ghost / Vif-argent
Stéphane Batut, France, 2019, 104m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereWinner of the prestigious Prix Jean Vigo, this smoldering feature debut from Stéphane Batut—a renowned casting director whose credits include Let the Sunshine In and Stranger by the Lake—is an entrancing tale of love and loss. Juste (Thimotée Robart) drifts through a liminal Paris: able to see spirits of the dead, he guides them into the afterlife, while at the same time he’s unsettled in his own personal purgatory. Entirely by chance, he runs into long-lost acquaintance Agathe (Judith Chemla of A Woman’s Life), and falls into an entanglement that’s not quite compatible with his ethereal world. Burning Ghost locates an aching romanticism that precariously exists on the precipice between life and death.
Tuesday, March 10, 1:45pm
Friday, March 13, 6:30pm (Q&A with Stéphane Batut)
Stéphane Batut, France, 2019, 104m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereWinner of the prestigious Prix Jean Vigo, this smoldering feature debut from Stéphane Batut—a renowned casting director whose credits include Let the Sunshine In and Stranger by the Lake—is an entrancing tale of love and loss. Juste (Thimotée Robart) drifts through a liminal Paris: able to see spirits of the dead, he guides them into the afterlife, while at the same time he’s unsettled in his own personal purgatory. Entirely by chance, he runs into long-lost acquaintance Agathe (Judith Chemla of A Woman’s Life), and falls into an entanglement that’s not quite compatible with his ethereal world. Burning Ghost locates an aching romanticism that precariously exists on the precipice between life and death.
Tuesday, March 10, 1:45pm
Friday, March 13, 6:30pm (Q&A with Stéphane Batut)
Cuties / Mignonnes
Maïmouna Doucouré, France, 2020, 95m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereShy 11-year-old Amy (Fathia Youssouf Abdillahi) becomes fascinated by her self-possessed neighbor Anjelica when she spots her dancing in their apartment building’s laundry room. So when Amy discovers that Anjelica is part of a hip-hop dance troupe, the “Cuties,” she tries her best to fit in with the group, already deep in training for a local competition. Amy masters the routine, but her newfound talents conflict with her family’s traditional expectations for the woman she should become; meanwhile her mother anxiously awaits her father’s return from Senegal with his second wife. Maïmouna Doucouré’s vibrant debut feature, which screened at both Sundance and the Berlin Film Festival, is exceptionally attuned to the internal yearnings and external pressures of adolescence. A Netflix release.
Tuesday, March 10, 6:30pm (Q&A with Maïmouna Doucouré)
Thursday, March 12, 2:00pm
Maïmouna Doucouré, France, 2020, 95m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereShy 11-year-old Amy (Fathia Youssouf Abdillahi) becomes fascinated by her self-possessed neighbor Anjelica when she spots her dancing in their apartment building’s laundry room. So when Amy discovers that Anjelica is part of a hip-hop dance troupe, the “Cuties,” she tries her best to fit in with the group, already deep in training for a local competition. Amy masters the routine, but her newfound talents conflict with her family’s traditional expectations for the woman she should become; meanwhile her mother anxiously awaits her father’s return from Senegal with his second wife. Maïmouna Doucouré’s vibrant debut feature, which screened at both Sundance and the Berlin Film Festival, is exceptionally attuned to the internal yearnings and external pressures of adolescence. A Netflix release.
Tuesday, March 10, 6:30pm (Q&A with Maïmouna Doucouré)
Thursday, March 12, 2:00pm
The Dazzled / Les éblouis
Sarah Suco, France, 2019, 99m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereActress-turned-director Sarah Suco’s debut feature is a mesmerizing slow burn set in an insular Catholic community. When promising 12-year-old acrobat Camille (a breakout Céleste Brunnquell) performs in a sketch that seems to make light of prayer, the church’s leader—known only as “The Shepherd” (Jean-Pierre Darroussin of Le Havre)—asks her parents to withdraw her from circus training. Her mother (Camille Cottin) has become emotionally dependent on the parish, while her father (Éric Caravaca, Lover for a Day) seems brainwashed; amidst this, covertly secular Camille and her younger brothers must come into their own.
Sunday, March 8, 6:30pm (Q&A with Sarah Suco)
Friday, March 13, 4:15pm
Sarah Suco, France, 2019, 99m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereActress-turned-director Sarah Suco’s debut feature is a mesmerizing slow burn set in an insular Catholic community. When promising 12-year-old acrobat Camille (a breakout Céleste Brunnquell) performs in a sketch that seems to make light of prayer, the church’s leader—known only as “The Shepherd” (Jean-Pierre Darroussin of Le Havre)—asks her parents to withdraw her from circus training. Her mother (Camille Cottin) has become emotionally dependent on the parish, while her father (Éric Caravaca, Lover for a Day) seems brainwashed; amidst this, covertly secular Camille and her younger brothers must come into their own.
