The ‘French Connection Film Festival' to mark French National Day, will see a slew of award-winning films being screened every day at 6.30 p.m. from July 5 to 9 at the Russian Cultural Centre. Organised by the Alliance Française of Madras and UTV World Movies, in association with the Russian Cultural Centre and ICAF, the festival opens with the first of Krzysztof Kieœlowski's celebrated trilogy, “The Three Colours: Blue”, on July 5. It tells the story of Julie who loses her husband and young daughter in a car accident. She intends to commit spiritual suicide, by withdrawing from the world, living independently and anonymously in the Parisian metropolis. The next day, it's “Three Colours: White”. Karol is a Polish hairdresser working in France, who loves his wife, Dominique, to near-obsession. She, on the other hand, is in the process of divorcing him for his inability to ‘consummate the marriage'. He must fight to resolve his deep passion with his helplessness.
On July 7, you can see the third part, “Three Colors: Red”. Valentine, a young model living in Geneva, comes across a retired judge who spies on his neighbours' phone calls, not for money, but to feed his cynicism.
“Normandie-Niémen”, on July 8, directed by Jean Dréville and Damir Viatich-Berejnykh, relates the arrival of the first twenty pilots for intensive training and the formation of the French squadron in Russia, which fought in the ranks of the Soviet Armed Forces against the Fascist invaders, during the Great Patriotic War of 1941 to 1945.
The closing film is “Amélie”, by Jean-Pierre_Jeunet. Amélie, a shy waitress in a tiny Paris café, is different — she finds happiness in breaking the crust of a crème brûlée, skipping stones on the banks of the Seine, and changing the lives of those around her for the better, while she struggles with her own isolation.
For details, call 2827 9803/ 2827 1477.
