11/01/2006

The great discrepancy in French cinema production is evident on the Belgian screens this week. On one hand, Les Films de L'Elysée releases on a single print the historical film by Serge Le Perron, J'ai vu tuer Ben Barka (I saw Ben Barka killed) with Charles Berling, Simon Abkarian and the favoured child of the French Nouvelle Vague, Jean-Pierre Léaud, on the assassination of the Algerian opposition leader. On the other hand, UIP has 13 screens on which to distribute Olé! by Florence Quentin, with Gad Elmaleh and Gérard Depardieu, the comedy that spearheaded French cinema for the holiday period. Europe is also present thanks to a British production from one of its best known filmmakers, Stephen Frears, who renews himself with Mrs Henderson presents, the portrait of a woman and the period which he so magnificently observed in Dangerous Liaisons but it will be available only on one screen, distributed by Alternative Films.

Other than the film from Taiwan’s Tsai Ming-liang, The Wayward Cloud, a highly anticipated film, erotic and irreverent, distributed by Cinéart, most of the screens are covered with American titles but which also testify to the diversity of cinema, since alongside the usual comedies and action films, we find the latest film from the acerbic Sam Mendes, Jarhead, distributed by UIP in 18 theatres and the documentary Inside Deep Throat about the cult pornographic film of the same name which Les films de l'Elysée is making available in only two screens in Flanders.

(Translated from French)