Jonathan Melville: Filmhouse French screen fest

Showcasing some of the most exciting French films due to be released at UK cinemas in the coming months, the four films being shown range from a heartbreaking love story to an animated tale that should appeal to audiences of all ages.

Tomorrow night kicks off with the latest film from the director of The Father of My Children, Mia Hansen-Løve in the shape of Goodbye First Love.

It is an epic story which chronicles the highs and lows of the relationship between 15-year-old Camille and the older Sullivan.

Tales of the Night, showing on Saturday, tells of a girl, a boy and an elderly technician who meet in a little cinema every night that seems abandoned, but is, in fact, full of wonders. This assembly of animated tales unfurls from the minds of the three creators in a magical night where anything is possible.

Also on Saturday, The Delicacy stars Audrey Tautou as Nathalie, a woman who has put her romantic life on hold following the death of her husband, in this tale of rediscovering passion for life. The film was nominated for two César Awards this year in the Best Adapted Screenplay and Best First Film categories.

Finally on Sunday there’s Free Men, featuring the star of A Prophet, Tahar Ramin.

He is Younes, an unemployed Algerian in 1940s Nazi- occupied Paris.

Younes is working as a spy in the Parisian mosque when he meets and befriends Salim, an Algerian singer whom he discovers is Jewish. Younes quickly ends his collaboration with the police and thus begins his evolution into a fully fledged freedom fighter.

It’s an impressive selection that’s worth checking out.

@jon_melville

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