Sunday, March 8, 6:30pm (Q&A with Sarah Suco)
Friday, March 13, 4:15pm
Deerskin / Le daim
Quentin Dupieux, France, 2019, 77m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereOscar-winner Jean Dujardin (The Artist) stars in this rollicking, absurdist, and lightly surrealist take on the midlife crisis movie, directed by Rendez-Vous mainstay Quentin Dupieux (Reality, Keep an Eye Out!). Georges (Dujardin) drops several thousand Euros on an Easy Rider–style, 100%-deerskin jacket, then absconds to a country inn in a sleepy town far away from his wife. There, he starts experimenting with a mini-DV camcorder, enlisting the help of an aspiring film editor (Portrait of Lady on Fire’s Adèle Haenel) to assemble a most unusual docufiction—for which a certain garment comes to act as an unconventional muse. Dupieux’s romp—in which ATM withdrawal freezes, parka confiscations, and a repurposed ceiling fan all play unforgettable roles—opened last year’s Director’s Fortnight at Cannes. A Greenwich Entertainment release.
Sunday, March 8, 9:15pm
Saturday, March 14, 9:00pm
Quentin Dupieux, France, 2019, 77m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereOscar-winner Jean Dujardin (The Artist) stars in this rollicking, absurdist, and lightly surrealist take on the midlife crisis movie, directed by Rendez-Vous mainstay Quentin Dupieux (Reality, Keep an Eye Out!). Georges (Dujardin) drops several thousand Euros on an Easy Rider–style, 100%-deerskin jacket, then absconds to a country inn in a sleepy town far away from his wife. There, he starts experimenting with a mini-DV camcorder, enlisting the help of an aspiring film editor (Portrait of Lady on Fire’s Adèle Haenel) to assemble a most unusual docufiction—for which a certain garment comes to act as an unconventional muse. Dupieux’s romp—in which ATM withdrawal freezes, parka confiscations, and a repurposed ceiling fan all play unforgettable roles—opened last year’s Director’s Fortnight at Cannes. A Greenwich Entertainment release.
Sunday, March 8, 9:15pm
Saturday, March 14, 9:00pm
An Easy Girl / Une fille facile
Rebecca Zlotowski, France, 2019, 92m
French with English subtitles
North American PremiereDuring a sweltering summer on the beaches of Cannes, 16-year-old Naïma (Mina Farid) passes languid days working in a restaurant and preparing for acting auditions with her close friend Dodo (Lakdhar Dridi). When her glamorous cousin Sofia (Zahia Dehar) arrives for an extended stay, Naima begins to shadow her seemingly thrilling lifestyle, which gets complicated when Sofia becomes entangled with two art dealers (Nuno Lopes and The Piano Teacher’s Benoît Magimel). Breezy yet sumptuous, Rebecca Zlotowski’s fourth feature (her previous, Planetarium, played at Rendez-Vous in 2017) taps into the universal hunger of adolescence, and imbues an empathetic coming-of-age story with a sharp class critique. A Netflix release.
Saturday, March 7, 9:00pm (Q&A with Rebecca Zlotowski)
Thursday, March 12, 4:00pm
Rebecca Zlotowski, France, 2019, 92m
French with English subtitles
North American PremiereDuring a sweltering summer on the beaches of Cannes, 16-year-old Naïma (Mina Farid) passes languid days working in a restaurant and preparing for acting auditions with her close friend Dodo (Lakdhar Dridi). When her glamorous cousin Sofia (Zahia Dehar) arrives for an extended stay, Naima begins to shadow her seemingly thrilling lifestyle, which gets complicated when Sofia becomes entangled with two art dealers (Nuno Lopes and The Piano Teacher’s Benoît Magimel). Breezy yet sumptuous, Rebecca Zlotowski’s fourth feature (her previous, Planetarium, played at Rendez-Vous in 2017) taps into the universal hunger of adolescence, and imbues an empathetic coming-of-age story with a sharp class critique. A Netflix release.
