FRENCH NEWS - in English of course. Politics, sports, reviews, travel, a slice of life in France and stories you might not necessarily be able to find elsewhere on the Net.
Rather they're two figures designed by illustrator Tom de Pékin to
promote the film "L’inconnu du lac" ("Stranger by the lake") which won
Alain Guiraudie the prize of Best Director in the category Un Certain
Regard at the Cannes film festival in May.
The film, which tells the story (you can read a review in English by Nicolas Bell here) of a "torrid summer affair" between two men at a cruising spot for gay men next to a lake, goes on general release on June 12 and it appears the posters are too much for two town halls close to the French capital.
Authorities in Versailles and Saint-Cloud have both asked for them to be withdrawn and the company owning the billboards on which they had appeared, JCDecaux, has duly taken them down.
Well that's how it's being reported although nobody is talking about censorship - apart from the minister of culture, Aurélie Filippetti - attributing it rather to not wanting to offend sensibilities.
You see Versailles and Saint-Cloud could be caricatured (kindly of course) as the heartland of a certain type of bourgeois Catholicism in France: where the girls wear Alice Bands and the boys are Scouts.
They're also the kind of places where you might expect to see plenty of clones of France's most gay-friendly parliamentarian Christine Boutin.
Apparently "concerned" residents have been calling, emailing and even - horror upon horrors - turning up at the town hall in Saint-Cloud to express their "distress".
Over in Versailles, where the authorities deny there was a formal request to take down the posters, the director of communications admitted that they could "shock those who found themselves helpless in the face of posters that address sexuality in the street".
All right, fess-up time. It's probably not just the kiss (although that's upsetting and unnatural in itself of course) which has caused a mini brouhaha.
Instead it's the - and you might have to take a good ol' squint at the image to spot this - the representation of two men in the background apparently engaged in (cough, cough) oral sex.
On Monday, the wise ones on the Conseil Constitutionnel (the Constitutional court) officially approved the 10 candidates in this year's French presidential elections.
Among them of course were all the usual suspects including Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande as well as virtual political non-entities in terms of nationwide support such as Philip Poutou and Jacques Cheminade.
Still it's all good for the cause of "democracy" isn't it? Although the presence of Cheminade in particular, his somewhat batty ideas and links to US political activist Lyndon LaRouche (do the search - it's weird and dangerous) might seem somewhat disconcerting.
Especially as two seasoned politicians, former environment minister Corinne Lepage and former prime minister Dominique de Villepin, failed to gather the 500 signatures from mayors and/or regional councillors necessary to stand.
Anyway, before the gloves really come off (haven't they done so already?) and the 10 contenders get even more mean and serious about their intentions, perhaps it's time to take a step back and see the whole shebang through the eyes of those who delight in parody.
And it comes in the shape of "2012, mission Elysée", a "web series relating the adventures of our presidential candidates in 2012," from Staiff. fr.
It has been the talk of France over the past couple of days, the success of the film "The Artist" at this year's Oscars.
(screenshot from "The Artist" trailer)
The film, directed by the man by with an almost unpronouncable name (pity the poor Americans) Michel Hazanavicius, and starring Jean Dujardin picked up five statuettes, including Best Director, Film and Actor.
Without wanting to appear entirely churlish, how much is the gongification of the film and those involved down to the quality of what was up on the Big Screen and how much is due to a "master of movie industry promotion" Harvey Weinstein?
Is the film really a French success or just another example of how much power Weinstein wields in Hollywood?
Yes it's a film worth seeing. It's enjoyable and in a review when it first went on general release here in France, there was the recommendation here that, "If there's one film - just one single film - you should absolutely go to see this year it has to be 'The Artist'."
It's delightful, immensely entertaining and beautifully shot; "A pastiche…but lovingly made and extremely watchable," is how Screen Internationaldescribed it, and that was pretty much spot on.
When it premiered at Cannes, the long journey to international recognition was given one heck of a boost when Dujardin picked up Best Actor.
