KinoTopia 059: The French Film Festival 2024
We tell you what films will be bon and what will be merde
Alliance Française French Film Festival
Screening in Palace cinemas around Melbourne until April 2. Program here.
Words by Andrew Tabacco
Another March, another Alliance Française French Film Festival (AFFF). With what seems a relatively low-key program compared to festival’s past instalments, KinoTopia festival attache Andrew Tabacco reveals what’s hot and what’s not in the festival’s final days. In what has already been a bumper decade for the inventors of cinema, with two Palme d'Or wins, (Titane 2021, Anatomy of a Fall (2023)), a Golden Lion (Happening (2021)), two consecutive Golden Bears (On the Adamant (2023), Mati Diop’s Dahomey (2024)) and five Quentin Dupieux films, how does this year’s AFFF stack up and does its 2024 selection have that certain je ne sais quoi?
Like previous years, the AFFF presents philes of the Franco and cine variety with a familiar selection. Think food comedies, uplifting stories about pensioners, rich folk in the countryside bickering, and probably an inspiring sports story about a down and out suburban rugby or soccer team. Also familiar to AFFF viewers will be a glut of deep cuts from the Cannes’ bigger than you realise program, star vehicles with all your favourite femmes including Isabelle Huppert, Laure Calamy, Juliette Binoche, and Catherine Deneuve and at least one film connected (either by star, producer, or writer) to the hit TV show Call My Agent.
Most likely a by-product of a Cannes with a noticeable gulf between excellent and middling French selections, it seems the country that produces 300+ films a year hasn’t resulted in especially strong picking for AFF programmers.
In the AFFF’s ‘Cannes Spotlight’ section, it’s hard to look past Trần Anh Hùng’s The Taste of Things. Winning the Best Director at Cannes and France’s Oscar nomination, Trần Anh Hùng new film seems a match made in heaven for the AFFF. An adaptation of Marcel Rouff’s novel “The Life and Passion of Dodin-Bouffant, Gourmet”, Hùng’s sensual period cooking romance starring Juliette Binoche ticks literally every box to be an AFFF smash. The other film that competed for the Palme is legendary French director Catherine Breillat’s Last Summer. Causing waves on the Croisette, the queen of transgressive sexual cinema’s new film should be on the ‘to watch’ for those who like dramas seamy.
Moving away from bigger Cannes titles, Cannes Critic Week’s winner Ama Gloria, is as devastating as it is adorable. Newcomer Marie Amachoukeli-Barsacq’s film about a child’s bond with their nanny is a deeply moving exploration of connection and loss. Crucially for prospective viewers looking for something to watch over the Easter weekend, it likely won’t be coming to a cinema near you after it finishes its festival run. Another film that may be ending its Australian life after the festival is the ‘offbeat period drama’ from Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section, Rosalie. Starring Nadia Tereszkiewicz, French starlet in the making that bounced onto the arthouse scene in Dominik Moll’s Only the Animals, Rosalie is a feminist-inflected sensual period biopic about a woman who isn’t keen to conform. Another Cannes curiosity is Quebecoise romantic comedy The Nature of Love; directed by Monia Chokri (of Xavier Dolan fame), the film is a return to form for the Canadian director and could be a raunchier alternative to some of the comedies the AFFF has on offer.
For Cannes completionists, AFFF has on offer a number of deep-cuts that probably shouldn’t have played at the festival. These films include the maths biopic starring the sister character in Ducournau’s Raw (Ella Rumpf), Marguerite's Theorem and the extremely mushy period melodrama Along Came Love. Other films that graced the Croisette before making their way to Naarm include the Cannes opener Jeanne Du Barry featuring a very bloated Johnny Depp seemingly fresh from his court case and the ‘sci-fi fantasy dramatic adventure film’ that divided critics - The Animal Kingdom.
There are also a number of French films that came from the 2023 Venice Film Festival, two of which star arthouse queen Isabelle Huppert. Firstly, Huppert, who is not particularly known for choosing roles based on potential cultural insensitivity (see Mama Weed), stars in Venice Days’ (Lido’s equivalent Cannes’ Director’s Fortnight) film Sidonie in Japan. In a film that does not live up to its delicious pitch–Isabelle Huppert in Japan–Sidonie in Japan is instead a quaint and at times culturally insensitive bore that seemingly forgets to highlight the almost endless list of good things about Japan, or for that matter Isabelle Huppert. For those who want Huppert on her home turf should look toward The Sitting Duck. A tense political whistleblower thriller grounded in fact, Huppert effectively takes on the world in possibly her best performance since Elle (2016).