Saturday, March 7, 9:00pm (Q&A with Rebecca Zlotowski)
Thursday, March 12, 4:00pm
Happy Birthday / Fête de famille
Cédric Kahn, France/Belgium, 2019, 101m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereBoth buoyant and bittersweet, this perceptive ensemble piece directed by Cédric Kahn (whose Wild Life played in Rendez-Vous 2015) and headlined by Catherine Deneuve tests the ties that bind a family. Deneuve is matriarch Andréa, whose family comes together to celebrate her 70th birthday. Everything seems to be in order with her strait-laced son (Kahn) and his family, as well as with her more free-spirited son (Non-Fiction’s Vincent Macaigne), who plans to document the gathering on video. But when her mentally unstable daughter Claire (Emmanuelle Bercot, Cannes Best Actress winner for My King) reappears after three years, old resentments surface, not least from the teenager (Portrait of a Lady on Fire’s Luàna Bajrami) Claire abandoned. Kahn coaxes mood swings of warmth and vitriol from his cast in a film that takes place over the course of one hectic day.
Thursday, March 12, 9:15pm
Sunday, March 15, 6:15pm
Cédric Kahn, France/Belgium, 2019, 101m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereBoth buoyant and bittersweet, this perceptive ensemble piece directed by Cédric Kahn (whose Wild Life played in Rendez-Vous 2015) and headlined by Catherine Deneuve tests the ties that bind a family. Deneuve is matriarch Andréa, whose family comes together to celebrate her 70th birthday. Everything seems to be in order with her strait-laced son (Kahn) and his family, as well as with her more free-spirited son (Non-Fiction’s Vincent Macaigne), who plans to document the gathering on video. But when her mentally unstable daughter Claire (Emmanuelle Bercot, Cannes Best Actress winner for My King) reappears after three years, old resentments surface, not least from the teenager (Portrait of a Lady on Fire’s Luàna Bajrami) Claire abandoned. Kahn coaxes mood swings of warmth and vitriol from his cast in a film that takes place over the course of one hectic day.
Thursday, March 12, 9:15pm
Sunday, March 15, 6:15pm
Isadora’s Children / Les enfants d’Isadora
Damien Manivel, France/South Korea, 2019, 84m
French with English subtitles
North American PremiereDance legend Isadora Duncan responded to the tragic death of her children by choreographing a three-part piece called Mother. In Isadora’s Children, Damien Manivel depicts a trio of characters engaging with Duncan’s work of art: an introspective choreographer (Agathe Bonitzer) feeling her way through the piece’s movements; a dance teacher and her student rehearsing the dance for a recital; and a member of the audience (played by renowned dancer and choreographer Elsa Wolliaston), who carries the memory of the performance through a solitary evening. Manivel, who won Best Director at the Locarno Film Festival, makes something hypnotic out of precisely timed gestures, and explores how to infuse a choreographed routine with a shared, intimate humanity.
Friday, March 3, 4:00pm
Saturday, March 14, 2:00pm
Damien Manivel, France/South Korea, 2019, 84m
French with English subtitles
North American PremiereDance legend Isadora Duncan responded to the tragic death of her children by choreographing a three-part piece called Mother. In Isadora’s Children, Damien Manivel depicts a trio of characters engaging with Duncan’s work of art: an introspective choreographer (Agathe Bonitzer) feeling her way through the piece’s movements; a dance teacher and her student rehearsing the dance for a recital; and a member of the audience (played by renowned dancer and choreographer Elsa Wolliaston), who carries the memory of the performance through a solitary evening. Manivel, who won Best Director at the Locarno Film Festival, makes something hypnotic out of precisely timed gestures, and explores how to infuse a choreographed routine with a shared, intimate humanity.
Friday, March 3, 4:00pm
Saturday, March 14, 2:00pm
Joan of Arc / Jeanne
Bruno Dumont, France, 2019, 137m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereTen-year-old Lise Leplat Prudhomme commands the center of Bruno Dumont’s inventive reimagining of the story of Joan of Arc, a sequel to Dumont’s musical Jeannette: The Childhood of Joan of Arc (2017) that’s singular and entrancing enough to stand on its own. Joan, compelled by visions of God, leads the French charge against invading English forces, and is later captured and put on trial for heresy. Although this chapter is cinematically well-trod, Dumont turns it into an uncanny, absurdist mood piece, strikingly shot amid rolling hills and vaulted cathedrals. As legendary singer-songwriter Christophe’s synthesizers slice through the droll stillness, Joan comes into her own, gaining a gravitas that makes her a force to be reckoned with. As always, Dumont proves his mastery with this enthralling, witty, and deeply rewarding work. A KimStim release.
