Photo of the Week
Another view of the Centre Pompidou. Photo © Darren Palmer of Paris by Photo.
Wednesday, 30 May 2012 00:00
Paris Update What's New in Paris
RESTAURANT/CLUB/CAFE
Wanderlust: Finally, part of Les Docks, Cité de la Mode et Design will open to the public on June 6. Brunch on the terrace, take a yoga class, take in a concert or dance all night. 34, quai d'Austerlitz, 75013 Paris.
SHOPS
Stella Cadente: The designer of very feminine clothing and accessories has a new Paris store that's like a gold-lined tunnel. 102 boulevard Beaumarchais, 75011 Paris.
Ecolo-Chic: Pop-up store in the Marais selling ethically resourced products, from toys and design to organic wine. 90, rue des Archives, 75003 Paris.
SMOKING
A new organization, L'Union pour les Droits des Fumeurs Adultes, has been formed to lobby for the rights of French smokers
JUSTIN ON THE ROOFTOPS
Keep your eyes peeled: Justin Bieber will be filming for the Web TV program live@home in an undisclosed location on the rooftops of Paris on the evening of May 31. Click here to win a pass to the taping.
Wednesday, 30 May 2012 00:00
Paris Update Flash News
CAKE THE WAY WE LIKE IT
Goodies on display at Merce and the Muse.
Nowadays, American expatriates in Paris can easily satisfy almost all their nostalgic food cravings, from hamburgers to Reese’s peanut-butter cups or Oreo cookies. Until Merce and the Muse opened in the Upper Marais, however, it wasn’t easy to find good homemade, American-style cakes. The desserts at this homey, flea-market-furnished café are not just good, they are scrumptious and original, made from owner Merce Muse’s own recipes. The other day I shared a slice of chocolate layer cake with vanilla icing and another of pistachio cake with rose icing with a friend, but in truth I wanted to eat all of both of them. 1 bis, rue Dupuis, 75003 Paris. Tel.: 09 53 14 53 04. Open Tues.-Sun. for breakfast, lunch and coffee; brunch on Sunday. Heidi Ellison
Paris Update This Week's Events
For full details about an event, click on its name to visit the official Web site (in English when available).
 Art Saint-Germain-des-Prés
>Left Bank gallery walk. Collective opening, May 31, 6pm. May 31-June 3.
Carré Rive Gauche
>Another Left Bank gallery walk, with 120 participating galleries. June 1-June 3.
Champs-Elysées Film Festival
>A new Franco-American film festival, presided over by Lambert Wilson and Michael Madsen. Various locations, Paris, June 6-12.
Chartre en Lumières
> The town of Chartres illuminates its monuments and the cathedral with colorful light installations. Through Sept. 15.
Designer's Days
>Design shops, galleries, schools and more participate in a city-wide design event. Various locations, Paris, May 31-June 4.
Festival de l'Imaginaire
> Performances by troupes from around the world, Maison des Cultures du Monde, Paris, through June 17.
Festival de Saint Denis
> Music festival featuring both stars like Sir Colin Davis and young talents; ends with a dawn performance by horse whisperer Bartabas and oud player Mehdi Haddab, Cathedral and Legion of Honor, Saint Denis, through June 30.
Festival Extensions
> Concerts, dance, films and more, various locations, Paris and Val de Marne, through May 31.
Festival International des Jardins de Chaumont-sur-Loire
>"Gardens of delights, gardens of delirium" is the theme of this year's garden festival, Chaumont-sur-Loire, through Oct. 21.
Festival Jazz à Saint-Germain-des-Prés
>Jazz acts ranging from amateur to big names like Ahmad Jamal and Yusef Lateef (together). Various locations, Paris, Through June 3.
Le Court en Dit Long
>Festival of short films. Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Paris, June 4-9.
Nomades
>Cultural festival in the third arrondissement; art, poetry, concerts and more. Various locations, Paris, May 31-June 3.
Quinzaine des Réalisateurs
>The features and short subjects entered in this category at the Cannes Film Festival shown in Paris, Forum des Images, Paris, May 31-June 10
Salon du Vin de La Revue du Vin de France
>Annual wine fair. Palais Brongniart, Paris, June 2-3
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La Vie Privée
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Film
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/ Drama
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Created on Tuesday, 17 July 2007 23:00
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Published on Sunday, 22 February 2009 21:45
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Written by Nick Hammond
Unknowable Fragments
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| Photo: © Zé Maria Branco |
| July 18, 2007 |
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One of the magical things about Paris is that you can step into the only cinema where a new French film is showing and discover a gem. I remember a few years ago a film, directed by Olivier Jahan, called Faites Comme si Je n’Etais pas Là (Pretend I’m Not Here), whose title prompted the ticket seller to pointedly ignore me when I asked for a ticket, to her great amusement. The film was a delight, but it disappeared after only two weeks in one cinema, never to be seen again.
La Vie Privée (a very loose adaptation of Henry James’s novella The Private Life) is also showing in only one cinema (the Saint-André-des-Arts) and seemed promising. Directed by Zina Modiano (novelist Patrick Modiano’s daughter), it concerns a young man who joins a group of mysterious people in a house in “le pays noir.” Some of the characters retain the names of the Henry James original, notably the master of the house, Mellifont, played with scene-stealing relish by Darry Cowl (he died soon after making the film).
The main message of the film would seem to be how unknowable people are; some of the characters remain as opaque at the end as they were at the beginning of the film, while others refer to the childhood of the central character, understatedly played by Ouassini Embarek, which he himself cannot remember. Others still (like Mellifont) disappear and reappear at will.
Many of the actors are subtle and engaging, and there are some beautifully composed shots of the countryside and the interior of the house, but overall the film simply does not hang together. It is too fragmented, too uncertain to be genuinely experimental (Modiano plays with various technical tricks, like fading characters out of the image, but lacks the necessary boldness to make it effective).
With a proper budget (this film was visibly made on a shoestring), Modiano may well make more successful films in the future, but in the meantime it is still worth seeking out those small films that make cinema-going in Paris such a unique experience.
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Nick Hammond
© 2007 Paris Update
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