For those wanting something lighter, there is no shortage of low stakes French content to help you at least briefly forget your problems. Conversely to most of the titles already mentioned, this pre-viewer hasn’t seen any of the comedies on show at this year’s festival, so here are the ones that look the most interesting. Starring Vincent Lambert, of Paul Verhoeven’s Benedetta and The Matrix fame, is A Great Friend - a culinary buddy comedy that screams AFFF crowd-pleaser. It wouldn’t be an AFFF without Laure Calamy (Full Time, Two Tickets to Greece, My Donkey, My Lover and I) and the most versatile actress in possibly all of Europe is starring in Iris and the Men, which looks to be yet another French comedy about navigating desire and sex later in life.
Lastly, I would be remiss not to mention the two repertory titles in this year’s program, the closing night film Children of Paradise and the overbearingly French hit film The Intouchables. Starring Omar Sy as an ex-con turned carer and Francois Cluzet as a rich man who becomes a quadriplegic in a paragliding accident, The Intouchables took over the world a little over a decade ago and is sure to be a hit again at the AFFF for those happy to overlook the very dated odd-couple trope explored in the film. Finishing off the festival is a film widely regarded as one of the greatest French Films of all time, Children of Paradise. Marcel Carné’s two-part film shot during the Nazi occupation of Paris is a landmark piece of cinema and will be one of the AFFF’s highlights for the year.
Never known for its boundary pushing programming, the AFFF’s selection does what it does best - cater to the ravenous swathes of francophones in Australia desperate for a little ‘joie de vivre’. Although there are some noticeable omissions to the program, including the feverishly tense horror film about a spider infestation in Vermines, Wiseman’s four-hour observational documentary on a 3 Hatted French restaurant in Menus Plaisirs - Les Troisgros or even either of Dupiex’s two 2023 films Yannick or Daaaaaalí! (which were both surprisingly quite good), there are still some strong offerings for those who dare to look.
WEEKLY FILM LISTINGS
March 21 - March 27
Matinees
The Zone of Interest
Jonathon Glazer, 2023
Screening Fri-Sun
No screening this week
Heat
Michael Mann, 1995
Screening Thurs Mar 28
The Blues Brothers
John Landis, 1980
Screening Fri March 29
Pulp Fiction
Quentin Tarantino, 1994
Screening Sat 30 March
Children of Paradise
Marcel Carné, 1945
Screening Sun 31 March
The Muppet Movie
James Frawley, 1979
Screening Sun 31 March
Chinatown
Roman Polanski, 1974
Screening Mon 1 April
BBBC CINEMA (GALLERYGALLERY BRUNSWICK)
Uncertain whether it will return (you’ll be the first to hear)
Inception
Christopher Nolan, 2010
Screening Thurs 28 Mar
Dune Part 1
+
Dune Part 2
Denis Villeneuve, 2021-2023
Screening Fri 29 Mar
Some Like it Hot
Billy Wilder, 1959
Screening Sat 20 Mar
CHINATOWN CINEMA
I Miss You
Yan Han, 2024
Screening alt days
Yolo
Jia Ling, 2024
Screening alt days
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom
Mitsuo Fukuda, 2024
Screening alt days
CINÉ-CLUB (Carlton)
No screening this week
No screening this week
In season
Perfect Days
Wim Wenders, 2023
Screening Daily
Io Capitano
Matteo Garrone, 2023
Screening Daily
Wicked Little Letters
Thea Sharrock, 2024
Screening Daily
Exuma
Jang Jae-hyun, 2024
Screening Daily
20 Days in Mariupol
Mstyslav Chernov, 2023
Screening Daily
You’ll Never Find Me
Josiah Allen & Indianna Bell, 2024
Screening Daily
Love Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass, 2024
Screening Daily
How to Have Sex
Molly Manning Walker, 2023
Screening Daily
The Great Escaper
Oliver Parker, 2023