Wednesday, March 11, 6:15pm (Q&A with Bruno Dumont)
Friday, March 13, 1:30pm
Bruno Dumont, France, 2019, 137m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereTen-year-old Lise Leplat Prudhomme commands the center of Bruno Dumont’s inventive reimagining of the story of Joan of Arc, a sequel to Dumont’s musical Jeannette: The Childhood of Joan of Arc (2017) that’s singular and entrancing enough to stand on its own. Joan, compelled by visions of God, leads the French charge against invading English forces, and is later captured and put on trial for heresy. Although this chapter is cinematically well-trod, Dumont turns it into an uncanny, absurdist mood piece, strikingly shot amid rolling hills and vaulted cathedrals. As legendary singer-songwriter Christophe’s synthesizers slice through the droll stillness, Joan comes into her own, gaining a gravitas that makes her a force to be reckoned with. As always, Dumont proves his mastery with this enthralling, witty, and deeply rewarding work. A KimStim release.
Wednesday, March 11, 6:15pm (Q&A with Bruno Dumont)
Friday, March 13, 1:30pm
On a Magical Night / Chambre 212
Christophe Honoré, France/Belgium/Luxembourg, 2019, 87m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereChiara Mastroianni won Best Actress in the Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard section for her fierce performance in this playful, fantastical spin on a Rohmerian moral tale, the latest from Christophe Honoré (Sorry Angel, NYFF56). Mastroianni is law professor Maria, whose 25-year marriage to Richard (singer-songwriter Benjamin Biolay) is ruptured when he discovers texts from Maria’s younger lover on her phone. After checking into a hotel across the street, she doesn’t exactly find herself alone with her thoughts: over the course of a hallucinatory evening, she’s visited by a series of impossible guests, including Richard’s twenty-something self (Vincent Lacoste) and the embodiment of her own free will (Stéphane Roger). Honoré’s stylish and sensual aesthetic makes for a swooning reflection on love and memory that becomes even more heartrending thanks to the brilliant cast. A Strand Releasing release.
Friday, March 6, 8:45pm (Q&A with Chiara Mastroianni)
Monday, March 9, 4:15pm
Christophe Honoré, France/Belgium/Luxembourg, 2019, 87m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereChiara Mastroianni won Best Actress in the Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard section for her fierce performance in this playful, fantastical spin on a Rohmerian moral tale, the latest from Christophe Honoré (Sorry Angel, NYFF56). Mastroianni is law professor Maria, whose 25-year marriage to Richard (singer-songwriter Benjamin Biolay) is ruptured when he discovers texts from Maria’s younger lover on her phone. After checking into a hotel across the street, she doesn’t exactly find herself alone with her thoughts: over the course of a hallucinatory evening, she’s visited by a series of impossible guests, including Richard’s twenty-something self (Vincent Lacoste) and the embodiment of her own free will (Stéphane Roger). Honoré’s stylish and sensual aesthetic makes for a swooning reflection on love and memory that becomes even more heartrending thanks to the brilliant cast. A Strand Releasing release.
Friday, March 6, 8:45pm (Q&A with Chiara Mastroianni)
Monday, March 9, 4:15pm
Papicha
Mounia Meddour, France/Algeria/Belgium/Qatar, 2019, 106m
French and Arabic with English subtitles
New York PremiereNedjma (Lyna Khoudri) is a university student during the Algerian Civil War. Although she’s studying French, her passion is fashion design: defying religious conservatism, she custom-makes dresses for her peers that are examples of individual expression. Attacks on civilians are on the rise from fundamentalist Islamist sects, and a shocking incident drives Nedjma to stage a unique protest: a fashion show centered around repurposing the haik, a traditional veil, into secular garments. Anchored by a remarkable naturalism and camaraderie among its lead actresses (especially from Khoudri and Shirine Boutella), Papicha—a highlight of Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section—tells an unflinching story of resistance and resilience, and marks an inspired, sometimes harrowing debut for Mounia Meddour. A Distrib Films release.
Friday, March 6, 1:45pm
Thursday, March 12, 6:15pm (Q&A with Mounia Meddour)
Mounia Meddour, France/Algeria/Belgium/Qatar, 2019, 106m
French and Arabic with English subtitles
New York PremiereNedjma (Lyna Khoudri) is a university student during the Algerian Civil War. Although she’s studying French, her passion is fashion design: defying religious conservatism, she custom-makes dresses for her peers that are examples of individual expression. Attacks on civilians are on the rise from fundamentalist Islamist sects, and a shocking incident drives Nedjma to stage a unique protest: a fashion show centered around repurposing the haik, a traditional veil, into secular garments. Anchored by a remarkable naturalism and camaraderie among its lead actresses (especially from Khoudri and Shirine Boutella), Papicha—a highlight of Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section—tells an unflinching story of resistance and resilience, and marks an inspired, sometimes harrowing debut for Mounia Meddour. A Distrib Films release.
