The term ‘muse’ originates from traditional Greek myth. Under the authority of Apollo, the nine muses are believed to be in charge of culture and art. The word ‘museum’ is derieved from Greek ‘mouseion’, referring to temple built for the muses. Female is still a vital source of inspiration today, films included. There are plenty of examples ─ Godard and Anna Karina, Antonioni and Monica Vitti, Kieślowski and Irène Jacob, Wong Kar-wai and Maggie Cheung.

‘Femmes, Femmes, Femmes ─ Imagination of Women in French Cinema’ is the title of Le French May Cinema this year. Female dominates French New Wave cinema as symbols of romance, independence and much more. The captivating Jeanne Moreau in ‘Jules and Jim’; stunningly beautiful Catherine Deneuve in ‘The Umbrellas of Cherbourg’ ; mysterious Isabelle Huppert and Sandrine Bonnaire in ‘A Judgement in Stone’; Audrey Tautou progresses from ‘Venus Beauté Institute’ to her charming yet paranoid character in ‘Amélie’, a recent example is Juliet Binoche in short film ‘The Flight of the Red Balloon’ (directed by Hou Hsiao Hsien) – French female seems to serve the role of being a muse very well.

Five of the twenty selected films in the roster are starring Jeanne Moreau, namely ‘Jeanne Moreau: A Tribute to the Goddess’. The ‘goddess’ herself is going to make a personal appearance at the opening ceremony, as a representative of France.

Text: Vincent Lau | Translation: dilettante | Update: 8 May 2010

Selected Films:

JEANNE MOREAU: A TRIBUTE TO THE GODDESS
Cet amour-là (2001) (Director: Josée Dayan)
Diary of a Chambermaid (1964) (Director: Luis Buñuel)
Bay of Angels (1963) (Director: Jacques Demy)
Jules and Jim (1962) (Director: François Truffaut)
Elevator to the Gallows (1958) (Director: Louis Malle)

MAIN PROGRAMME
(Asian Premiere) The Queen of Clubs (2009) (Director: Jérôme Bonnell)
All About Actresses (2009) (Director: Maiwenn Le Besco)
Sagan (2008) (Director: Diane Kurys)
The Flight of the Red Balloon (2007) (Director: Hou Hsiao Hsien)
The Page Turner (2006) (Director: Denis Dercourt)
The Young Lieutenant (2004) (Director: Xavier Beauvois)
8 Women (2002) (Director: François Ozon)
A Judgment in Stone (1995) (Director: Claude Chabrol)
Queen Margot (1994) (Director: Bruno Nuytten)
Venus Beauté Institute (1999) (Director: Tonie Marshall)
Summer (1986) (Director: Eric Rohmer)
The Hussy (1985) (Director: Claude Miller)
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) (Director: Jacques Demy)

DOCUMENTARIES
The Beaches of Agnès (2008) (Director: Agnes Varda)
Her Name Is Sabine (2007) (Director: Sandrine Bonnaire)

LE FRENCH MAY 2010
frenchmay.com