Sunday, May 13, 2007

French movie junkie

I watch about one or two French movies a month. That's about 20 a year, give or take a few. I'm thinking that's more than the average non-French person's annual requirement.

I'm not exactly sure what it is about French cinema that I like the most. It could be just listening to the language. (Aside: I once followed a French couple all over my neighborhood just to listen to them speak.) It could be the Parisian backdrop (although Wasabi is set in Tokyo). It could be the constant intropsection of the characters and the extra minutes allotted to character development. It could be the bizarre plots (Cache is THE MOST bizarre movie ever).

What I do like about French movies is the slightly alternate perspective almost all the directors of French films manage to capture in about 3 minutes. There's this mood they want to pull you into. It's not just the story or the characters. It's a state of mind.

If you watch and enjoy French cinema, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you don't, you think (pardon my French) that I'm talking out of my ass.

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