Friday, March 6, 1:45pm
Thursday, March 12, 6:15pm (Q&A with Mounia Meddour)
Perfect Nanny / Chanson douce
Lucie Borleteau, France, 2019, 100m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereSeeking a nanny, young parents Myriam (Leïla Bekhti) and Paul (Antoine Reinartz) think they’ve found the perfect solution in Louise (Karin Viard). She comes with glowing references from multiple families, and she immediately takes a shine to their two young children. But as Myriam reimmerses herself in her legal job, Louise entrenches herself deeper and deeper into their family life, her behavior growing ever stranger. Under the watchful eye of director Lucie Borleteau (Fidelio: Alice’s Odyssey, Rendez-Vous 2015), this adaptation of Leïla Slimani’s best-seller becomes a vividly detailed, unsettling thriller that probes our tendencies to trust those we barely know. A Distrib Films release.
Monday, March 9, 6:15pm (Q&A with Lucie Borleteau)
Wednesday, March 11, 1:45pm
Lucie Borleteau, France, 2019, 100m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereSeeking a nanny, young parents Myriam (Leïla Bekhti) and Paul (Antoine Reinartz) think they’ve found the perfect solution in Louise (Karin Viard). She comes with glowing references from multiple families, and she immediately takes a shine to their two young children. But as Myriam reimmerses herself in her legal job, Louise entrenches herself deeper and deeper into their family life, her behavior growing ever stranger. Under the watchful eye of director Lucie Borleteau (Fidelio: Alice’s Odyssey, Rendez-Vous 2015), this adaptation of Leïla Slimani’s best-seller becomes a vividly detailed, unsettling thriller that probes our tendencies to trust those we barely know. A Distrib Films release.
Monday, March 9, 6:15pm (Q&A with Lucie Borleteau)
Wednesday, March 11, 1:45pm
Proxima
Alice Winocour, France/Germany, 2019, 107m
English, French, Russian, and German with English subtitles
New York PremiereSarah (Eva Green), an astronaut living in Cologne, is selected for a yearlong spaceflight to help pave the way for future voyages to Mars. Before liftoff, she must spend a grueling year at a training facility in Moscow, which separates her from her young daughter (Zélie Boulant), left in the care of her ex-husband (Clouds of Sils Maria’s Lars Eidinger). Highly aware that she’s the only woman involved in the mission, Sarah tries to stay focused and stoic, suppressing any weaknesses that her condescending captain (Matt Dillon) might notice, and trying to soothe her daughter’s newfound loneliness from afar. Set to an atmospheric score from Ryuichi Sakamoto, the third feature from Alice Winocour (Disorder, Rendez-Vous 2016) wrestles poignantly with the earthly loose ends and internal pressures of space travel. A Vertical Entertainment release.
Saturday, March 7, 6:15pm (Q&A with Alice Winocour)
Tuesday, March 10, 9:15pm
Alice Winocour, France/Germany, 2019, 107m
English, French, Russian, and German with English subtitles
New York PremiereSarah (Eva Green), an astronaut living in Cologne, is selected for a yearlong spaceflight to help pave the way for future voyages to Mars. Before liftoff, she must spend a grueling year at a training facility in Moscow, which separates her from her young daughter (Zélie Boulant), left in the care of her ex-husband (Clouds of Sils Maria’s Lars Eidinger). Highly aware that she’s the only woman involved in the mission, Sarah tries to stay focused and stoic, suppressing any weaknesses that her condescending captain (Matt Dillon) might notice, and trying to soothe her daughter’s newfound loneliness from afar. Set to an atmospheric score from Ryuichi Sakamoto, the third feature from Alice Winocour (Disorder, Rendez-Vous 2016) wrestles poignantly with the earthly loose ends and internal pressures of space travel. A Vertical Entertainment release.
Saturday, March 7, 6:15pm (Q&A with Alice Winocour)
Tuesday, March 10, 9:15pm
School Life / La vie scolaire
Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir, France, 2019, 111m
French and Arabic with English subtitles
North American PremiereThe new vice principal of a middle school in Parisian suburb Saint Denis, Samia (Zita Hanrot, from Paul Sanchez Is Back!) is warned by her fellow teachers that the students are unmotivated and hard to discipline. She sees things differently, however, when she gets to know the students, especially Yanis (Liam Pierron), who’s sharp and driven but disillusioned by a world that seems to have turned its back on him and his family. Slam poet Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir’s second collaboration after 2016’s Step by Step is both vivid institutional critique and lively ensemble piece—a rousing look at the importance of encouraging untapped potential despite institutional odds. A Netflix release.
