DALIDA: Lisa Azuelos' beautiful-to-view (and hear) biopic gets L.A. debut prior to VOD

Quite a bit better than the run-of-the-mill, musical celebrity bio-pic, DALIDA, tracking the life and career of one of, if not the most popular European singers of the 20th Century, is a gorgeous movie to both behold and listen to. With the actual Dalida singing many of her most popular songs (along with those of some other greats of that century) and, spanning as it does the 1950s through the 1980s, filled with scrumptious (if sometimes tacky: remember the 70s?) period detail, and filmed with a eye for interesting composition and ace cinematography (Antoine Sanier), the movie is a consistent joy to view.

As written and directed by French screenwriter/ filmmaker Lisa Azuelos (shown at right) and adapted from the book by Orlando (Dalida's brother) and Catherine Rihoit, the movie begins with a look at our heroine, brought to surprisingly nuanced life by Italian actress Sveva Alviti (shown above and below), who looks enough like the singer to more than pass muster, and who also lipsyncs and performs the songs with a physicality that mimics the original's own style and grace (you can compare the two by watching various videos).

TrustMovies admits that some of his great enjoyment of this film may have come because he knew next to nothing about Dalida before sitting down to view the movie. He knew her name and that she was hugely successful in France, but that's it. (His spouse, who follows the music scene more thoroughly, had never heard of her at all.) Consequently, this icon's story was new and held quite a bit of interest for him, though how die-hard fans of the singer reacted to this bio-pic, he can't say.

Ms Azuelos begins her tale in media res, with some quick, sharp moments during which Dalida leaves Paris for somewhere that it is clear her family and friends don't want her to go. It's to meet a lover, and so we spend some time between the sheets, philosophizing and making love. Suddenly, we're confronted with the singer's suicide attempt, which happened mid-career.

As Dalida slowly recovers, Ms Azuelos moves us back and forth in time, picking up bits and pieces of her family history, early career (above), love life and more. One of the cleverest methods of exposition here is done via her post-suicide psychologist's interviews with the various important people in her life, as he and they try to collectively get our girl back on track. This allows us to not only learn about Dalida, but better explore the character of those giving testimony.

Certain critics have complained about the lack of depth of character in Dalida herself, but this strikes me as simply wrong-headed. What Azuelos has given us instead is a portrait of celebrity and the woman who gladly buried herself under that alluring but unwieldy and very heavy mantle. Nearly every important decision we see her make has to do with maintaining that celebrity and career -- from how she handles her lovers to why she has the abortion that will render her sterile. (That's Brenno Placido, above, as the young student by whom she becomes pregnant, and Niels Schneider, below, as a Polish prince with whom she has earlier become involved.)

Occasionally, the woman beneath all that celebrity surfaces and her needs make themselves known. But always career comes first. Interestingly enough, there are no villains here. The movie doesn't need them, since Dalida is pretty much her own worst enemy, even if she herself seems to be a relatively kind and decent person. With an unhappy childhood to deal with, even given her wonderful voice and great physical beauty, the gain did not finally outweigh the pain.

Dalida's choice of lovers would appear a bit suspicious, too. When three of the several men with whom you're involved take their own life (not to mention Dalida's own suicide attempt and then its consummation), there's clearly a problem at hand. (Above, left, is Jean-Paul Rouve, as the man who discovers her, whom she eventually marries, and who later suicides; below left is Nicolas Duvauchelle, as one of her later and most narcissistic lovers who also takes his own life.

While the movie refuses to offer any tidy explanations for any of this, the feeling we're left with, despite the talent and beauty on hand, is one of sadness at the waste of it all. (Below is pictured Alessandro Borghi, as would-be singer Luigi Tenco, the first of Dalida's suicidal amors.)

Our heroine even has something of a movie career, too; at one point, the famous Egyptian filmmaker Youssef Chahine has her star in one of his films (below), and once the disco craze hits, she becomes a gay icon -- in France, if not here in the USA.

Along the way, in addition to the wonderful period detail, we get a raft of good music -- mostly snippets, granted, but they're certainly enjoyable ones -- and enough biographical material to complete yet another sad tale of great musical celebrity gone to disarray.

From Under the Milky Way -- in French, Italian and Arabic with English subtitles -- and running  a long but consistently interesting 127 minutes, Dalida will get a one-night-only theatrical appearance in the Los Angeles area as part of the Laemmle Culture Vulture series, this coming Monday, October 23, at 7:30 pm at four Laemmle theaters: Claremont 5, Playhouse 7,  Royal 3 and Town Center 5. Click here for more information and/or tickets.

