Bertolucci the Parisian

10/12/2003

150 prints of The Dreamers [+see also:
trailer
interview: Bernardo Bertolucci
film profile], the la test film by Bernardo Bertolucci are being released in French cinemas from today. This intimate portrait of Paris in 1968 was presented out of competition at the 2003 Venice Film Festival, and at the time it was greeted with great enthusiasm by the French critics.

The film was shot in the French capital the summer of 2002, and stars two young french actors (Eva Green and Louis Garrel) and the American Michael Pitt. The Dreamers is a European film, a French majority share co-production (55% - Peninsula films), with funding coming from Britain (25% - RPC The Dreamers Ltd) and Italy (20% - Fiction Film) and it’s total budget was €13.99m. It is being distributed in France by TFM in a solid, but prudent combination of prints, and the film is being seen as a test-bed to confirm the impact of European art house cinema on the French public.

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But The Dreamers will be facing tough competition at the French box office this weekend. Today also sees the release of two mainstream film comedies: Ripoux 3 by Claude Zidi, starring Philippe Noiret, Thierry Lhermitte and Lorant Deutsch, distributed by GBVI in 606 prints, and Les clefs de la bagnole, directed by and starring the TV comedian Laurent Baffie, distributed by Rezo Films in 250 prints. In addition, it’s also the time of year for the release of the American blockbusters for kids.
As far as the French box office is concerned, the British film Love actually [+see also:
trailer
film profile] has had a positive opening (an audience of 250,000 for the 344 screens showing the film over the first five days) but it hasn’t seen the big success it has enjoyed in other European countries. Pas sur la bouche by Alain Resnais has gained an audience of 173,000 from 308 screens, while the big budget Michel Vaillant hasn’t met all the expectations following its grand launch (504 prints), gaining an audience of 783,000. These figures have been significantly superceded by Ruby and Quentin, which has been seen by more than 3 million people.