Sunday, March 8, 1:00pm (Q&A with Mehdi Idir)
Tuesday, March 10, 4:00pm
Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir, France, 2019, 111m
French and Arabic with English subtitles
North American PremiereThe new vice principal of a middle school in Parisian suburb Saint Denis, Samia (Zita Hanrot, from Paul Sanchez Is Back!) is warned by her fellow teachers that the students are unmotivated and hard to discipline. She sees things differently, however, when she gets to know the students, especially Yanis (Liam Pierron), who’s sharp and driven but disillusioned by a world that seems to have turned its back on him and his family. Slam poet Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir’s second collaboration after 2016’s Step by Step is both vivid institutional critique and lively ensemble piece—a rousing look at the importance of encouraging untapped potential despite institutional odds. A Netflix release.
Sunday, March 8, 1:00pm (Q&A with Mehdi Idir)
Tuesday, March 10, 4:00pm
Someone, Somewhere / Deux moi
Cédric Klapisch, France/Belgium, 2019, 110m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereIn this almost-romance from Cédric Klapisch (Paris, Rendez-Vous 2008), warehouse employee Rémy (François Civil) and research assistant Mélanie (Ana Girardot) have never met, but they live parallel lives: they reside in neighboring apartment buildings, ride the same subway route, and are troubled by bouts of insomnia and depression. Their days punctuated by unfulfilling jobs, they seek meaningful romantic and platonic connection. As they stumble through psychotherapy, dating apps, fainting spells, and family visits, the seemingly star-crossed duo orbit around each other but remain just out of reach. Klapisch spins a delicate “what-if” from their compartmentalization, exploring our increasingly hermetic modern urban life. A Distrib Films release.
Monday, March 9, 9:00pm (Q&A with Cédric Klapisch)
Saturday, March 14, 6:30pm
Cédric Klapisch, France/Belgium, 2019, 110m
French with English subtitles
New York PremiereIn this almost-romance from Cédric Klapisch (Paris, Rendez-Vous 2008), warehouse employee Rémy (François Civil) and research assistant Mélanie (Ana Girardot) have never met, but they live parallel lives: they reside in neighboring apartment buildings, ride the same subway route, and are troubled by bouts of insomnia and depression. Their days punctuated by unfulfilling jobs, they seek meaningful romantic and platonic connection. As they stumble through psychotherapy, dating apps, fainting spells, and family visits, the seemingly star-crossed duo orbit around each other but remain just out of reach. Klapisch spins a delicate “what-if” from their compartmentalization, exploring our increasingly hermetic modern urban life. A Distrib Films release.
Monday, March 9, 9:00pm (Q&A with Cédric Klapisch)
Saturday, March 14, 6:30pm
South Terminal / Terminal Sud
Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche, France, 2019, 96mFrench and Arabic with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereThe haunting, experiential latest from Rabah Ameur Zaïmeche (Story of Judas, Rendez-Vous 2016) centers on a doctor (Ramzy Bedia) in nineties Algeria, which is rapidly becoming a war zone. He spends his days tending to the wounded and comforting the suffering, yet maintains a stoic neutrality toward the ambiguous conflict, resolving that his job is simply to help those in pain. But once he starts receiving death threats and horrors begin to encroach on his own life, his moral position is shaken. As each day’s work wears on the doctor, the inhumanity of the violence turns his life into a purgatory, pushing him to question whether or not more drastic action might be called for.
Wednesday, March 11, 4:00pm
Sunday, March 15, 4:00pm
Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche, France, 2019, 96mFrench and Arabic with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereThe haunting, experiential latest from Rabah Ameur Zaïmeche (Story of Judas, Rendez-Vous 2016) centers on a doctor (Ramzy Bedia) in nineties Algeria, which is rapidly becoming a war zone. He spends his days tending to the wounded and comforting the suffering, yet maintains a stoic neutrality toward the ambiguous conflict, resolving that his job is simply to help those in pain. But once he starts receiving death threats and horrors begin to encroach on his own life, his moral position is shaken. As each day’s work wears on the doctor, the inhumanity of the violence turns his life into a purgatory, pushing him to question whether or not more drastic action might be called for.
