Ce qui m'inspire en ce moment... Paris in film

I'm going to start this entry with something of a controversial statement. Paris is not my favourite French city. Incroyable? Mais non, mais non, c'est vrai - my favourite French city is definitely Lyon, the somewhat smaller, more southerly and lesser-known city and the place I called home for two wonderful years back in the good old days. As far as I'm concerned, nothing beats the real life beauty of its rusty red rooftops, the beautiful river banks of its two rivers (the Saône and the Rhône), the secret passageways (or traboules) that run beneath the streets and through whole bulding blocks, and the cobbled streets lined with little cafés and restaurants where you can sit and while away the days. When it comes to films, however, I won't even try to argue: Paris wins everytime. The only film I can actually think of which even features Lyon is Le fils de l'epicier, and that's only very briefly at the start, with a really depressing shot of the really long escalators at the Vieux Lyon, métro D station. Nope, the beauty and charm of Lyon has to be seen and experienced in real life because it really doesn't have much of a presence in films (at least, that I'm aware of. Please do correct me if I'm wrong!).

Paris, on the other hand, has been the beautiful backdrop of a whole plethora of great films, not least the latest Woody Allen film, Midnight in Paris which I went to see at the weekend...

I love this poster. I have a big print of Van Gogh's Starry night that I look at every night before I got to sleep, the swirls hypnotising me and sending me to dreamland....

Having watched as many Woody Allen films as I could get my hands on this summer after discovering Annie Hall and falling for the quick-witted dialogues and mysterious stories that characterise Woody Allen's work, I was really looking forward to seeing this latest offering. When Woody's at his best, he doesn't just use the cities he sets in films in as a pretty backdrop, he makes them the main character and we all get to know the charms and pitfuls of these picture-postcard places. Midnight in Paris certainly didn't disappoint - the film is like a love letter for Paris (most beautiful, according to the main character Gil, in the rain. As long as I've got my brolly, I'm happy to agree). The film opens on a series of shots of well known Parisien sights, the banks of the Seine, the opera, Montmartre, the Moulin Rouge and each one is as sumptuous and inviting as the next. I don't want to spoil the plot of the film, but lets just say a bit of time travel is involved....

[Incidentally, Paris in the 1920s sure does look like fun, but if I managed to find a loophole, I'd love to go back to the postwar years and find Sartre and Beauvoir getting philosphical in a smoky cafe on the leftbank...

This is not a scene from the film! Its Simone and her man Sartre :) But I digress...

Anyway it's fair to say that watching this film about Paris really made we want to return there - and luckily for me I'll be doing exactly that in a few weeks time when I head over for a conference! And so, in anticipation of my visit, I'm going to be re-watching some of my favourite films-set-in-Paris over the next few weeks and I thought I would share a few of them with you today.

Firstly, the brilliant and beautiful Before Sunset (Sequel to Before Sunrise, a classic film that everybody should watch at once. That one makes me want to go to Vienna, but that's a whole other story to tell so let's just stick with Paris and the sequel for now). I love the way the characters wander about chatting in the soft light of the afternoon. A beverage in a little café off a cobbled side street? Oui, je veux bien! A boat ride on the Seine past Notre-dame? Oui, bien sur!

I would just love to have Céline's apartment, tucked away in a little Parisian courtyard and chock-a-block full of knick-knacks and Nina Simone records...

(And I have to find the Shakespeare and Company bookshop this time I visit Paris. It's the bookshop of legends with its very own cat, and the staff are all students/stow-aways that work there to pay their board. And if the pictures/films that I've seen are anything to go by, its full of nooks and crannys to hide away the hours reading...)

Who doesn't love Le fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain? I will definitely be strolling around Montmartre and taking the metro - can it be this pretty please? I'll wear red and skim pebbles and do good deeds for strangers if it helps....

The Meryl Streep/Julia Childs part of Julie and Julia is set in Paris, and its a culinary feast of a film. I'm not one for Boeuf Bourgignon (I'm a veggie after all), but I will definitely be seeking out pastries galore, as much brie and baguette as I can devour in one weekend and maybe some pretty macarons to nibble on :) Also I have a thing for these weird crisps called Curlys, that are peanut butter flavoured and which I've only ever been able to buy in France. They look like this A ritual bag must be sought out, bought and devoured as soon as I find a a French supermarket whenever I'm in the country, along with cherry flavoured chewing gum. Oui, je sais, c'est un peu bizarre! Anyway, the film....!

Not sure what Julia Childs would've made of my culinary decisions....

Other great films which take in the Parisian streets, skyline, rivers and of course that most ubiquitous of Parisian symbols, the Eiffel tower include:

2 Jours à Paris, which features more Julie Delpy goodness, her American lover who can't speak a word of French, a whole lot of jealousy, a crazy French family and a great scene during the wonderful fête de la musique when everybody plays music everywhere in the streets and dances...

Le Divorce - Not Kate Hudson's best (that honour goes to Almost famous of course) but she's sultry, takes a lover, has a makeover, and it's all drama, drama, drama in the streets of Paris...

Her real-life mother, Goldie Hawn starts in Woody Allen's earlier magical classic, Everybody Says that I love you...

c'est magnifique

And last but not least, French Kiss sees Meg Ryan getting all jealous, falling in love and adventures all over France - starting in Paris...

What's your favourite film set in Paris? I'd love to hear your recommendations!
With that, I'll say au revoir! I've rambled on rather a lot in this post! What can I say? I love France and all things French and it's been fun to natter on about them for a while...
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