Eye For Film >> Festivals >> NY Rendez-vous >> 2020 >> Full line-up

New York's Rendez-Vous With French Cinema 2020
Papicha Papicha
Papicha and The Best Years Of A Life
Alice And The Mayor (Alice et le Maire) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Nicolas Pariser; Writer: Nicolas Pariser; Stars: Fabrice Luchini, Anaïs Demoustier, Nora Hamzawi, Léonie Simaga, Antoine Reinartz, Maud Wyler, Alexandre Steiger, Pascal Rénéric, Thomas Rortais, Thomas Chabrol, Gwenaëlle Simon, Sébastien Autret, Fabrice Luchini, Anaïs Demoustier, Nora Hamzawi)
The mayor of Lyon, Paul Théraneau, is in a delicate position. After 30 years in politics, he is running out of ideas... his solution is to hire a new employee, who has very different ideas to his own.
NYC premiere
An Easy Girl (Une fille facile) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Rebecca Zlotowski; Writer: Rebecca Zlotowski, Teddy Lussi-Modeste; Stars: Benoît Magimel, Clotilde Courau, Nuno Lopes, Zahia Dehar, Lise Lomi, Mina Farid, Cédric Appietto, Henri-Noël Tabary, Nico Max Tedeschi)
Naima is 16 years old and lives in Cannes. While she gives herself the summer to choose what she wants to do in life, her cousin Sofi comes to spend the holidays with her. Together, they will spend an unforgettable summer.
North American premiere
The Best Years Of A Life (Les Plus Belles Années D'Une Vie) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Claude Lelouch; Writer: Claude Lelouch; Stars: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Anouk Aimée, Souad Amidou, Antoine Sire)
A sequel, set decades later, to Un Homme Et Une Femme.
Full Review See: Claude Lelouch in conversation on working with Anouk Aimée and Jean-Louis Trintignant, influencing Terrence Malick, not knowing the end, and his last film
, Claude Lelouch, Anouk Aimée and Monica Bellucci talk The Best Years Of A Life in Cannes
, Conversation with Claude Lelouch about La Bonne Année, Un Homme Et Une Femme, Un Et Une and Roman De Gare
, Focus on French Cinema conversation with Claude Lelouch
NYC premiere
Burning Ghost (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Stéphane Batut; Writer: Stéphane Batut, Christine Dory, Frédéric Videau; Stars: Thimotée Robart, Judith Chemla, Saadia Bentaïeb, Djolof Mbengue, Marie-José Kilolo Maputu, Cecilia Mangini, Babakar Bâ, Bernard Mazzinghi, Frédéric Bonpart, Antoine Chappey, Jacques Nolot, Daphne Koutsafti, Mohamed Lamouri, Jeanne Gorin, Nusch Batut)
Juste wanders the streets of Paris looking for people only he can see. He collects their last memory before helping them into the afterlife... until one day he meets a woman who changes his perspective.
US premiere
Cuties (Country: France; Year: 2020; Director: Maïmouna Doucouré; Writer: Maïmouna Doucouré; Stars: Maïmouna Gueye, Fathia Youssouf Abdillahi, Demba Diaw, Medina El Aidi, Esther Gohourou, Ilanah Cami-Goursolas, Myriam Hamma, Maïmouna Gueye, Fathia Youssouf Abdillahi, Demba Diaw, Medina El Aidi, Esther Gohourou, Ilanah Cami-Goursolas, Myriam Hamma)
Amy, 11 years old, meets a group of dancers called "Cuties”. Fascinated, she initiates herself to a sensual dance, hoping to join their band and escape family dysfunction...
Full Review
NYC premiere
On A Magical Night On A Magical Night
On A Magical Night and Joan Of Arc
The Dazzled (Les éblouis) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Sarah Suco; Writer: Nicolas Silhol, Sarah Suco; Stars: Camille Cottin, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Éric Caravaca, Céleste Brunnquell, Laurence Roy, Daniel Martin, Spencer Bogaert, Benjamin Gauthier, Suzanne De Baecque, Armand Rayaume, Jules Dhios Francisco, Agathe Dronne, Eva Ristorcelli, Victoria Mege Bond, Sophie Mege Bond)
When promising 12-year-old acrobat Camille performs in a sketch that seems to make light of prayer, the church’s leader asks her parents to withdraw her from circus training. The youngster will have to fight to retain her freedom.
