Do you rendez-vous?

The just-concluded “Rendez-Vous with French Cinema” from the Film Society of Lincoln Center was particularly good this year, with a fantastic batch of films that could find their way into theaters soon.  I can’t remember when I laughed so hard as I did at “A Conversation with Michel Gondry” and the Q&A for OSS 117 – Lost in Rio with director Michel Hazanavicius and actor Jean Dujardin singing, dancing, and impersonating John Wayne.  The annual lunch to honor French filmmakers and actors was once again an elegant affair.  Here are a few of my photos:

03-15-10: The Thorn in the Heart director Michel Gondry and programmer Scott Foundas

03-17-10: OSS 117 – Lost in Rio director Michel Hazanavicius and actor Jean Dujardin

03-15-10: The Hedgehog and The French Kissers producer Anne-Dominique Toussaint flanked by respective directors Mona Achache and Riad Sattouf

03-15-10: Welcome and Mademoiselle Chambon actor Vincent Lindon

03-15-10: Rapt director Lucas Belvaux

03-15-10: The King of Escape director Alain Guiraudie

rania posted to Directors, Film Fests-Local on March 21, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)

MPAA Theatrical Market Statistics: You will be shocked when you see these stats on women filmgoers

Last week, the MPAA released the 2009 Theatrical Market Statistics.  My jaw dropped on Page 17.

Breakout: Attendance by Gender—

Women buy a higher percentage of movie tickets (55%, or 778 million tickets) than they represent of
the population (51%), and more than men buy (45%). 

A higher percentage of women than men are moviegoers in all categories of frequency.  In total, there
are 113 million female moviegoers, compared to 104 million male moviegoers.

Women also have higher attendance per capita (4.7 tickets per year) and attendance per moviegoer
(6.9 tickets per year) averages than men.

I feel snookered.

Read a feminist’s perspective on Women & Hollywood.

rania posted to Women on March 18, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Video Clip: Roger Ebert speaks his Oscar predictions via computer

Here is Ebert’s old and new voice from PopEater. Scroll down to get a video clip of his Oscar predictions.

rania posted to Film Biz, Videos on March 3, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Video Clip: William Kentridge MINE (1991) South African political commentary

rania posted to Arts, Videos on February 25, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Video Clip: Almodóvar’s WOMAN ON THE VERGE OF A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN

The Lincoln Center Theater will open a musical version of Woman on the Verge of a Nevous Breakdown (one of my favorite films ever) on Broadway this fall. Here’s the (humorously dated) trailer of the 1988 film that catapulted Pedro Almodóvar’s career.

rania posted to Arts, Videos on February 19, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)