French Film Festival

Warwick Arts Centre offers its visitors a taste of French cinema through its participation in the 19th UK French Film Festival. Joining this UK-wide celebration of Francophone cinema, we offer a collection of four new French films between Fri 2 Dec and Tue 6 Dec. Warwick Arts Centre is the only venue in the Midlands offering this rare opportunity to catch films that would never be shown in mainstream cinemas in the UK.

Our selection of films has something to tempt every kind of cinema-lover. Michel Leclerc’s The Names of Love is an amusing and unlikely love story between a straight-laced conservative and a free spirit liberal who are as different as two people can be. When opposites attract in this light-hearted romance, sparks fly! The Well-Digger’s Daughter sees Daniel Auteuil return to simple country life in Provence for his first feature as a director. This war-time drama tells the sombre tale of those left behind when the men are called to the front. All the Suns strikes an uplifting chord as a struggling widower finds his life turned upside down when a beautiful young woman arrives in Florence. Our final film, Unforgiveable, is full of intrigue and suspense as elderly Francis begins to question what his new young girlfriend is doing whilst at work. Hiring an ex-offender to follow her, Francis finds himself embroiled in a curious triangle with this modern young woman and social outcast.

If this isn’t enough, we also have a celebration of Marcel Pagnol’s impressive oeuvre of novels, plays and films about the life of Marseille and Provence in our film talk, Pagnol Page to Screen. We are joined by Professor Ginette Vincendeau from Kings College, London, who offers a witty perspective on how the cinema has treated Pagnol and his colourful creations over the years. This will be followed by a complete screening of The Well-Digger’s Daughter as part of our French Film Festival.

To get you in the spirit of the French cinema to come, this week we are celebrating the tenth anniversary of the much-loved feature Amélie. This Parisian adventure will be at its best, on the big screen, for two nights only – Mon 21 and Tue 22 Nov. Get your tickets now, and join Amélie as she learns about love and life in the most romantic city of all.