NYC premiere
Deerskin (Le Daim) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Quentin Dupieux; Writer: Quentin Dupieux; Stars: Jean Dujardin, Adèle Haenel, Albert Delpy, Pierre Gommé, Laurent Nicolas, Coralie Russier, Stéphane Jobert, Franck Lebreton, Marie Bunel, Panayotis Pascot, Youssef Hajdi, Simon Thomas, Tom Hudson, Maryne Cayon, Thomas Blanchard)
Georges, 44, and his jacket, 100 per cent deerskin, have a plan.
Full Review See: Quentin Dupieux in conversation on Deerksin
NYC premiere
Happy Birthday (Fete de famille) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Cédric Kahn; Writer: Cédric Kahn; Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Emmanuelle Bercot, Vincent Macaigne, Cédric Kahn, Luàna Bajrami, Laetitia Colombani, Isabel Aimé González-Sola, Alain Artur, Joshua Rosinet, Milan Hatala, Solal Ferreira Dayan, Colin Bates, Satya Dusaugey, M. Vincent, Catherine Deneuve)
Family ructions break out during a matriarch's birthday celebrations.
NYC premiere
Isadora's Children (Les Enfants D'Isadora) (Country: France, South Korea; Year: 2019; Director: Damien Manivel; Writer: Damien Manivel; Stars: Agathe Bonitzer, Manon Carpentier, Julien Dieudonné, Marika Rizzi, Elsa Wolliaston, Agathe Bonitzer, Manon Carpentier, Julien Dieudonné, Marika Rizzi, Elsa Wolliaston)
Following the death of her two children in April 1913, the legendary dancer, Isadora Duncan, created a farewell solo entitled Mother in which, in a moment of extreme tenderness, a mother cradles her child for the last time before letting him go. A century later, four women encounter the heartrending dance.
North American premiere
Joan Of Arc (Jeanne) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Bruno Dumont; Writer: Bruno Dumont, based on the plays by Charles Péguy; Stars: Lise Leplat Prudhomme, Jean-Francois Causeret, Daniel Dienne, Fabien Fenet, Robert Hanicotte, Yves Habert, Fabrice Luchini, Christophe)
A sequel to The Childhood Of Joan Of Arc.
Full Review See: Joan of Arc director Bruno Dumont talks about comedy, tragedy and the soul of France
US premiere
Proxima Proxima
Proxima and Deerskin
Lullaby (Chanson Douce, Perfect Nanny) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Lucie Borleteau; Writer: Lucie Borleteau, Jérémie Elkaïm, Leila Slimani; Stars: Leïla Bekhti, Karin Viard, Antoine Reinartz, Martine Chevallier, Leïla Bekhti, Karin Viard, Antoine Reinartz, Martine Chevallier)
When a mum hires a nanny, she quickly develops a relationship with the family's children leading to mutual dependence and trouble.
NYC premiere
On A Magical Night (Chambre 212) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Christophe Honoré; Writer: Christophe Honoré; Stars: Carole Bouquet, Chiara Mastroianni, Camille Cottin, Vincent Lacoste, Benjamin Biolay)
After 20 years of marriage, Maria decides to leave her husband. She moves into room 212 at the hotel across the street, with a bird’s-eye view of her apartment, her husband and the life she shared with him.
Full Review
NYC premiere
Papicha (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Mounia Meddour; Writer: Fadette Drouard, Mounia Meddour; Stars: Lyna Khoudri, Shirine Boutella, Amira Hilda Douaouda, Yasin Houicha, Zahra Manel Doumandji, Marwan Zeghbib, Aida Ghechoud, Meriem Medjkrane, Samir El Hakim, Amine Mentseur, Khaled Benaïssa, Abderrahmane Boudia, Malek Ghellamat, Lina Boudraa, Slimane Bourdous)
A student becomes determined to stage a fashion show despite religious opposition.
Full Review See: Interview with Lyna Khoudri about Papicha and The French Dispatch
NYC premiere
Proxima (Country: France, Germany; Year: 2019; Director: Alice Winocour; Writer: Jean-Stéphane Bron, Alice Winocour; Stars: Eva Green, Zélie Boulant-Lemesle, Matt Dillon, Aleksey Fateev, Lars Eidinger, Sandra Hüller)
A female astronaut finds the demands of work take their toll on her single-mum relationship with her young daughter.
Full Review See: Alice Winocour on Proxima and bringing the film to Glasgow
NYC premiere
School Life (La vie scolaire) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Mehdi Idir, Grand Corps Malade; Writer: Mehdi Idir, Grand Corps Malade; Stars: Zita Hanrot, Liam Pierron, Soufiane Guerrab, Moussa Mansaly, Alban Ivanov, Antoine Reinartz, Ibrahim 'Facher' Dramé, Moryfère Camara, Gaspard Gevin-Hié, Mahamadou Sangaré, Redouane Bougheraba, Hocine Mokando, Aboudou Sacko, Blandine Lenoir, Dylan Sanches Tavares)
A new vice principal at a school sets about freeing the untapped potential of her students.