In addition the film will also be the opening night, November 3, presentation at the ARPA International Film Festival at the world-famous Egyptian Theater in Hollywood.  And if you aren't located in the L.A. area, despair not: Dalida will be released on all major VOD platforms across the country on Tuesday, December 5.

At FIAF this coming Tuesday: Brigitte Sy's deep, dark and beautiful ASTRAGAL

Coming up at FIAF's CinéSalon this Tuesday, July 21, is a film of which I'd never heard but am very pleased to have now experienced. ASTRAGAL (L'Astragale) is a gift from actress/ writer/director Brigitte Sy, who, as director and adapter of a landmark French autobiographical novel of the same name (by Albertine Sarrazin), brings us the adventures, usually pretty dark, of a smart Algerian girl in France during the 1950s. TrustMovies best knows Ms Sy as an actress (Genealogies of a Crime, Regular Lovers, Declaration of War) but he has also seen her earlier work as writer/director, Free Hands. He finds Astragal an enormous improvement over that former film.

What seems most remarkable is how well Ms Sy (shown at left) succeeds on every level she attempts, all the more surprising because Astragale is a period piece, and Sy captures that period, with the help of her cinematographer (Frédéric Serve) and production and costume designer (Françoise Arnaud) so very well. The look, the feel, the detailing all seem extraordinarily precise and right. Even better, though, is the casting of the film, which includes two fine French actors: the beautiful Leila Bekhti, whom I've often enjoyed (A Prophet, All That Glitters) but had no clue that she possessed the ability to the handle a complex role like this one, and Reda Kateb (Me, Myself and Mum and Far From Men, among his many other choice roles) 

Ms Bekhti (above and below, right) plays Albertine, the heroine of the film, whom we first meet escaping from prison and taking a fall that will damage her ankle for life. Rescue comes in the form of M. Kateb (above and below, left), who plays Julien, a criminal with a kind heart but former obligations. And so begins a relationship that will start and stop and start again for a decade or more, as Julien attends to his life and loves and Albertine, constantly in hiding, finds employment as a prostitute, even as she begins writing poetry and prose that show a distinct and deepening talent.

Astragal is one of the more genuinely poetic films I've seen in a long time, and its poetry extends not only to the writing we occasionally hear spoken, but to the look of the film (the black-and-white cinematography is splendidly of its time and simply gorgeous to view); the "feel" of the period that Sy, along with her crew and actors, conjure; in the performance of the two leads and their supporting cast; and the entire "spirit" of this project -- in which incipient feminism appears on the French scene and the "place" of women begins to change. Albertine, of course, is in that double bind of being both female and Algerian.

Our heroine spends the film "on the lam," as it were, not exactly running from the authorities (she has broken out of prison, after all) but keeping quietly under wraps (she's often in a blond wig, as above, for disguise). As the small incidents build, so do the characters of Albertine and Julien. When her best friend from prison, Marie (Esther Garrel, above and below, left), suddenly reappears, Albertine must choose and grow.

How this works out and what happens to both the novelized and actual Albertine we learn as the end credits roll and more information is passed to us. The effect is sad because all this seems so unnecessary, but Astragal is about both the past and the change to come. The latter, I suppose is what makes the former more bearable. That, and this film's enormous truth, beauty and spirit.

You have the chance to view Astragal, this coming Tuesday, June 21, at FIAF in New York City. (There's one showing only, at 4pm!) Click here to learn more and/or to purchase tickets. (And remember: FIAF members get into the the CinéSalon programs free of charge.)

Martin Provost tackles his second creative French woman of time past, and Emmanuelle Devos triumphs in the lead role of VIOLETTE

He's back with the broads. That is to say: one of France's very fine filmmakers, Martin Provost, is again doing what it appears he does best -- tackling a tale of an artistic and talented French woman who was not conventionally beautiful or possessing many social skills who nonetheless managed to create a collection of exemplary and important work. He did this first five years ago with his award-winning film Séraphine, about the turn-of-the-century painter Séraphine Louis, which introduced many of us to the amazing actress, Yolande Moreau. Now he is back with VIOLETTE, a movie about the famous/infamous French writer and bastard (literally), Violette Leduc, with the well-known French actress, Emmanuelle Devos, in what is, so far, the performance of her exceptional career.