With a canny eye for what might appeal, Weinstein had already picked up the distribution rights before Cannes and by the time the film went on general release here in France in October, there were already rumours that it might be nominated in the main section of the Oscars and not consigned to the Foreign Picture category.
Its appeal was obvious.
Although not exactly original in being a silent film (after all how did the industry begin?) it was different enough to the 3D, special FX, kitchen sink sort of blockbuster diet the movie-going public is so often fed.
And what had originally been the very source of Hazanavicius' difficulties when he first came up with the idea in the 1990s but failed to get the funding, suddenly became one of its strengths as the promotional juggernaut switched up a gear.
Different equalled allure.
It paid dividends with the buzz from successive awards ceremonies including Golden Globes, British Baftas and French Césars (although in the case of the last, not Best Actor for Dujardin) combining with a formidable charm offensive to woo the Academy members who vote for the Oscars.
Throw in the theme of the film (Hollywood), where it was shot (Hollywood) and the homage it paid to several other (Hollywood) films and it surely had "winner" written all over it.
Plus there was no real language barrier to overcome.
Yes it is a French film directed by a Frenchman, starring French actors and produced by another Frenchman in the form of Thomas Langmann the son of the late (Oscar-winning) French director Claude Berri.
But equally its success is arguably very US driven.
Although it'll provide an international and financial boost to the careers of those involved especially Hazanavicius, his partner Bérénice Bejo and perhaps most notably Dujardin - provided they're willing to make as much of a commitment to living and working in Hollywood - it's undeniably also a tribute to the power and influence of one man - Harvey Weinstein.
Well film buffs might be aware that the 34- year-old played one of the lead roles in the French comedy that has taken this country by storm, "Intouchables."
The film made by directors Eric Tolédano and Olivier Nakache took the true story of Philippe Pozzo di Borgo, paralysed from the neck down in a paragliding accident in 1993, and the man he paid to look after him Abdel Sellou and adapted it for the big screen.
It is, in the words of some of the official blurb "the meeting of two 'handicaps' - one physical the other social."
"Following a paragliding accident, Philippe (played by François Cluzet), a rich aristocrat, is in need of someone to look after him. He hires Driss (played by Omar Sy), a young man from the "troubled" inner suburbs of Paris and just out of prison. In short the person least suited for the job. Together they reconcile Vivaldi and Earth Wind and Fire, repartees and ghetto jokes, tailored suits and tracksuits..."
"Intouchables" touches more than just one nerve. It makes you laugh and cry as the performances, especially of the excellent Omar Sy, carry you along. The dialogue is credible, the situation less so - but that's the beauty really because it's based on a true story; Yes fact can be stranger than fiction.
Packing 'em in right from the beginning, "Intouchables" went on general release in France on November 2 and three weeks later, six million people had already seen it.
Queues outside cinemas were long - very long - and booking ahead more than advisable.
And the phenomenon just kept going. To date the film has put more than 19 million bums on seats in France - not bad in a country with a population of around 65 million.
Forget those stuffy US reviewers (such as Variety's Jay Weissberg) who just didn't "get it" (perhaps they don't speak a word of French) and labelled it as running to stereotypes or at worst "racist".
Film critics in France and industry insiders couldn't quite believe how badly the US had seemed to understand the humanity behind the film.
Perhaps they'll be happier when the inevitable own all-American version is made.
A deserved award for Sy, and perhaps disappointment for Dujardin who is, of course, now on his way to Hollywood to try his luck at the Oscars.
There was more than a little consolation for The Artist though as it picked up six Césars on the night including the biggies Best Film, Best Director for Michel Hazanavicius and keeping it in the family Best Actress went to Hazanavicius' partner, Bérénice Bejo.
There were also gongs for The Artist for Best Original Music, photography and decor.
It was an entry and a half for the presenter of Monday morning's edition of the Canal + breakfast programme "La Matinale".
To mark the 60th anniversary of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne, La Matinale's presenter, Maïtena Biraben, began the programme disguised as...well who else really?