Screening Daily
Dune: Part 2
Denis Villeneuve, 2024
Screening Daily
Subtraction
Mani Haghighi, 2022
Screening Daily
Club Zero
Jessica Hauser, 2023
Screening Daily
Four Daughters
Kaouther Ben Hania, 2023
Screening Daily
Drive Away Dolls
Ethan Coen, 2024
Screening Daily
The Rooster
Mark Leonard Winter, 2023
Screening Daily
The Zone of Interest
Jonathan Glazer, 2023
Screening Daily
Fallen Leaves
Aki Kaurismäki, 2023
Screening Daily
Force of Nature: The Dry 2
Robert Connolly, 2023
Screening Daily
Bob Marley: One Love
Reinaldo Marcus Green, 2023
Screening Daily
Dune Part I
Denis Villeneuve, 2021
Screening daily
May December
Todd Haynes, 2023
Screening Daily
Anatomy of a Fall
Justine Triet, 2023
Screening Daily
Priscilla
Sofia Coppola, 2023
Screening Daily
The Iron Claw
Sean Durkin, 2023
Screening Daily
All of Us Strangers
Andrew Haigh, 2023
Screening Daily
Ferrari
Michael Mann, 2023
Screening Daily
The Holdovers
Alexander Payne, 2023
Screening Daily
Anatomy of a Fall
Justine Triet, 2023
Screening Daily
Poor Things
Yorgos Lanthimos, 2023
Screening Daily
The Boy and the Heron
Hayao Miyazaki, 2023
Screening Daily
Saltburn
Emerald Fennell, 2023
Limited
Past Lives
Celine Song, 2023
Limited
DOGMILK DEGUSTATIONS: @ Miscellania
New Pessimism: Tropic Frontiers
Becquerel (19 mins)
Garden Amidst the Flame (27 mins)
Notes from Gog Magog (19 mins)
Of Other Tomorrows Never Known (16 mins)
Wednesday, April 3rd
DOORS @ 7pm
FILM @ 8pm
Tickets on door $10
FOMO CINEMAS BRUNSWICK EAST
Immaculate
Michael Mohan, 2024
Screening Daily
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom
Mitsuo Fukuda, 2024
Screening Daily
The Great Escaper
Oliver Parker, 2023
Screening Daily
Love Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass, 2024
Screening Fri
Dune: Part 2
Denis Villeneuve, 2024
Screening Daily
Dune: Part 1
Denis Villeneuve, 2024
Screening Daily
Bob Marley: One Love
Reinaldo Marcus Green, 2023
Screening Daily
Argylle
Matthew Vaughn, 2024
Screening Daily
The Colour Purple
Blitz Bazawule, 2023
Screening Daily
Force of Nature: The Dry 2
Robert Connolly, 2023
Screening Daily
Priscilla
Sofia Coppola, 2023
Screening Daily
The Iron Claw
Sean Durkin, 2023
Screening Daily
Poor Things
Yorgos Lanthimos, 2023
Screening Daily
The Boy and the Heron
Hayao Miyazaki, 2023
Screening Daily
Back for another year - stay tuned!
GAY24 (Bar Flippy’s)
No screening this week
HITLIST (9 Gertrude St, Fitzroy)
Italia (5pm - 9.15pm)
Program here
Perfect Days
Wim Wenders, 2023
Screening Daily
Io Capitano
Matteo Garrone, 2023
Screening Daily
Immaculate
Michael Mohan, 2024
Screening Daily
Wicked Little Letters
Thea Sharrock, 2024
Screening Daily
Exuma
Jang Jae-hyun, 2024
Screening Daily
Love Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass, 2024
Screening Fri
The Great Escaper
Oliver Parker, 2023
Screening Daily
How to Have Sex
Molly Manning Walker, 2023
Screening Daily
Dune: Part 2
Denis Villeneuve, 2024
Screening Daily
Subtraction
Mani Haghighi, 2022
Screening Daily
Club Zero
Jessica Hauser, 2023
Screening Daily
Four Daughters
Kaouther Ben Hania, 2023
Screening Daily
Drive Away Dolls
Ethan Coen, 2024
Screening Daily
The Rooster
Mark Leonard Winter, 2023
Screening Daily
The Zone of Interest
Jonathan Glazer, 2023
Screening Daily
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person
Ariane Louis-Seize, 2023
Screening Daily
Bob Marley: One Love
Reinaldo Marcus Green, 2023
Screening Daily
Force of Nature: The Dry 2
Robert Connolly, 2023
Screening Daily
Dune Part I
Denis Villeneuve, 2021
Screening daily
May December
Todd Haynes, 2023
Screening Daily
Riceboy Sleeps
Anthony Shim, 2024
Screening Daily
Argylle
Matthew Vaughn, 2024
Screening Daily
Anatomy of a Fall
Justine Triet, 2023
