Serge-fest

Last Sunday, Verity and I went to a free screening of the Gainsbourg film. For some reason it's been re-titled Je T'aime... Moi Non Plus for the English speaking market, perhaps to make it more accessible to a new audience by referencing the one song most people know from his back-catalogue. But definitely a bit confusing for anyone who knows a bit more about Gainsbourg and has knowledge of his own 1976 directed film Je T'aime... Moi Non Plus.

I picked up this glossy little pamphlet at the cinema:



I won't spoil the film for anyone who's not seen it yet, but it was definitely a better viewing experience than when I first saw it on a longhaul flight (on a six-inch screen with altitude sickness and jumbo-jet engines roaring in the background). Joann Sfar has used his artistic-license in building the Gainsbourg narrative around the myths and tales that make Serge's life so colourful. There is much spinning of yarns and embellishing of myths, which turn what could've been a straight-down-the-line biopic into an almost fantastical, hallucinatory tale.

Later that evening, we reacquainted ourselves with some a little Serge-fest on DVD, comme ça...

Gainsbourg free screenings this Sunday

See page 7 of today's Guardian Guide cinema listings for details...

rendez-vous with French Cinema

This week, London's Institut Francais presents a Rendez-vous with French Cinema. It Starts tomorrow, when they will show what must be the debut UK screening of Gainsbourg: Vie Heroique at the Curzon Soho. I can't make it myself, but I did get a sneak preview of the film and it's definitely been worth waiting for. I'm in London on Friday so the new print of Breathless (À bout de souffle) might be on the cards.

"The event dedicated to French cinema returns to London this June. A showcase of the crème of French films, this year’s Rendez-vous with French Cinema will take place from Tuesday 8 June to Friday 11 June, at London’s Curzon Soho and the Ciné Lumière, plus one special screening at the BFI Southbank. Six French films, representing the strength and rich diversity of French production, past and present, will be given special Gala screenings open to the public, ahead of their release by UK distributors. Directors, both the young and the renowned, will be present alongside up and coming actors and more established stars, to introduce their films and discuss them with the public at post-screening Q&As. So far confirmed to attend are actors Kristin Scott-Thomas, Louis-Ronan Choisy plus directors Radu Mihaileanu, François Ozon, Catherine Corsini and Joann Sfar."

Dim lights

screenings

Tuesday 8 June
6.15pm: GAINSBOURG @ Curzon Soho
9.00pm: LEAVING @ Curzon Soho

Wednesday 9 June
6.15pm: THE CONCERT @ Curzon Soho
9.00pm: THE REFUGE @ Curzon Soho

Thursday 10 June
6.20pm: WILD GRASS @ BFI South Bank
8.30pm: THE CONCERT @ Ciné Lumière

Friday 11 June
6.30pm: BREATHLESS: 50TH ANNIVERSARY @ Ciné Lumière

more Charlotte and Serge

More Gainsbourg news...
There was an interview with Charlotte Gainsbourg in last Sunday's Observer.

And just yesterday The Independent ran a feature on the forthcoming Serge Gainsbourg film Vie Heroique.

And, of course, it looks like the film won't be released in the UK until September, and it will probably only then get an ultra-limited release. So we'll just have to make do with the teasers being released on the official website and YouTube, plus news trickling through via this fan blog I came across earlier today: gainsbourgfilm.blogspot.com.

B.B. + Serge = Bonnie and Clyde

Serge and Jane: Le Canari (Jane must have forgotten her P.E. kit that day, so Serge made her do it in her pants and vest)

Apparition de la Gueule (Serge's alter-ego rears his ugly head - a creepy hybrid of Frank Sidebottom and Mr Noseybonk)