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CinémaTuesdays
Jacques Doillon: L’Émotion
February 3, 10, 17, and 24, 2009
March 3, 10, 17, 24, and 31, 2009

Though the works of Jacques Doillon have at times been under-appreciated by the public and the press, the integrity of his filmmaking has never wavered. Nominated for multiple awards, including best director for The Hussy and The Little Gangster, he is a member of the generation that spawned Jean Eustache and Philippe Garrel. François Truffaut once exclaimed that a Doillon film “gives us the impression that the highest degree of authenticity in acting has now been reached.” Recently recapturing international attention with Just Anybody, Jacques Doillon will be welcomed by FIAF on March 3 to discuss his latest work and his career in filmmaking.

Double Screening
Jacques Doillon:
Words and Emotion

Jacques Doillon–Les mots, l’émotion

Tuesday, February 3 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Anne Brochet & Françoise Dumas, 1998. Color. 52 min.
With Jacques Doillon, Anne Brochet
In French with English subtitles

This documentary on Doillon, shot by longtime collaborators Brochet and Dumas, sketches a uniquely intimate portrait of the director. Filmed in the Grand Hotel in Cabourg—the setting for so many of his films—Doillon is mesmerizing as his passions for storytelling and cinema pulse throughout. An outstanding, essential study.

Family Life
La Vie de famille

Jacques Doillon, 1985. Color. 98 min.
With Juliette Binoche, Sami Frey, Mara Goyet, Juliet Berto
In French with English subtitles

Doillon has always been enormously sympathetic to children, and Family Life is a particularly powerful exploration of a daughter’s fissured relationship with her father, now remarried with a stepdaughter. Through weekend visits and video diaries, the young Elise learns to make time and peace with him and her evolving concept of family.

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The Little Gangster

Le Petit Criminel

Tuesday, February 10 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Jacques Doillon, 1990. Color. 100 min.
With Richard Anconina, Gérald Thomassin, Clotilde Courau
In French with English subtitles

This 1990 recipient of the Prix Louis Delluc tells the tale of a young boy who picks up the phone and hears someone claiming to be his sister—a sister he thought was dead. A raw portrait of youth and one of Doillon’s best. Gérald Thomassin received a César nomination for his portrayal of the intense young brother.

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Ponette

Tuesday, February 17 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Jacques Doillon, 1996. Color. 97 min.
With Victoire Thivisol, Marie Trintignant, Xavier Beauvois
In French with English subtitles

The accidental death of a woman leaves four-year-old Ponette without a mother. Yet Ponette refuses to believe that her mother is gone and longs for their reunion, despite everyone’s assurance that it is impossible. The astonishing performance of Victoire Thivisol as the young girl garnered her and the film awards from the Venice Film Festival and Cannes.

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The Fifteen-Year-Old Girl

La Fille de quinze ans

Tuesday, February 24 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Jacques Doillon, 1989. Color. 100 min.
With Judith Godrèche, Melvil Poupaud, Jacques Doillon
In French with English subtitles

A complicated tale of lust and courtship that centers on Juliette, a teenage girl with a history of bedding older men. She is now dating a boy her age, but the boy’s father (Doillon, in a daring performance) looks to seduce her as well, creating a highly fraught love triangle. The young Melvil Poupaud received a César nomination for Meilleur espoir masculin.

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Meet the Director:
Jacques Doillon presents
Just Anybody
Tuesday, March 3 at 7pm

Esteemed director Jacques Doillon will introduce his acclaimed new work, Just Anybody, and participate in a Q&A session following the screening. 7pm screening only!

Just Anybody

Le Premier Venu

Tuesday, March 3 at 12:30 & 4pm

Jacques Doillon, 2007. Color. 123 min.
With Gérald Thomassin, Clémentine Beaugrand
In French with English subtitles

Doillon’s latest film finds him dealing with emotionally difficult terrain with unerring insight and grace. Camille desperately needs excitement and hopes to find it in Costa, a drifter and deadbeat father. But a local policeman's interest in their relationship (and Costa’s activities) soon threatens their life together. Recipient of the Prix Jean Vigo.

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The Hussy

La Drôlesse

Tuesday, March 10 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Jacques Doillon, 1979. Color. 90 min.
With Madeleine Desdevises, Claude Hébert,
Dominique Besnehard
In French with English subtitles

Outcast from most of society and much of his family, François kidnaps young Mado in an act of despair and longing. Unloved by her own family, Mado finds that her captor also acts as her protector. This seemingly odd pair soon grows close in a way that society cannot comprehend. Awarded the Prix du Jeune Cinéma at the Cannes Film Festival, where Doillon also won Best Director.

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Touched in the Head

Les doigts dans la tête

Tuesday, March 17 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Jacques Doillon, 1974. B&W. 104 min.
With Christophe Soto, Olivier Bousquet,
Roselyne Vuillaume, Ann Zacharias
In French with English subtitles

When Chris is late to work one too many times, he loses his job and must leave his apartment immediately. But a series of conversations with friends (and a roommate he desires) sparks a personal revolution, and he refuses to surrender his home—much to his former employer’s displeasure. Awarded second prize for Best Film at the Chicago International Film Festival.

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The Crying Woman

La femme qui pleure

Tuesday, March 24 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Jacques Doillon, 1979. Color. 90 min.
With Dominique Laffin, Haydée Politoff, Jacques Doillon,
Lola Doillon
In French with English subtitles

Dominique has known about her husband’s mistresses for years but now anxiously demands the affection that he has offered to others. Doillon’s unflinching direction (and performance as the husband) explores the disintegration of a marriage and the splintering of a psyche with unforgettable results. Dominique Laffin received a César nomination for Best Actress.

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Raja

Tuesday, March 31 at 12:30, 4 & 7:30pm

Jacques Doillon, 2003. Color. 112 min.
With Pascal Greggory, Najat Benssallem
In French with English subtitles

Teenage orphan Raja works in the garden of Fred, an older Frenchman. The attention he lavishes on her is tempered by their lack of a common language and her brother’s insistence that she marry his friend. A triumph of filmmaking and storytelling. Benssallem won the Best Actress award at the Venice Film Festival for her honest portrayal of the conflicted Raja.

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Venue
Florence Gould Hall
55 East 59th Street

Ticket Prices
FIAF Members Free* ($2 advance tickets)
Non-Members $10
Students w/ ID $7
*Free tickets are distributed on the day of the event.
Present your membership card at the box office.

Buy Tickets
Ticketmaster.com
Call 212 307 4100

Fax: Order Form (pdf)

Visit: Box Office

Special Offer
Present your ticket and receive a 15% discount on your bill at Bistro 60 (37 E 60 St). Valid only on date printed on ticket.

Curated by Marie Losier, Jacques Doillon, and Nathalie Hubert

Special thanks to Nathalie Hubert, Jacques Doillon, Lou Doillon, Gaumont, Pascale Cassagneau, Connaissance du cinéma, Aude Tournoux, Sandrine Butteaux, Delphine Selles, the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Cinéma at FIAF is made possible with public funds from
the New York State Council on the Arts, a State agency.

CinémaTuesdays is made possible through the generous support
of Lillet.

The FIAF Winter 2009 Season is made possible by support from American Airlines, the official airline of FIAF, the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, Florence Gould Foundation, and the Herbert J. Seligmann Charitable Trust.

Photos courtesy of Photofest