Screening Daily
The Colour Purple
Blitz Bazawule, 2023
Screening Daily
Priscilla
Sofia Coppola, 2023
Screening Daily
The Iron Claw
Sean Durkin, 2023
Screening Daily
All of Us Strangers
Andrew Haigh, 2023
Screening Daily
The Holdovers
Alexander Payne, 2023
Screening Daily
Mean Girls
Samantha Jayne, Arturo Perez Jr., 2024
Screening Daily
Poor Things
Yorgos Lanthimos, 2023
Screening Daily
Anyone but You
Will Gluck, 2023
Screening Daily
The Boy and the Heron
Hayao Miyazaki, 2023
Screening Daily
OVA CLUB
No screening this week
THE MELBOURNE CINÉMATHÈQUE (ACMI)
Sudden Heat
David Miller, 1952
+
Crossfire
Edward Dymtryk 1947
Screening Wed 27 March
TOP OF THE HEAP (Tramway Hotel)
No screening this week
MELBOURNE HORROR FILM SOCIETY @ LONG PLAY (North Fitzroy)
No screening this week
MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY: SCREENING IDEAS
No screening this week
PALACE BALWYN / BRIGHTON / COMO / KINO / PENTRIDGE / MOONEE PONDS / WESTGARTH
French Film Festival
Program Here
Perfect Days
Wim Wenders, 2023
Screening Daily
Io Capitano
Matteo Garrone, 2023
Screening Daily
Wicked Little Letters
Thea Sharrock, 2024
Screening Daily
Love Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass, 2024
Screening Daily
How to Have Sex
Molly Manning Walker, 2023
Screening Daily
The Great Escaper
Oliver Parker, 2023
Screening Daily
Dune: Part 2
Denis Villeneuve, 2024
Screening Daily
Drive Away Dolls
Ethan Coen, 2024
Screening Daily
The Zone of Interest
Jonathan Glazer, 2023
Screening Daily
Fallen Leaves
Aki Kaurismäki, 2023
Screening Daily
Bob Marley: One Love
Reinaldo Marcus Green, 2024
Screening from Valentine’s Day
Dune Part I
Denis Villeneuve, 2021
Screening daily
May December
Todd Haynes, 2023
Screening Daily
Anatomy of a Fall
Justine Triet, 2023
Screening Daily
Priscilla
Sofia Coppola, 2023
Screening Daily
The Iron Claw
Sean Durkin, 2023
Screening Daily
All of Us Strangers
Andrew Haigh, 2023
Screening Daily
The Holdovers
Alexander Payne, 2023
Screening Daily
Poor Things
Yorgos Lanthimos, 2023
Screening Daily
The Boy and the Heron
Hayao Miyazaki, 2023
Screening Daily
No screening this week
Perfect Days
Wim Wenders, 2023
Screening Daily
Io Capitano
Matteo Garrone, 2023
Screening Daily
Wicked Little Letters
Thea Sharrock, 2024
Screening Daily
Love Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass, 2024
Screening Daily
How to Have Sex
Molly Manning Walker, 2023
Screening Daily
The Great Escaper
Oliver Parker, 2023
Screening Daily
Dune: Part 2
Denis Villeneuve, 2024
Screening Daily
Drive Away Dolls
Ethan Coen, 2024
Screening Daily
The Zone of Interest
Jonathan Glazer, 2023
Screening Daily
Force of Nature: The Dry 2
Robert Connolly, 2023
Screening Daily
Dune Part I
Denis Villeneuve, 2021
Screening daily
Bob Marley: One Love
Reinaldo Marcus Green, 2024
Screening Daily
May December
Todd Haynes, 2023
Screening Daily
Anatomy of a Fall
Justine Triet, 2023
Screening Daily
The Colour Purple
Blitz Bazawule, 2023
Screening Daily
Priscilla
Sofia Coppola, 2023
Screening Daily
The Iron Claw
Sean Durkin, 2023
Screening Daily
All of Us Strangers
Andrew Haigh, 2023
Screening Daily
Ferrari
Michael Mann, 2023
Screening Daily
The Holdovers
Alexander Payne, 2023
Screening Daily
Poor Things
Yorgos Lanthimos, 2023
Screening Daily
The Boy and the Heron
Hayao Miyazaki, 2023
Screening Daily
Perfect Days
Wim Wenders, 2023
Screening Daily
Io Capitano
Matteo Garrone, 2023
Screening Sat, Sun, Wed
Wicked Little Letters
Thea Sharrock, 2024
Screening Fri, Sat, Sun, Wed
Love Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass, 2024
Screening Thurs, Sat, Tues,
Late Night with the Devil
Cairnes Brothers, 2023
Screening Fri 29 March (Sold Out)
UNKNOWN PLEASURES
No screening this week