New DVDs at the library
Welcome by Philippe Lioret (2009) “An ode to the abandoned immigrants trapped on the shores of Calais and the good Samaritans who take risks to help them, the ironically titled Welcome stars popular French actor Vincent Lindon as Simon and talented newcomer Firat Ayverdi as Bilal, in his first role.”
Des hommes et des dieux by Xavier Beauvois (2010) “Based on a true story of the slaughter of seven monks in Algeria, Xavier Beauvois’ film meditates on the nature of true faith.”
Micmacs à Tire-larigot by Jean Pierre Jeunet (2009) “Charming, inventive, with edge-of-the-seat storytelling and no end of visual gags, Micmacs is the new comedy from maverick French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Amelie).”
Gainsbourg (vie héroïque) by Joann Sfar (2010) “Best known over here for ‘Je t’aime, moi non plus’, the scandalous single that he recorded with future wife Jane Birkin, Serge Gainsbourg (1928-91) was one of the last century’s French cultural legends.”
Pour elle by Fred Cavaye (2008) “French romantic thriller starring Vincent Lindon and Diane Kruger as a happily married couple with a young son, Oscar. Their lives are suddenly thrown into disarray when Lisa is charged with murder, seemingly out of the blue, and sentenced to 20 years behind bars. Convinced of his wife’s innocence, Julien decides to act - but exactly how far will he be willing to go for the woman he loves?”
L’illusionniste by Sylvain Chomet (2010) “A wonderful hand-painted animated feature from Sylvain Chomet (Belleville Rendezvous), The Illusionist is based on an unproduced script that the French director Jacques Tati wrote in 1956 for his daughter.”
L’armée du crime by Robert Guédiguian (2009) “A French World War II drama chronicling the famous 1944 ’Red Poster’ case, in which a group of foreign partisans defied French apathy to form their own resistance against the Nazi occupation.”
Dans Paris by Christophe Honoré (2006) “Distraught after the end of a long relationship, Paul (Romain Duris) moves back into his father’s apartment where his womanising brother, Jonathan (Louis Garrel) still lives. When Paul takes to his bed and refuses to rise, his father and brother both try their own methods of coaxing him from his depression, yielding mixed results.”
L’Enfer d’Henri-Georges Clouzot by Serge Bromberg and Ruxandra Medrea (2009) “A fascinating documentary in which film archivist Serge Bromberg tells the story of an unfinished film by French auteur Henri-Georges Clouzot: ’L’Enfer’ starring Romy Schneider. Clouzot’s ill-fated production was set to be an exploration of jealousy and madness - themes which sadly turned out to mirror Clouzot’s own deteriorating state of mind as the production disintegrated around him.”
More titles (French with English subtitles or French subtitles) are available at the Library.
New at the “Bibliothèque de l’apprenant”
Easy reading from Level A1 to B2
Collection Découverte “This series aims to provide graded readers for students to enjoy as their knowledge of French progresses. Audio CDs can be a complement to the reading of the text.”
Lectures CLE en français facile “An eclectic collection of readers - fiction and non-fiction - designed to appeal to a wide range of tastes and ages. Every title has the following features: an introduction to the text and author, supportive illustrations, footnotes on each page explaining the more difficult vocabulary, and a thematic and cultural mini-glossary at the end of the book, together with a set of comprehension questions. Some titles are accompanied by a CD, providing further help in listening and pronunciation, particularly for near-beginners.”
Lire en Français facile “A two-level series of graded readers encompassing 5 different themes: Real-life; Science fiction; Fantasy; Detective and Adventure. The story is followed by an explanation on difficult words and phrases, broken down into chapters. There are also stimulating activities relating to the story, based on comprehension and vocabulary of the text, and a full answer key.”
Mise en scène: lecture en français facile pour adolescents “This collection of readers aims to introduce teenagers to well known French classics by adapting them into comic style stories and using colourful illustrations. Each book includes exercises for students to complete before, during and at the end of the story. A free teacher’s guide is available to download from www.cle-inter.com”
Lecture Facile “An attractive series featuring literature works and popular themes from the francophone world. Each text has been adapted to make it more accessible and is supported by attractive illustrations. During 2003-2004, various titles in the collection will be reprinted in a new version with teaching notes, vocabulary based activities and relevant information on French culture and civilisation.”
French courses books, grammar books and vocabulary books are also available for every level.