Maïtena Biraben as Queen Elizabeth II (screenshot from La Matinale)
Dressed from head to toe in what was presumably meant to be a regal version of Barbie pink and donning a ridiculous wig, Biraben got the programme underway to the strains of the 1977 hit "God save the Queen" by the English punk band the Sex Pistols.
Thankfully the remainder of, what is usually, an excellent way to begin the day, had a more conventional approach to reporting and presenting, including a special on the anniversary, an interview and a look at the relationship the British apparently have with their head of state.
Biraben quickly "lost" the absurd garb although it some of it managed to find its way on to fellow journalist Léon Mercadet towards the end of the programme.
Funny?
Well, mildly so perhaps, although it's not hard to imagine that if the Queen had seen it (not exactly likely it has to be admitted) she might well have quoted one of her antecedents to the throne, Victoria, with a cutting, "We are not amused".
Warning.
Biraben ended Tuesday's edition of La Matinale with a hint that viewers should expect something "special" the following day to mark the release in France of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace 3D.
Oh yes.
After Biraben as Queen Elizabeth II comes Darth Vader perhaps?
It looks as though so-called biopics are going to be putting plenty of bums on seats at cinemas over the coming year.
Already there's word out that Meryl Streep is in the running for yet another Oscar nomination for her portrayal of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady".
Then there's "the role of a lifetime" (IndieWire's Melissa Silverstein)for Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh in her portrayal of Burmese opposition leader and Nobel peace prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi in "The Lady".
Yeoh might not get any nods from Hollywood's direction, but film critics have been largely enthusiastic and the director, Frenchman Luc Besson, has also been praised for "crafting a masterpiece in the gentle telling of a wife and mother who is forced to balance her love for her country against her love for her family." (Working Author's Summer J. Holliday)
All well and good, but where's French cinema (apart from Besson of course) in all of this apparent "biopic trend"?
Well the answer will be revealed on March 14.
That's the release date set for the long-awaited "Cloclo", a film that takes as its title the nickname of an icon of French popular music, the late Claude François.
As far as critics who've already seen a trailer for the film are concerned, director Florent Emilio Siri has made an inspired choice in casting 31-year-old Belgian actor Jérémie Rénier to play the lead role.
Jérémie RénierisClaude François (screenshot from Cloclo trailer)
The physical resemblance, as TF1 news reported, is "staggering" and, as the national daily Le Figaro wrote it looks as though Rénier has made the role his own - and not just in terms of looking like François.
"I asked for a lengthy preparation period before shooting began," Rénier told the paper.
"I couldn't sing, dance or play the drums, so I had a lot to learn," he continued.
'I also worked a lot on my breathing and exercised. In total it took four months of intense preparation - every day."
The result will be on general release in France just days after the 34th anniversary of François' death.
For those who can't wait, here's the trailer - just to whet your appetite followed by a (rather poorly recorded although there are others available on YouTube that cannot be embedded) clip of François singing one of his biggest hits "Alexandrie Alexandra".
As Radio France Internationalesays in its biography of the singer, François was "the undisputed icon of French kitsch" and his songs remain timeless and popular.
Most of his hits in France were French renditions or adaptations of songs that had already been hits in English abroad, but he also co-wrote and recorded the original of what would become one of the standards of popular music throughout the world, "Comme d'habitude" or "My Way" in English.
French critics have been heaping praise on it ever since it premiered at the Cannes film festival in May when Jean Dujardin took home the award for Best Actor.
Director Michel Hazanavicius' idea might seem completely potty.
At a time when 3D is all the rage, special FX, music, BIG Hollywood names, colour, the kitchen sink - you name it - are all part of what supposedly tickles the fancy of film-goers, what does the 44-year-old director, screenwriter and producer come up with?
A film in black and white of course - and a silent one to boot!
Hazanavicius apparently had the idea of making a black and white silent movie as far back as the early 90s but couldn't get the funding together.
