French Film Festival

Friday 21 May to Sunday 23 May 2021

Bringing you a weekend of French films to Event Cinemas Kotara.  

Escape to France for a festival of specially chosen films to sit back and enjoy. 

The films are in French with English subtitles.

Friday 21 May - 10:30am - school screening

Donne-moi des Ailes / Spread Your Wings

FRANCE AND NORWAY | FAMILY ADVENTURE | 2019 | 113 MINS | PG | Directed by Nicolas Vanier

Starring: Jean-Paul Rouve, Mélanie Doutey, Louise Vazquez, Frédéric Saurel, Lilou Fogli

Christian, an ornithologist, studies wild birds. For his son, Thomas, a teenager obsessed with video games, the idea of spending his holidays with his father in the middle of nature in the wetlands of the Camargue region in southern France will be a real nightmare. However. Thomas is drawn by his father's passion of attempting to save an endangered species of wild geese. Together, father and son rebuild their strained relationship and train the birds for their first migratory flight, hoping to free them from captivity, thanks to Christian's microlight aircraft. So begins an incredible and perilous journey .......

Friday 21 May - 7pm

Hors Normes / The Extraordinary

FRANCE | COMEDY, DRAMA 2019 | 114 MINS | M | Directed by Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano

Starring: Vincent Cassel, Reda Kateb, Helene Vincent, Bryan Mialoundama, Alban Ivanov

Inspired by the real-life figure of Stéphane Benhamou, Hors Normes centres around Bruno (Vincent Cassel), who runs an informal shelter in Paris for autistic youth and Malik, whose association works on education and professional (re)insertion for youngsters from rough backgrounds. Their respective associations train youngsters from difficult neighbourhoods to care for these cases categorised as "extremely complex". Difficulties arise when the shelter is investigated by a state agency as it exists outside the general rules of French law which isn't surprising since Bruno is specifically trying to offer a helping hand where the French institutions fall short. 

SATURDAY 22 MAY - 2pm

Donne-moi des Ailes / Spread Your Wings

FRANCE AND NORWAY | FAMILY ADVENTURE | 2019 | 113 mins | PG | Directed by Nicolas Vanier

Starring: Jean-Paul Rouve, Mélanie Doutey, Louise Vazquez, Frédéric Saurel, Lilou Fogli

Christian, an ornithologist, studies wild birds. For his son, Thomas, a teenager obsessed with video games, the idea of spending his holidays with his father in the middle of nature in the wetlands of the Camargue region in southern France will be a real nightmare. However. Thomas is drawn by his father's passion of attempting to save an endangered species of wild geese. Together, father and son rebuild their strained relationship and train the birds for their first migratory flight, hoping to free them from captivity, thanks to Christian's microlight aircraft. So begins an incredible and perilous journey ....... 

SATURDAY 22 MAY - 4:15pm

Le Mystère Henri Pick / The Mystery of Henri Pick

FRANCE | COMEDY, DRAMA, MYSTERY | 2019 | 120 MINS | M | Directed by Rémi Bezançon

Starring: Fabrice Luchini, Camille Cotton, Alice Isaaz, Bastian Broth

Daphne, a young editor, on holiday in Brittany, makes a curious discovery, in a library housing manuscripts rejected for publication. She finds a novel and when reading it, realises she has stumbled across a masterpiece.  She returns to Paris and feels bound to publish it. The   book quickly becomes a national best-seller, prompting intense interest to determine its author. A literary critic heads to Brittany to investigate how a deceased Breton pizza maker could write such a literary success.

SATURDAY 22 MAY - 7pm

Les Parfums / Perfumes

FRANCE | COMEDY | 2019 | 110 MINS | M | Directed by Grégory Magne

Starring: Emmanuelle Devos, Grégory Montel, Gustave Kerven, Sergi López, Zélie Rixhon

Anne Walberg is a celebrated "nose", creating fragrances and selling her incredible gift to any company who is prepared to pay for it. She is a diva, selfish and demanding with a lack of tact, whose new chauffeur, Guillaume, is a divorced dad with troubles of his own. Guillaume desperately needs this job to gain custody of his daughter. He must stand up to Anne and her prima donna ways, meanwhile their relationship evolves into a sensitive and empathetic friendship. 

SUNDAY 23 MAY - 2pm

Les Apparences / Appearances

FRANCE | THRILLER | 2020 | 110 MINS | M | Directed by Marc Fitoussi

Starring: Karin Viard, Benjamin Biolay, Lucas Englander, Pascale Arbillot

Based on the novel, Betrayal by Swedish writer Karin Alvtegen, Ève and Henri live an enviable life in a community of wealthy French expatriates in Vienna. Ève is the CEO of the city's Institut Française while Henri is a famous conductor, living a semingly perfect life until she suspects that he is being unfaithful with their son's school teacher. Then begins a tale of double games, past secrets, plot twists and digital identity theft which threatens an artificially privileged exisitence.