French stars touch Pinoy fans’ hearts through shared love for cinema

At the height of anything K-drama or K-pop related easily becoming a hit in the Philippines, it is a breath of fresh air to welcome a different type of storytelling and content from what is known as one of the cradles of cinema — France.

Just last week, the French Film Festival celebrated its 25th edition at the Greenbelt cinemas with its curation of critically-acclaimed French films. The festival aspired to showcase the shared human experience of love and sadness, transcending nationalities, ages, and geography. The French Film Festival was up to date with its offerings to Filipino cinemaphiles that also included Eiffel by director Martin Bourboulon, Lost Illusions by Xavier Gianolli, Farewell, Mr. Haffmann by Fred Cavayé, Notre Dame on Fire by Jean-Jacques Anneaud, Him by Guillaume Canet, Paris Memories, remembering Paris under terrorist attacks, a sequel to the popular French agent OSS 117: From Africa with Love, Rise by Cédric Klapisch; and Promises by Thomas Kruithof.

To top it all off, two superstars were in town. The French cinema celebration was also part of the 75th anniversary of France-Philippines diplomatic relations, that’s why the top talents in France were the ones in attendance.

First was Isabelle Huppert, considered as one of the greatest actresses of our generation and even dubbed in Hollywood as the French Meryl Streep. She graciously attended the Philippine premiere of About Joan on Oct. 22 at Greenbelt 3, with a meet-and-greet afterwards with the press. Her film About Joan is the latest French feature by writer-director Laurent Larivière.

In the movie, Huppert is an independent, unmarried woman reflecting on the various men she has loved and lost in her life, and her steps to moving forward. We saw Isabelle for two days as she answered questions from the packed cinemas.

With Golden Globe, BAFTA and multi-Cannes awards, Isabelle had this to say about touring her films and doing foreign projects: “It’s always been my idea of being an actress. To travel and do foreign films and cinematographies from around the world and that is what I try to accomplish.” She starred in Brillante Mendoza’s critically-acclaimed film Captive 10 years ago, which was about the Dos Palmas kidnappings.

Another superstar from France, who came over and surprised many, was Lucas Bravo of Emily in Paris fame. Lucas plays Chef Gabriel in the series and he recently played a role alongside Julia Roberts and George Clooney in the romantic-comedy Ticket To Paradise.

Lucas was being hounded by fans and local celebrities with left and right selfies, but he welcomed them all. “I am so excited to see them in person after three years of COVID and Facetime and Zoom and digital. It feels good and I am enjoying this proximity so far,” he said.

Like Isabelle, Lucas had a session with Pinoy French cinema fans and yours truly to discuss his latest film, Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, where fans eagerly asked about the film.

Meanwhile, as Filipinos were discovering more about what the latest was in French cinema, Lucas also went on to discover what Manila has to offer. The French Embassy toured him in Intramuros and many more must-see local spots hoping to promote our tourism to our friends in France.

As Lucas observed, “I love to see the city of Manila growing. Everywhere I go, there is improvement, there’s a necessity to make it better and it is good to see that.”

According to Madame Michèle Boccoz, French Ambassador to the Philippines, expect many more iconic French talents to come to our shores in the coming years. With the success of the 75th anniversary of the French and Philippines’ diplomatic relations, it is realized that both nations have more common interests than we think.

She said, “After the lockdowns, we know what the French and Filipino want, it’s about being together, enjoying life together and we’re also bringing in singers because we all love the same things.”