French film classics open air screening July 14

French film classics in honor of the 20th anniversary of the French Institute in Latvia.

Open air cinema on Friday night, July 14:

22.00

French Cancan, de Jean Renoir (1955)

French Cancan is a 1955 French musical film written and directed by Jean Renoir and starring Jean Gabin and Francoise Arnoul. This film is a tribute to the Parisian café-concert of the 19th century with its popular singers and dancers. 

Set in 1890s Paris, Henri Danglard is the owner of a cafe, which features his mistress, Lola, as a belly dancer. Losing money, Henri finds himself in Montmartre and finds that the old-fashioned can-can is still being performed there. Inspired, Henri comes up with a new business scheme that aims to revive the can-can, featuring a new dancer, Nini, a laundress he meets by chance.


23.30

Jour de fête, de Jacques Tati (1949)

Jour de Fête is a 1949 French film written and directed by Jacques Tati, and starring Guy Decomble et and Jacques Tati himself. The film introduces what would be a key theme in Tati films, the over-reliance of Western society on technology to solve its problems.

“Jour de Fête” tells the story of an inept and easily distracted French mailman who frequently interrupts his duties to converse with the local inhabitants, as well as inspect the traveling fair that has come to his small community. Influenced by too much wine and a newsreel account of rapid transportation methods used by the United States postal system, he goes to hilarious lengths to speed the delivery of mail while aboard his bicycle.


Free entrance.

Films are shown in French with English subtitles.

Film screening will take place indoors - Kalnciema street 35 in case of rain.