North American premiere
Cuties Cuties
Cuties and Who You Think I Am
Someone, Somewhere (Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2019; Director: Cédric Klapisch; Writer: Santiago Amigorena, Cédric Klapisch; Stars: François Civil, Ana Girardot, Camille Cottin, François Berléand, Simon Abkarian, Eye Haidara, Rebecca Marder, Pierre Niney, Zinedine Soualem, Virginie Hocq, Paul Hamy, Marie Bunel, Patrick d'Assumçao, Garance Clavel, Vincent Scalera)
Romantic comedy about two loners in Paris who might just find a connection.
NYC premiere
South Terminal (Terminal Sud) (Country: France, Algeria; Year: 2019; Director: Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche; Writer: Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche; Stars: Ramzy Bedia, Amel Brahim-Djelloul, Slimane Dazi, Salim Ameur-Zaïmeche, Nabil Djedouani, Nacira Guénif-Souilamas, Marie Loustalot, Grégoire Pontécaille, Zahia Rahmani, Nadja Harek, Xavier Mussel, Christian Milia-Darmezin, Djemel Barek, Jacques Nolot, Régis Laroche)
A doctor finds life increasingly difficult as Nineties Algeria becomes a war zone.
US premiere
The Specials (Hors Normes) (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano; Writer: Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano; Stars: Vincent Cassel, Reda Kateb, Aloïse Sauvage, Mirabela Vian, Vincent Cassel, Reda Kateb, Aloïse Sauvage, Mirabela Vian)
For twenty years, Bruno and Malik have lived in a different world — the world of autistic children and teens. In charge of two separate nonprofit organizations (The Hatch & The Shelter), they train young people from underprivileged areas to be caregivers for extreme cases.
US premiere
Spellbound (Country: France; Year: 2019; Director: Pascal Bonitzer; Writer: Pascal Bonitzer, Agnès de Sacy, based on the short story by Henry James; Stars: Sara Giraudeau, Nicolas Duvauchelle, Nicolas Maury, Anabel Lopez, Iliana Lolic, Jérôme Kircher, José Luis Gomez, Laurent Pedebernard, Josiane Balasko, Sara Giraudeau, Nicolas Duvauchelle, Nicolas Maury, Anabel Lopez, Iliana Lolic, Jérôme Kircher)
Adaptation of Henry James' The Way It Came.
North American premiere
Spread Your Wings (Donne moi des ailes) (Country: France, Norway; Year: 2019; Director: Nicolas Vanier; Writer: Lilou Fogli, Lilou Fogli, Christian Moullec, Matthieu Petit, Nicolas Vanier, Nicolas Vanier; Stars: Jean-Paul Rouve, Mélanie Doutey, Louis Vazquez, Lilou Fogli, Frédéric Saurel, Grégori Baquet, Dominique Pinon, Ariane Pirié, Philippe Magnan, Cédric Meusburger, Jean-Paul Rouve, Mélanie Doutey, Louis Vazquez, Lilou Fogli, Frédéric Saurel)
A sulky teenager finds himself unexpectedly involved in his father's project to train a flock of geese to take a new migration path.
US premiere
The Truth The Truth
The Truth and The Specials
The Truth (La Verite) (Country: France, Japan; Year: 2019; Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda; Writer: Hirokazu Kore-eda, Léa Le Dimna; Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche, Ethan Hawke, Clémentine Grenier, Manon Clavel, Jackie Berroyer, Ludivigne Sagnier.)
A reunion between a French cinema star and her daughter descends into confrontation.
Full Review See: Juliette Binoche on working with Catherine Deneuve on The Truth
, Venice Film Festival report - The Truth, Only The Animals, Joker and more
NYC premiere
Who You Think I Am (Celle que vous croyez) (Country: France, Belgium; Year: 2019; Director: Safy Nebbou; Writer: Camille Laurens, Safy Nebbou, Julie Peyr; Stars: Juliette Binoche, Nicole Garcia, François Civil, Marie-Ange Casta, Guillaume Gouix, Charles Berling, Jules Houplain, Jules Gauzelin, Francis Leplay, Pierre Giraud, Sonia Mohammed Cherif, François Genty, Claude Perron, Noémie Kirscher-Perrel)
A divorced teacher creates a fake Facebook page of a much younger woman and finds herself embarked on an impossible online love affair.
Full Review See: Newcomer François Civil talks inspiration, secrets and working with a legend
, Safy Nebbou on Who You Think I Am
US premiere
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