Episode Details

1/ "The beaches of Agnès" by Agnès Varda

With pert irony she calls herself the grandmother of the French New Wave. And Agnes Varda has reason to do so. She made her influential first feature film Le pointe-courte in 1954, a full five years before the New Wave hit the shore. Now fifty-five years later she is still leading the pack. Her new film The Beaches of Agnes is a memoir  about her long career, her friends, her passions.  In France it won the Cesar for Best Documentary and was named Best Film of the Year by the French Critic’s Union. Grandmother takes time from a busy schedule in New York to talk to CANAPE.
 

2/  "The Girl of Monaco" by Anne Fontaine

“A film that feels like a summer day in the south of France” is how one critic describes Girl of Monaco directed by Anne Fontaine. A middle aged lawyer from Paris defending a Monaco socialite accused of murder is introduced to a local television weather girl. She’s perky and beautiful to be sure. But what else is she? The lawyer’s bodyguard has his suspicions. Actress turned writer and director Fontaine lets CANAPE in on a few of the secrets of her dark comedy thriller.


3/ Release of "Betty Blue" 

Among movies that court controversy, Betty Blue directed by Jean-Jacques Beineix was the winner in 1986. Nominated for an Academy Award and winner of the top prize at the Montreal Film Festival, it drew millions of spectators in Europe and around the world. In the USA, the critics split between “I love it” and “I hate it.” Intrigued? CANAPE takes a peak at its re-release.


4/ "Summer Hours" by Olivier Assayas

Country homes have a way of holding secrets and revealing them, for better or worse, to visitors. Savvy critic turned director Olivier Assayas detours away from his recent techno-thrillers to visit the territory of family drama pioneered by Jean Renoir, Louis Malle, and Bertrand Tavernier. His film Summer Hours chronicles two visits by siblings to their mother’s house. The award winning filmmaker talks to CANAPE about his ensemble drama.


5/ "Trace Magazine " published by Claude Grunitzky 

Every époque produces a few signature magazines, the mirrors and lamps of their times. Who can imagine 20th century America without Life or The New Yorker? For the 21st century, the key publication may be Trace, founded and edited by Claude Grunitzky, the son of a French speaking diplomat from Togo. The young cultural entrepeneur sits down with CANAPE to talk about his magazine, his books, his projects, and how they issue from his idea of a world shaped by what he calls transculturalism. 

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