Wednesday, March 11, 4:00pm
Sunday, March 15, 4:00pm
The Specials / Hors normes
Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano, France, 2019, 114m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereThis heartfelt comic drama from the directing duo behind The Intouchables (Rendez-Vous 2012) targets structural neglect in the French medical system. Bruno (Vincent Cassel) runs a shelter for autistic young people turned away by hospitals, while his friend Malik (Reda Kateb) mentors underprivileged youths seeking employment. Both men, based on real-life people, are constantly frustrated by the lack of consistent funding and institutional support—which eventually leads them to confront the government head-on. With help from a spirited ensemble, The Specials—the 2019 Cannes Film Festival’s closing night selection—crackles with fiery commitment as Bruno and Malik advocate for those living on the margins.
Saturday, March 14, 4:00pm
Sunday, March 15, 8:45pm
Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano, France, 2019, 114m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereThis heartfelt comic drama from the directing duo behind The Intouchables (Rendez-Vous 2012) targets structural neglect in the French medical system. Bruno (Vincent Cassel) runs a shelter for autistic young people turned away by hospitals, while his friend Malik (Reda Kateb) mentors underprivileged youths seeking employment. Both men, based on real-life people, are constantly frustrated by the lack of consistent funding and institutional support—which eventually leads them to confront the government head-on. With help from a spirited ensemble, The Specials—the 2019 Cannes Film Festival’s closing night selection—crackles with fiery commitment as Bruno and Malik advocate for those living on the margins.
Saturday, March 14, 4:00pm
Sunday, March 15, 8:45pm
Spellbound / Les envoûtés
Pascal Bonitzer, France, 2019, 90m
French with English subtitles
North American PremiereAn uncanny triangle emerges in this update of Henry James’s short story “The Way It Came,” directed by Pascal Bonitzer (Right Here Right Now, Rendez-Vous 2017). Book critic Coline (Sara Giraudeau) is assigned a profile of a reclusive, brooding painter (Let the Sunshine In’s Nicolas Duvauchelle), who claims to have seen his mother’s spirit just before her death. Curiously, Coline’s close friend (Anabel Lopez), also an artist, says she witnessed an apparition of her father on the brink of his sudden passing, as well. An ethereal brew of lust, grief, and jealousy propels this transfixing story of invisible frequencies and mortal hungers.
Sunday, March 8, 4:00pm (Q&A with Pascal Bonitzer)
Friday, March 13, 9:15pm
Pascal Bonitzer, France, 2019, 90m
French with English subtitles
North American PremiereAn uncanny triangle emerges in this update of Henry James’s short story “The Way It Came,” directed by Pascal Bonitzer (Right Here Right Now, Rendez-Vous 2017). Book critic Coline (Sara Giraudeau) is assigned a profile of a reclusive, brooding painter (Let the Sunshine In’s Nicolas Duvauchelle), who claims to have seen his mother’s spirit just before her death. Curiously, Coline’s close friend (Anabel Lopez), also an artist, says she witnessed an apparition of her father on the brink of his sudden passing, as well. An ethereal brew of lust, grief, and jealousy propels this transfixing story of invisible frequencies and mortal hungers.
Sunday, March 8, 4:00pm (Q&A with Pascal Bonitzer)
Friday, March 13, 9:15pm
Spread Your Wings / Donne moi des ailes
Nicolas Vanier, France/Norway, 2019, 113m
English, French, and Norwegian with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereSulky teenager Thomas (Louis Vazquez) dreads spending summer with his father (Jean-Paul Rouve), an environmentalist in a rural, wifi-less hamlet. Much to his surprise, he grows attached to his father’s new project: an ambitious plan to train a flock of endangered geese to follow a new migratory path, avoidant of pollution and human-made threats. The duo embarks on a journey to the Arctic circle with an ultralight glider, which they’ll fly to guide the geese along their new route. Writer-director Nicolas Vanier (Loup) channels his passion for nature into this tale of our civic responsibility to protect it, a freewheeling adventure of both suspense and enlightening civic action.
Sunday, March 15, 1:30pm
Nicolas Vanier, France/Norway, 2019, 113m
English, French, and Norwegian with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereSulky teenager Thomas (Louis Vazquez) dreads spending summer with his father (Jean-Paul Rouve), an environmentalist in a rural, wifi-less hamlet. Much to his surprise, he grows attached to his father’s new project: an ambitious plan to train a flock of endangered geese to follow a new migratory path, avoidant of pollution and human-made threats. The duo embarks on a journey to the Arctic circle with an ultralight glider, which they’ll fly to guide the geese along their new route. Writer-director Nicolas Vanier (Loup) channels his passion for nature into this tale of our civic responsibility to protect it, a freewheeling adventure of both suspense and enlightening civic action.
