Howard Who?

Bonjour! 

This is one of those self-fulfilling prophecies, the kind where because something is on your mind it starts to show up everywhere you look.

It all started with France and possible trips there and associations with people I know. And then it became, “Gosh, why is every movie that seems to be coming out taking place in France?” It’s a phenomenon that I’d like to share with you.

First there was the gateway, the film Paris, Je T’aime (Paris, I Love You). As the title promises, it’s about how varied and lovable and lively the city of Paris is. However, it takes some pains to present a very non-touristy vision of the city, avoiding too many shots of the Eiffel Tower and Louvre and instead focusing on random streets and lesser known landmarks that however are still recognizable to the average Parisienne.

And it expands the vision of Paris too by employing over a dozen filmmakers representing many countries and filmmaking styles from around the world. While I find it a shame to give the “Chinese” entry to Christopher Doyle (an exceptionally talented cinematographer but otherwise a very dull director), it was also inspired to give Alexander Payne the final entry with the self-narrated story of a woman who finds herself. Overall, a very enjoyable experience, especially since each short film promises to end soon if it proves to be intolerable.

Paris, Je T’aime trailer

Well, a film about Paris seems harmless enough given that this is what it is meant to be about. But what about say a movie like Rush Hour 3, which is supposed to be about either black culture or asian culture or the black/asian cultural nexus mixed in with action scenes. In any event, it has nothing to do with Paris.

But lo and behold, Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker must go there with the only French they know seeming to be “Voulez-vous coucher avec moi?” Anyways, it looks good enough as I have a sore spot for Jackie, whose early films (Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow, Drunken Master, Young Master, Fearless Hyena, etc.) I couldn’t get enough of in high school.

Rush Hour 3 trailer

And in a similar vein, Mr. Bean decides that of all places he wins a ticket to go to France. Of course, this easily will allow for simple reductive frog jokes about the snobbiness of the cuisine and art scenes. Okay, that’s fine…I’ll buy it reluctantly.

Mr. Bean’s Holiday trailer

I once theorized that all Disney films had to have at least one French joke, usually in the form of a silly character that pops up flamboyantly like the chef in The Little Mermaid or the French thief that Mr. Incredible (Monsieur Incroyable!) must stop. Well, Pixar took out the middleman and made a film about Paris and fine dining…in a positive light.

Ratatouille is my favorite film of the year thus far and probably my favorite Pixar film. And if Paris, Je T’aime aimed to give an insider’s view of Paris, Ratatouille imagines Paris as the place we all romance, where passions, food and wine, and great views are never far away. When Remy looks longingly at the Eiffel Tower laden panorama and sighs, I feel it.

Ratatouille trailer

Perhaps the strangest but most poignant example of Francophilia hitting my radar was in finding out that one of my favorite Taiwanese directors, Hou Hsiao Shien, was making a film there. What is even more striking is that it is shot in French with Juliette Binoche and is a remake of the French Classic The Red Balloon.

Now, I remember watching the original Red Balloon in French class. And never would I believe that a Taiwanese guy would be called up to redo something of a cultural landmark in French cinema. Of course, Hou’s pedigree runs very high as he’s probably one of a handful of the very best living filmmakers in the world today. And it’s certainly not completely unprecendented to see a Taiwanese filmmaker kick this idea around…Tsai Ming Liang’s What Time is it There? was half shot in Paris and even cameoed Jean Pierre Leaud who was Traffaut’s cinematic alter-ego for many years. But still, this was yet another example of how the City of Lights will simply not leave me alone!

Ballon Rouge trailer

I leave you with a part of French composer Camille Saint-Saen’s Carnival of Animals…the Aquarium part that is often quoted and copied in film scores. It seems to capture the magic (or haunting nature), the je ne sais pas, of Paree.

Carnival of Animals (excerpt) - Saint-Saens

This entry was posted on Friday, July 6th, 2007 at 8:11 am and is filed under Uncategorized, Classical Music, Movies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.