In between time, Provost, shown at left, gave us another interesting movie starring Ms Moreau as a woman who murders her abusive husband and then goes on the lam. It was quite well done. Still, viewing the results of his two films about creative and unusual historic French women, one must say that this seems to be his "perfect fit." His new film begins with a quote by Leduc regarding women, beauty and mortal sin-- a sad but generally truthful observation, so far as humanity as we know it appears to believe and behave.

I confess to having found Ms Devos (above and below, right), over the years that I've viewed her in film after film, to be an alternately enchanting and glamorous entity, filled with a vast reservoir of emotion, intellect and possibilites. From a small role in La Sentinelle to the deaf girl in love (Read My Lips) to the famous actress who gives Coco Chanel her first design opportunity in Coco Before Chanel to that wonderful interloper in a tight-knit dysfunctional family in A Christmas Tale to the mayor of a town that is the target of a major scam (In the Beginning: click and scroll down) to a very surprised mother overflowing with love in The Other Son, she was generally exotic and beautiful even -- maybe particularly -- when she wasn't trying.

Suddenly, here she is, portraying a lower class woman so needy that she utterly embarrases us -- though not herself -- as she grasps to keep a clearly unworthy man (Olivier Py, above, left) as part of her life.

Devos so absolutely inhabits and defines this woman that it's as though we're seeing the actress for the first time (maybe, indeed, we are). In any case, she has found depth and characteristics here -- not to mention an appearance that removes any trace of glamour -- that I have never seen in her previously.

The film deals in large part with her relationship with the much more famous, intelligent and celebrated woman, Simone de Beauvoir, here played by Sandrine Kiberlain (below, left). I have seen de Beauvoir depicted on film before, but never as well as Kiberlain manages it. This is the Simone to remember.

We watch, entranced, as Violette, under the guidance of de Beauvoir, learns how to free herself in order to simply write and do it honestly. Which she does, and very well. And this begins to free her to live. Along the way, via de Beauvoir, we meet a number of other famous French entities -- from Jean Genet (Jacques Bonnaffé, below, left -- good choice!) and Jacques Guérin (Olivier Gourmet, below, right, giving another fine performance).

The film begins toward the end of WWII, when Violette is dealing on the Black Market, and moves ahead from there, showing a very well-detailed and awfully drab France of the post-war period. (A scene is which Violette scraps maggots off a slab of meat and then washes it and gives it to her not-so-beloved mother to cook is one for the books.)

Provost has divided his film into sections (six or seven of them, I believe) that deal with people or subjects most important to Violette. An intelligent filmmaker, he has really looked into the period and the people, the behavior and culture, in about as encompassing a manner as one can manage within the film's 138-minute running time. Smartly, he has left the heavy-lifting, emotionally-speaking, to Devos, who comes through in spades. She keeps us glued -- embarrassed, hopeful, surprised, devastated, and thrilled from first to last -- bringing the woman, Violette, to grand life and making Violette the movie a must-see experience.

From Adopt Films, Provost's latest opens tomorrow in New York City at the Angelika Film Center and the Lincoln Plaza Cinema. It will expand to the boroughs and elsewhere in New York the following Friday, June 20, and then hit the Los Angeles area on June 27 as it rolls out across the country in a limited release. You can view currently scheduled play-dates by first clicking here then clicking on View Theaters and Showtimes.

New on Netflix Streaming, the don't miss -- for its costumes, cars & colors alone -- POPULAIRE

Seeing Régis Roinsard's magical POPULAIRE a second time (my original review is here) simply increased my appreciation for and enjoyment of what may be the most beautiful movie of the year, certainly so far as set design and art decoration are concerned. The Great Gatsby? Forget that piker. This is the movie to revel in visually. While perusing what was new to the foreign film catalog on Netflix streaming last night, up came this title -- which only recently appeared in theaters. Since my spouse hadn't yet seen it, we clicked immediately on "play" and settled in for this 111-minute delight. I swear: the movie looked better on our big-screen TV in high definition than it looked in theaters.

The amazing colors pop all over the place, and perusing the wonderful and various sets will make you appreciate how incredibly on-target were those who designed and accessorized here. For me, the absolute highlight of the film is a night club scene in which the band plays a song about secretaries, while their outfits in bright blue against the orange background, make for a riot of contrasting colors used as well as I've ever seen them. This may sound silly and way too specific, but for the manner in which M. Roinsard has designed his film, this particular scene hits the jackpot--& then some.