Sunday, March 15, 1:30pm
Who You Think I Am / Celle que vous croyez
Safy Nebbou, France/Belgium, 2019, 101m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereJuliette Binoche balances impulsiveness, determination, and vulnerability as only she can in Who You Think I Am, Safy Nebbou’s follow-up to her survivalist drama In the Forest of Siberia (Rendez-Vous, 2017). Heartbroken after a breakup with her twentysomething boyfriend, philosophy professor Claire (Binoche) longs to stay close to him. On Facebook, she adds her ex’s good friend Alex (François Civil) so that she can browse though his tagged photos; yet to hide her identity, she uses a profile for a 24-year-old alter ego named Clara. When Alex messages her—and she begins responding as Clara—Claire’s plans veer into uncharted territory. In this ingenious adaptation of Camille Laurens’s best-seller, Nebbou turns a romantic comedy premise into a dizzying and dangerous game of mirrors between the real and the virtual. A Cohen Media release.
Friday, March 6, 6:00pm (Q&A with Safy Nebbou and Juliette Binoche)
Monday, March 9, 2:00pm
Safy Nebbou, France/Belgium, 2019, 101m
French with English subtitles
U.S. PremiereJuliette Binoche balances impulsiveness, determination, and vulnerability as only she can in Who You Think I Am, Safy Nebbou’s follow-up to her survivalist drama In the Forest of Siberia (Rendez-Vous, 2017). Heartbroken after a breakup with her twentysomething boyfriend, philosophy professor Claire (Binoche) longs to stay close to him. On Facebook, she adds her ex’s good friend Alex (François Civil) so that she can browse though his tagged photos; yet to hide her identity, she uses a profile for a 24-year-old alter ego named Clara. When Alex messages her—and she begins responding as Clara—Claire’s plans veer into uncharted territory. In this ingenious adaptation of Camille Laurens’s best-seller, Nebbou turns a romantic comedy premise into a dizzying and dangerous game of mirrors between the real and the virtual. A Cohen Media release.
Friday, March 6, 6:00pm (Q&A with Safy Nebbou and Juliette Binoche)
Monday, March 9, 2:00pm
SPECIAL EVENTS
The Truth with Juliette Binoche and Ethan HawkeOver the past thirty years, Juliette Binoche and Ethan Hawke have been icons of French and American film acting, respectively. They have collaborated for the first time on The Truth, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s follow-up to his Palme d’Or-winning Shoplifters, and the Opening Night selection of this year’s Rendez-Vous with French Cinema. In this intimate, in-depth conversation between professional peers, Binoche and Hawke will discuss the experience of working with Kore-eda on his first French-language film, and the process of probing the dynamics of married life and intergenerational family drama in the context of hyperconnected 21st-century life.
Thursday, March 5, 5:00pm
Thursday, March 5, 5:00pm
Exploring Space on FilmAt a moment when we are increasingly looking to the stars for a vision of a future and a path forward, filmmakers around the world have responded by transposing timeless themes of love, loss, family ties, and spiritual transcendence from the earth to the realm of outer space. The result has been a rich bounty of films contemplating what might become of humanity once we leave our planet behind. In this talk, Alice Winocour, director of the astronaut drama Proxima, will explore the variety of approaches that artists have taken to crafting such stories, and how those perspectives differ across countries, genres, genders, and production contexts.
Saturday, March 7, 5:00pm
Saturday, March 7, 5:00pm
Serge Toubiana on Helen ScottCelebrated author Serge Toubiana, president of Unifrance and former director of the Cinematheque française, will discuss the life and work of Helen Scott, subject of his latest book, L'amie américaine. A legendary figure for film buffs on both sides of the Atlantic, Helen Scott is perhaps best known for her passionate work and friendship with François Truffaut, but she led a fascinating and mysterious life all her own. A book signing with Toubiana will follow the talk. Presented in collaboration with Albertine Books.
Sunday, March 8, 3:00pm
Sunday, March 8, 3:00pm
From Book to FilmCinema and literature are deeply interconnected art forms that keep inspiring each other. What are the challenges and implications of adapting a book to the screen, and how does literature nurture cinema? How do films allow creators and audiences not only to revisit but also reimagine familiar narratives? What are the concrete steps one must take to adapt a book? And how can the power of literature and words influence screenwriting and filmmaking? A selection of French and American filmmakers and writers will join to discuss these topics. Presented in partnership with French in Motion and IFP.
Monday, March 9, 5:00pm
Monday, March 9, 5:00pm
Labels: 25TH RENDEZ-VOUS WITH FRENCH CINEMA, Anais Demoustier, Catherine Deneuve, Chiara Mastroianni, Ethan Hawke, Film at Lincoln Center, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Juliette Binoche, THE TRUTH
