"This
March, Geeksboro invites the Triad to ‘Rendez-vouz’ for a week-long festival of
brand new French movies!
Through an exclusive partnership with Unifrance Films and the Film Society of
Lincoln Center in New York, Geeksboro Coffeehouse Cinema will co-host
Rendez-vouz with French Cinema.
Featuring the U.S. premiere of seven French films will be simulcast
across the country. Geeksboro will
screen one brand new film twice daily at 2:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. starting Friday,
March 13 and ending Thursday, March 19.
The week-long festival will kick off on Friday, March 13 with “Charlie Hebdo:
It’s Hard Being Loved by Jerks.” Directed by Daniel Leconte, the documentary
depicts the controversial French publication circa 2005 and the outrage that
ensued when they published twelve cartoons that depicted the Prophet Muhammad.
Completed in 2008, the film is a moving document of the publication before the
January 7 terrorist attack that resulted in the death of 11 people who worked
for the satirical newspaper’s offices.
Tickets for the screenings are only $4 each or $3 for
students with a current school ID. Devoted Francophiles are also able to
purchase a seven0film Festival Pass for only $20.
The seven films premiering at Geeksboro include “Charlie
Hebdo: It’s Hard Being Loved by Jerks” (March 13), “Love at First Fight” (March
14), Stubborn (March 15), Gaby Baby Doll
(March 16), “In the Courtyard” (March 17), and “Eat Your Bones” (March 18).
Geeksboro will present Rendez-vouz with French Cinema as
part of Arthouse Revival, a year long film series sponsored in part by a grant
from ArtsGreensboro. For online tickets or additional info, visit Geeksboro’s
website at
www.Geeksboro.com.
###
The following is a listing of showtimes, dates, titles, and
synopses:
2:30 & 7 p.m.
Friday, March 13th – “Charlie Hebdo: It’s Hard Being Loved by
Jerks” (dir. Daniel Leconte, 110 minutes) - When twelve cartoons depicting
the Prophet Muhammad were published by Denmark’s largest newspaper in 2005,
European muslim groups denounced the cartoons as insulting and sacrilegious. To
everyone's surprise, the protests against the Muhammad drawings took a
worldwide scale, even leading to violent demonstrations in several Muslim
countries. In France, the satirical news magazine Charlie Hebdo joined the
conversation and reprinted the controversial cartoons, causing an uproar among
the country’s growing Muslim population. Months later, the Great Mosque of
Paris, the World Muslim League and the Union of Islamic Organizations of France
took Charlie Hebdo’s editor Philippe Val to court for defamation and incitement
of hatred. It's Hard Being Loved by Jerks offers a real-time account of
the ensuing trial, arguably one most divisive and heated legal proceedings in recent
French history.
2:30 & 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 14th – “Love at First Fight” (aka, “Les Combattants”
dir. Thomas Cailley, 98 minutes) - A triple winner at last year’s Cannes,
where it played in the Directors’ Fortnight, Love at First Fight offers a warm
and refreshing coming-of-age story. Easygoing and naïve Arnaud (Kévin Azaïs)
plans to spend the summer helping his brother in the family carpentry business.
But when he meets Madeleine (Adèle Haenel), a steely young woman determined on
the harshest military service and preoccupied with visions of the apocalypse,
he adoringly follows her to boot camp. Thomas Cailley’s first feature may feel
unmistakably familiar, yet it offers two alluring and empathetic protagonists
(portrayed by equally likable actors), well-wrought humor, and gorgeous
cinematography by David Cailley (the director’s brother). Nominated for nine
César Awards including Best Film. A Strand Releasing release.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bi_wDGwQ9ho
2:30 p.m. & 7
p.m. Sunday, March 15th – “Stubborn” (aka, “Une histoire
Américaine,” dir. Armel Hostiou, 85 minutes) - Artist Barbara (Kate Moran)
tires of her (very) brief relationship with Vincent (Vincent Macaigne) and
leaves him behind in Paris. But the resolute Vincent follows her to America,
determined to win back her affections. Shot in New York in wintertime and
featuring daytime soap veteran and star of HBO’s LOOKING, Murray Bartlett as
Barbara’s new love interest, STUBBORN, like its hero, is unabashedly romantic,
utterly captivating, and often uncomfortably hilarious.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKH7t2xSodk
2:30 p.m. & 7
p.m. Monday, March 16th – “Gaby Baby Doll” (dir. Sophie Letourneur,
88 minutes) - As the awkward, insecure bubbly Gaby, Lolita Chammah suggests
a Gallic Greta Gerwig in one of her not-quite-formed-adult roles. Upon arriving
in the country, she’s promptly discarded by her boyfriend, and as solitude is
not an option, the companionship-starved Gaby seeks out a replacement. She
finds it in Nicolas (Benjamin Biolay), a seemingly hirsute vagabond whose shack
she invites herself to share.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGPj7k4i0t0
2:30 p.m. & 7
p.m. Tuesday, March 17th – “Hippocrates” (aka, “Hippocrate,” dir.
Thomas Lilti, 102 minutes) - Novice doctor Benjamin (Vincent Lacoste),
interning in his father’s ward, makes a rookie mistake that costs a patient his
life. The administration quickly covers up his wrongdoing, but the dead man’s
wife begins asking questions and Benjamin’s overworked colleagues resent his
nepotism. Lilti’s biting dramedy posits that “Hippocratic” and “hypocrite”
share more than linguistic affinities. Nominated for seven César Awards
including Best Film. A Distrib Films release.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qD3Bilgnfw
2:30 p.m. & 7
p.m. Wednesday, March 18th – “In the Courtyard” (aka, “Dans la
Cour,” dir. Pierre Salvadori, 97 minutes) - National treasure Catherine
Deneuve sinks her teeth into the role of Mathilde, a former social worker
inhabiting an upscale apartment with her husband Serge (Féodor Atkine). When
slovenly musician Antoine (Gustave Kervern) applies by chance for a caretaker
job in their building, Mathilde insists Serge hire him, despite his rough
manners and lack of qualifications. An unlikely friendship develops between the
depressed custodian and the elegant retiree, whose dependence on Antoine
increases as her grasp on reality begins to slip. A Cohen Media Group release.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5OG_bEWzDI
2:30 p.m. & 7
p.m. Thursday, March 19th – “Eat Your Bones” (aka, “Mange tes morts”
dir. Jean-Charles Hue, 94minutes) - Eighteen-year-old Jason (Jason
François), on the verge of baptism, finds his values tested when half-brother
Fred (Frédéric Dorkel) returns from a 15-year prison stint anything but
rehabilitated. The two, along with a third brother and a cousin, team up to
steal a truckload of copper, but they prove to be inept criminals and unstable
partners. Received the 2014 Prix Jean Vigo, awarded annually to one director by
the Cinema of France “for their spirit of independence and extraordinary
style.”
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwWR3FIqErk"
- A Press Release
