2010 French Film Festival: Final Tally

I managed to watch 10 out of a possible 12 films. I'm pretty sure that some of the regular senior citizens completed all 12. :)

The last two films I watched today were L' Heure d' ete' (Summer Hours) and L' Imortel (22 Bullets). I think it was a good way to end the festival as they were rather light, theme-wise, compared to the others I saw earlier. I'll probably remember 22 Bullets due to the fact that it was a violent action film with Jean Reno. Summer Hours, on the other hand, will probably be memorable to me because of an eye candy cast member.

Favorite Films for this festival:
Welcome and La Graine et le Mulet.

Side note: 

1. The Ip Man 2 trailer looks interesting. I think I saw a bit of the movie while going home on the bus a few weeks back. Sammo Hong versus Donnie Yen on a table equals awesomeness.
2. Japanese Film fest at Shangri-la Mall starts next month. ^_^

Day 10: Brilliante Mendoza's Lola

as seen during day 10 of the French Film Festival @Shang.

Yay:
- Mandaluyong City.
- Grandma lying and cheating to get her grandson out of jail.
- No over-dramatics.
- Subtleties with regard to Mateo's stance of being imprisoned, and the foreigners' discussion while riding the PNR.

Meh:
- Themes were not that interesting for me; it might be to others though.
- Mateo looked rather clean cut compared to the other inmates he was with.
- No subtitles.

Boo:
- None.

Other stuff:
- Mendoza was there and gave a short speech.

Day 4: Of Grains and Knees

Day 4 of the French film festival@Shangri-la Mall. Only got to watch  Le Genou De Claire (Claire's Knee) and  La Graine et le Mulet (Secret of the Grain) which brings my total to 7 out of 12 films.

I wasn't able to watch L’Heure d’été (Summer Hours) as there were no tickets left for the show.

Both films were enjoyable, but I'm tired of watching the same 10+ trailers every showtime. In no particular order:

1. The Last Airbender <= yay
2. The Sorcerer's Apprentice <= 50-50 on this one
3. Guardians of Ga'hoole
4. Despicable Me <= mebbe watching
5. Chloe <= curious
6. Letters to Juliet <= how many movies does she have this year?
7. The Hole (in 3D)
8. Twilight: Eclipse <= DIAFF
9. Toy Story 3
10. Karate Kid <= Jack-ET off. That's what she said.
11. Knight and Day

I think that's all of it. Mom says that was the same complaint I've lodged ever since I started watching film fests at Shang.

Le Genou De Claire: I  think Aurora was kickass. The actress playing Claire was cute.
La Graine et le Mulet: Good film. It has a nice build-up and makes you root for the characters. Showed Murphy's Law in action. Includes a belly dancing scene near the end. Family drama.

And then there were seven

Day 3 of the French Film Festival@Shangri-la Mall.

Watched four films:
La Fille du RER: Twas okay. BF of lead character looked like a cast member of Grey's Anatomy.

Le Premier Venu: I kinda fell asleep for a few minutes on this one. It did make me think that this was probably what Facebook's "It's Complicated" would be like. Cute lead; reminded me a bit of Milla Jovovich with short hair.

Welcome: First fave of those I've seen so far. Presents immigration, culture, drive, and relationships as major focus points.

Dans La Vie: Another good one I'd recommend. Topic focuses on people getting along despite religious backgrounds (Jews and Arabs).

 
Other things that may be of interest:
1) Free Selecta ice cream (Almond Chocolate something or Coffee whats-its)
2) Audience eye candy. Yep.

Family Planning Clinic = stressful job

Day 2 of French film festival at Shangri-la Mall.
Movie watched:  Les Bureaux de Dieu (God's Offices)

It was a good movie. It basically showed interviews between the clinic staff and the patients they get, as well as some of a clinic's day to day operations. The film states that the stories were based on selected anecdotes from real cases encountered in family planning/contraceptive clinics in France from the year 2000 to 2007.

It really isn't the type of movie for those who are looking for heavy drama or laughs but there are some funny moments. There were a number of people who left the theater so it may have either offended their sensibilities, or they found it boring. I'd recommend the film for those people, particularly women, who may want to have a glimpse of how these clinics work, and who may be interested in the types of questions received.

Day 3, and the first film for tomorrow will be in around 12 hours as of this posting.

By the way, the grandma who was first in line to go in the theater rawks.