Will French cinema beat Hollywood?

By Gautaman Bhaskaran

CANNES, MAY 8. As the 54th Cannes International Film Festival is all set to begin unspooling a flood of cinema here at the French Riviera tomorrow, France's home-grown movies appear to have won new respectability after years of being hounded out of the theatres by Hollywood.

At the Festival, four French works will compete for the prestigious Golden Palm awards. Ms. Catherine Corsini's ``La Repetition'', Mr. Francois Dupeyron's ``La Chambre des Officiers'', Mr. Cedric Kahn's ``Roberto Succo'' and Mr. Jacques Rivette's ``Va Savoir'' will hopefully give the big Hollywood brigade at Cannes a run for cinematic pride of place.

It may not be very difficult considering the fact that French films have lately changed tracks. Once known for their verbosity and navel depiction, they have dropped these traits for what many critics here feel a suspiciously American style of celluloid grammar. The latest figures state that nearly 19 million people saw French movies in the first two months of this year, and this success is likely to be consolidated in the coming days as popular local fare takes on U.S. imports. For more than a decade, the French cinema was pushed about and browbeaten by Hollywood's hype and hoopla, promoted by big money and enormous campaigns. While American pictures took at least 55 per cent of the weekly box-office receipts, France managed barely 25 per cent.

The worst year was 1999, when even Mr. Gerard Depardieu as Obelix in the film ``Asterix'' could not stop Hollywood from collecting about 65 per cent of the box-office, while French movies could hardly garner 27 per cent. All this happened despite the French Government's almost desperate move to save its own cinema by regulating cultural imports. Cinema has been the main bone of contention, with politicians considering it as an art form rather than an industry. Obviously, it was regarded as a standard bearer for the nation's culture, and was often propped up by liberal subsidies. Such help may or may not have helped, but what seems to have made a distinct difference is the French directors' move to beat Hollywood at its own game. There has been a rise in the number of pictures dealing with fantasies, adventures, crime and comedy. They now show less of men and women being sad, talking endlessly and having sex in the kitchen.

``La Tour Montparnasse'' is a ``chase movie'' set in the city's ugliest skyscraper. A special effects work with Ms. Sophie Marceau, set in the department of Egyptian antiquities at the Louvre has not merely exploited the concept of demographics, but has also captured the youth vote. One critic has been quoted as having said that a reason for the resurgence of French cinema is its bash at diversity. And there has certainly been a vast improvement in quality, which took a beating, after the country's ``New Wave'' directors passed out of the scene.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : International
Previous : Putin cult touches new high
Next     : India creating 'war hysteria': Pak.