It wasn't until after the success in France of his two spy spoof movies "OSS 117: Le Caire nid d'espions" ("OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies") in 2006 and "OSS 117: Rio Ne Répond Plus" ("OSS 117: Lost in Rio") in 2009, both of which starred Dujardin, that Hazanavicius sent the script of "The Artist" to the producer Thomas Langmann, who managed to get together a €10 million budget.
The film was shot at Warner Studios in Los Angeles in just 35 days, a feat which Hazanavicius admits, didn't really give him a chance to appreciate fully exactly how "mythical" the setting was.
"It was very short and I didn't have the time to be clear about where I was," he said.
"I had to keep to a very tight schedule and convince those working on the film to adapt to the French method of movie making."
The result? A romantic comedy described as "A pastiche…but lovingly made and extremely watchable," by Screen International.
Its storyline perhaps isn't entirely original: George Valentin (Dujardin) a star of silent movies in the late 1920s at a time when talkies are the future meets young actress Peppy Miller (played by Hazanavicius' wife, Bérénice Bejo) looking for her big break. As Valentin's star wanes, so Miller's rises.
But - and it's a big but - there's emotion, passion, music, dance, wonderful cinematography (yes it's possible in black and white) more than a few nods to classic Hollywood films that should keep any cinephile happy and, and and...oh yes a dog in the shape of Jack (played by Jack Russell Uggy who also won an award at Cannes - the Palm Dog).
"The Artist" opened in France October 12 and there are rumblings that it won't just be entered into that also-ran Best Foreign Language Film category at the Oscars next year - but will be in the main competition for the proper gongs.
So here's a word of advice - go see it.
Enjoy - and hey....even if you don't speak a word of French, it'll likely be the first film from this country that you'll sit through and be able to understand in its entirety.
"Home alone" might only have been a 1990 film dreamt up by scriptwriters as a comedy in which Macaulay Culkin played the part of an eight-year-old boy mistakenly left behind when his parents fly off to Paris for their Christmas hols.
But let's face it, fact can be - and often is - stranger than fiction as the parents of an eight-year-old French boy can attest to after their weekend "lapse of memory".
They reportedly "forgot" their son on the side of the road, leaving him at a rest area and only realising he was missing half an hour later.
The couple from the suburbs of Paris were on their way to the market town of Lourdes at the foot of the Pyrénées in southwestern France.
It is of course famous as a destination for Catholic pilgrimage and alleged miraculous healings.
They had set off on their holidays early on Saturday morning; mum, dad and three children in a camping car.
The roads were pretty busy with holidaymakers, just as they are every Saturday in August in France.
As Agence France Pressereports, at around nine o'clock in the evening, after having completed just over 700 of their 800 kilometre journey, the couple decided to take a break, and they stopped at a rest area on the nationale 21 in the département of Gers.
A few minutes later, refreshed and ready for the final stretch, they set off again, and it was only when they arrived in Lourdes that they realised one of their children was missing.
They immediately rang the emergency services, to be told that their son was with the police who had been alerted by other motorists who had seen the child alone at the rest area.
About turn - they were reunited with him a couple of hours later.
So, how could parents apparently "forget" one of their children?
It sounds even weirder than the recent case of the man who left his wife at the side of the road in the dead of night without realising she was missing.
That also happened in the southwest of France - is there something in the water perhaps?
Well there's a simple and innocent enough explanation according to the national daily France Soir.
When the family stopped, all three children were apparently asleep in the back of the camping car.
But while the parents stretched their legs, the eight-year-old slipped out without them noticing.
So they didn't really "forget" him. They just didn't realise he wasn't there.
In their infinite wisdom, the police have decided not to pursue the case, putting it all down to fatigue and a momentary lack of attention at the end of a long journey.
Maybe though, as the regional daily Midi Librecomments, the couple will light up a candle or two in thanks at their final destination.
One thing is for certain - it's a holiday neither the boy nor his parents will forget in a hurry.
The headline could have been more vulgar, in keeping with the reported behaviour of one of France's best-known actors Gérard Depardieu, aboard a Paris to Dublin 'plane on Tuesday evening.
