Gilles Porte Movies
When the Sea Rises... is the first film written and directed by actress Yolande Moreau (who also stars in the film) and cinematographer Gilles Porte (who also shot the film). Moreau stars as Irène, who is traveling the north of France performing her one-woman show. In the stage show, Irène plays a loud, obese, ugly (she wears a clownish mask) woman who comically confesses murder to the audience. At each performance, she pulls a random man out of the crowd and makes him her accomplice/lover in a mock robbery. One day on the road, Irène's car breaks down, and Dries (Wim Willaert) happens by on his scooter and rescues her. She gratefully gives him tickets to that night's performance. Spotting him with his friends in the audience, she pulls him up on stage, making him her "chicken" for that show. After the show, Dries and his friends invite her out for a drink. The next night, Dries shows up in the audience again, but gets thrown out when he gets into an argument with some rude latecomers. Irène catches him in her dressing room after the show, and gives him hell. But outside, she sees he's been in a fight and had his tires slashed, so she gives him a ride home. Dries is also a performer of sorts, building and operating giant costumes for parades throughout the region. Irène has a husband and child waiting for her back home, but she's caught off guard by Dries' attentions. When she leaves town, he impulsively follows, and the two fall into an unlikely romance. When the Sea Rises... was shown by the Film Society of Lincoln Center as part of their 2005 Rendez-Vous with French Cinema. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yolande Moreau, Wim Willaert, (more)
- 2002
Nawfel Saheb-Ettaba's understated debut feature, El-Kotbia (The Bookshop), takes place at bookstore, and at the home of the family who owns it. Jamil (Ahmed El-Haffiene) goes to work for Tarek (Yadh Beji), and is given room and board as the store as part of the arrangement. Tarek's wife, Lelia (Hend Sabri), harbors dreams of becoming a professional singer, and is in conflict with her mother-in-law, Aicha (Martine Gafsi). Aicha is flamboyant by nature, leading to speculation from townspeople about the exact nature of her friendship with Jamil. The Bookshop was screened at the 2003 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hend Sabri, Ahmed El-Haffiene, (more)
- 2000
The 400 Blows meets Rear Window in this low-key French thriller directed by Olivier Jahan. Suffering because of the death of his father and the emotional distance of his mother, high-school student Eric (Jeremie Renier) kills time by obsessively spying on his neighbors. Compulsively taking notes on everything within binocular range from his bedroom window, he harasses his neighbors by sending unsigned notes and making their private affairs public. The tables turn when one of his prey, a young couple, Tom (Sami Bouajila) and Fabienne (Alexia Stresi), figure out the identity of their anonymous tormentor. Meanwhile, Eric is slowly driving his mother and stepfather crazy with his weird, insular activity, and he can't stand his sister Carol's (Natalie Richard) newfound happiness with her beau Simon (Pierre Berriau). This look into the mind of a future serial killer was screened at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jérémie Renier, Aurore Clément, (more)
- 1999
- NR
Two sisters have to deal with the traditional issues of growing up and the unusual problem of caring for an unstable father in the drama Qui Plume La Lune? As children, Suzanne and Marie are thrown into the world of adult responsibilities when their mother dies of cancer and their father, Lucien (Jean-Pierre Darroussin), is emotionally devastated by the experience. As time passes, Lucien's melancholy manifests itself in increasingly eccentric behavior, which the girls are forced to manage. As Suzanne and Marie grow into adolescence, they become more interested in their own lives, and Marie has a brief fling with a boy her age while the family goes on vacation. Lucien is hurt and outraged by this, and Marie soon leaves school and home to strike out on her own. Suzanne now finds herself torn between her concern for her father's well-being, her frustration at having to look after him as his condition worsens, and a desire to live her own life; the latter finally wins out when she marries and moves on, with Lucien turning to his elderly mother for solace. Suzanne is played as a child by Laetitia Ferreira and as an adult by Garance Clavel; Marie's respective roles are played by Angele Guedra and Elsa Dourdet. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Garance Clavel, (more)
- 1999
- NR
This romantic comedy from France explores the misadventures of several friends looking for love and trying to define beauty. Daphne (Arielle Dombasle) is a lovely women who is nonetheless unsure about her looks, compounded by the fact that she's fallen in love with Vincent (Thibault de Montalembert), who has a policy of only dating models. Daphne's best friend Celine (Maria de Medeiros) comes up with an idea -- she'll get her pal Jacques (Jean-Philippe Ecoffey) to paint a nude portrait of Daphne. When Vincent sees the painting, he'll be more attracted to the woman who posed for it, leading him to her doorstep. But of course, it isn't quite that simple. Les Infortunes de la Beaute is dominated by Gilles Porte's largely hand-held camerawork, ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arielle Dombasle, Maria de Medeiros, (more)
- 1995
For many years, Hollywood movie music has been looked down upon and ignored by critics as a valid and important form of musical expression. This documentary persuasively argues on behalf of movie music as it follows the BBC National Orchestra of Wales as they re-record popular themes, synchronized precisely to the original film clips. As they play, viewers are treated to passages from such famous films as Gone with the Wind, Bride of Frankenstein and The Adventures of Robin Hood. In between playing, conductor John Mauceri discusses the films that inspired him as a boy. He also provides insight into the ways that movie music enhances the subtle and overt themes of the feature. Insight and background into the music's creation from the composers such as Erich Korngold, David Raskin, and Alfred provides a fascinating counterpoint to the performances. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