There are plenty of other memorable moments visually, but fortunately, they're not nearly all the movie has on offer. Watching its three leads -- Romain Duris (above, left), Déborah François (above, right) and Bérénice Bejo (below) -- at work and play proves even better the second time around. All three are simply wonderful in this tale of a young girl (François) who wants more than life in her quiet little town can provide and so goes to the larger town next door, is hired as a secretary, and, becasue of her rather extraordinary talent for fast typing, is soon entered into one contest after another by her boss (Duris), while getting piano-lesson coaching from his best friend/confidante (Bejo).

It's an odd tale, certainly -- who knew about typing contests? -- but one that allows the filmmaker to do just about everything he wants in the way of beauty, storytelling and entertainment. It's like taking a vacation back a half-century in time with a bunch of truly charming characters. I reviewed this one once already when it opened this year's Rendez-vous With French Cinema, but its sudden stream-ability and re-viewing makes me realize what a rare treat it truly is.

So, for those of you who can stream Netflix -- which now has some sort of exclusive contract with The Weinstein Company, who distributes the movie here in the States -- see it soon.

Rendez-vous With French Cinema opens with a choice bit of rom-com-cum-history: Régis Roinsard's POPULAIRE

It's that time of year again, when French film takes over the Film Society of Lincoln Center, resulting in, again, the most popular foreign film program of any the FSLC offers: Rendez-vous With French Cinema. This year's annual series, presented in conjunction with Unifrance, should prove no different, and in fact, just might outdo past years (were it not for our continuing crummy economy in which disposable income, except for the wealthy, seems a thing of the past).

Still we must be grateful that Rendez-vous has grown to now inhabit four venues around the city: two at Lincoln Center, another in the West Village, and the last in Brooklyn. You can find them all by clicking here.  Further, you can view all the films in the current series, too, via a single click, followed by another on any of the movies that interest you.

For the first time in 20 years, Trust Movies is not attending this year's Rendez-vous, with the exception of the press screening for the opening night movie, Régis Roinsard's unusual and generally delight-ful rom-com POPULAIRE. But don't let my lack of time and inability to fit my 6'8" frame into the ridiculously designed seating area of the new Elinor Bunin Munro Film Center -- I've had to give up on that place, as have other extra-tall friends of mine -- stop you normal folk from attending this festival full of all kind of new (plus a few classic) French films.

Populaire is yet another in a long line of frothy but sophisticated French romantic comedies, brought to perky and very pleasurable life by M. Roinsard (shown at right), and if you do not get to see it during Rendez-vous, never fear. Just as with last year's opening night selection, The Intouchables, The Weinstein Company has picked up this year's movie for distribution, as well. Look for a summer opening and pretty good box-office grosses, I surmise.

What immediately sets Populaire apart from the pack is its time-frame: late-1950s Paris, when being a secretary was a huge step up for most young ladies. (Was France a very sexist country? Bet your bon-bons, honey!) And so we have a smart and pretty young woman who also happens to be able to type rather quickly (the wonderfully versatile Déborah François, above, right, of Student Services and Please, Please Me!) who goes to work for a handsome but sexist boss (Romain Duris, above, left, at his most charming and flustered).

From there we get to typing championships (above: who knew?), pretty-in-pink advertisements (below, and deliciously French), early corporate sponsorships, and the meaning of love and commitment.

One of the most interesting of the movie's touches is introducing an American character (Shaun Benson), a left-over from WWII who has married a local girl (the beauteous Bérénice Bejo, below, from The Artist, A Knight's Tale and the first OSS 117) and settled happily in France. We rarely see anything like this fellow in French film, and it adds to both the novelty and the reality of M. Roinsard's enterprise. (Mr. Benson is given one of the film's finest and final jokes, a very smart one that he carries off with the proper aplomb.)

Duris and François (below) prove aces together, creating an odd chemistry that keeps their connection bubbling with possibilities. In terms of morality, time period and situation, the filmmaker seems honest, as well, and if the movie did not set its own home box-office ablaze, as some had expected, this may be due to the inability of France's young people, not unlike our own, to understand or care about a time period before computers and cell phones, when young women had not nearly the choices available as they possess today.

For the rest of us, Populaire should prove great fun and an often dazzling walk down the memory lane of fashion, hair styles and automobiles -- not to mention typewriters -- even if most of our memories will skew American rather than French.

As I mentioned, the movie is scheduled for summer release this coming July. So, if you miss the Rendez-vous screenings, stick this one on your movies-to-see list now.