A Pair of French Film Series Available in St. Louis

Underway now, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Department of Foreign Languages and Literature will present seven films as part of its French Film Series throughout the spring semester. All of the films will be presented in French with English subtitles at 6 p.m. on Thursday nights in Peck Hall room 2315B.

Of note (or at least they caught my eye!) is the Three Colors: White, Red, Blue trilogy that has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

• Feb. 25: Jeudi [Girlhood] (dir. Sciamma, 2014)
• March 17: Bleu [Blue] (dir. Kieslowski, 1993)
• March 24: Blanc [White] (dir. Kieslowski, 1994)
• March 31: Rouge [Red] (dir. Kieslowski, 1994)
• April 14: Barbe Bleue [Bluebeard] (dir. Breillat, 2009)

“These films will serve to augment French instruction at SIUE, but we encourage anyone to attend,” said Carolyn Catalano with the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature in the College of Arts and Sciences. “Today’s high level of globalization in our world economy presents many new opportunities for professionals with foreign language skills and cultural fluency.”

Each showing will include a brief introduction and discussion afterwards, and free snacks will be provided. Paid parking is available in the Visitor’s Lot B next to the Morris University Center.

======================================================

The Eighth Annual Robert Classic French Film Festival, Presented by TV5MONDE and sponsored by Jane M. & Bruce P. Robert Charitable Foundation gets under way the first weekend of March. A co-production of Cinema St. Louis and Webster University Film Series, it will screen a series of French Films the first three weekends.

When: March 4-6, 11-13, and 18-20
Where: Webster University’s Winifred Moore Auditorium, 470 E. Lockwood Ave.
How much: $12 general admission; $10 for students, Cinema St. Louis members, and Alliance Française members; free for Webster U. students

The Eighth Annual Robert Classic French Film Festival celebrates St. Louis’ Gallic heritage and France’s cinematic legacy. The featured films span the decades from the 1920s through the early 1990s, offering a comprehensive overview of French cinema.

The fest is annually highlighted by significant restorations, and we’re especially pleased to present Jacques Rivette’s long-unavailable epic “Out 1: Spectre.” Additional restoration highlights include Jean-Luc Godard’s “A Married Woman” and Max Ophüls’ too-little-seen “From Mayerling to Sarajevo.” Both Ophüls’ film and Louis Malle’s “Elevator to the Gallows” – with a jazz score by St. Louis-area native Miles Davis – screen from 35mm prints. Music fans will further delight in the Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra’s accompaniment and original score for Carl Th. Dreyer’s masterful “The Passion of Joan of Arc.” Given recent events in Paris – the Charlie Hebdo massacre and the November 2015 attacks – we thought Mathieu Kassovitz’s prescient “Hate” was an essential choice for this year’s festival; the film will be accompanied by a round-table discussion. The schedule also includes such popular works as “Army of Shadows,” “Diabolique,” “La Cage aux Folles,” and “Rififi.” Every program features introductions and discussions by film scholars and critics.