Depardieu apparently took a leak in front of fellow passengers after the cabin crew refused to allow him to use the loo just as the 'plane was ready to taxi for take off on Tuesday evening.
"'I need to piss. I need to piss,' is what Monsieur Depardieu said," according to one of the passengers aboard the flight operated by CityJet, a subsidiary of Air France-KLM.
"A member of the cabin crew informed Monsieur Depardieu that the 'plane was ready for take off, everyone had to remain seated and the toilets were locked but could be used in about 15 minutes," he told Europe 1 radio.
"The actor said he couldn't wait, so what did he do? He peed right there in front of everyone."
A spokeswoman for CityJet confirmed that an incident had taken place requiring the 'plane to return to the gate to be cleaned and causing a two-hour delay in take-off.
But the airline refused to release the name of the person involved saying simply that he had been escorted off the 'plane.
As the French celebrity news website Purepeople.compoints out Depardieu is not unknown for saying exactly what he thinks or doing what he wants and has a reputation for what could politely be termed as, "his lack of social graces".
In April 2010 at the premiere of "Mammuth" in Paris he insulted a journalist who asked him why he had dedicated the film to his late son Guillaume, calling her, "A bitch."
And in August last year he was at it again, this time taking aim at French actress Juliette Binoche and questioning why she had been so successful in spite of being, "A nothing."
The 28-year-old is an accomplished actress and already has one César (the French equivalent of an Oscar) under her belt as most promising actress in the excellent 2006 film Je vais bien, ne t'en fais pas.
Since then Hollywood has sat up and taken notice and she secured the role of Shosanna Dreyfus in Quentin Tarantino's 2009 film Inglourious Basterds.
Laurent has also written and directed films; one of them, De moins en moins, was nominated for Best short film at the 2008 Cannes film festival, which brings us full circle as she'll be maîtresse de cérémonie at both the opening and closing of this year's cinematographic extravaganza on the French Riviera.
Somehow, somewhere along the way, Laurent has also managed to pack in recording her debut album En t'attendant.
The two-year project with the Irish musician Damien Rice resulted in what Laurent calls, "The fulfilment of a childhood dream."
"I didn't wake up one morning and think 'Hey I think I could be a singer'," she says.
And that's probably just as well because the impression you could have of some French actresses throughout the years is that they have had exactly that thought.
The list of those who've had a stab at treating the rest of us to their vocal cords includes (among many, many others) Catherine Deneuve, Brigitte Bardot, Isabelle Adjani, Jeanne Moreau, Sandrine Kiberlain, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Vanessa Paradis.
Some, such as Gainsbourg and Paradis, have made the transition back and forth without any problem.
Others - well perhaps it would have been better had they stuck to their day job.
So which camp does Laurent belong to?
Well reviews for her album have been mixed.
There has been praise for Rice's arrangements and the strength of his voice (on two duets) but doubts cast on the quality of Laurent's and her ability to deliver.
"The album is beautifully made...and often seductive," saysRadio France Internationale.
"But Laurent needs to impose her personality more in her voice."
And that's a point of view picked up by Frederic Le Rouzo writing for the French website Le Post.
He applauds Laurent's approach describing it as "simple and modest" but at the same time the impression the listener has, "is of a flat voice, banal...one which does not transmit emotion or make us dream."
"One can only wish her a continued acting career in which she will easily find success," he concludes.
Ouch!
Laurent hasn't taken such criticism well and reacted angrily in an interview with the regional daily Le Berry républicain during Le Printemps de Bourges.
She was appearing at the music festival shortly before the release of her album..
Laurent lashed out at journalists saying that they seemed only too willing to criticise and that it didn't seem to matter someone in the public eye said or did, there were those only too willing to find something disparaging to say.
And cast an eye over the comments from those who really count - potential fans.
Some are enthusiastic but other are far from being gentle with the suggestion that the last thing France needs is "another Carla Bruni-Sarkozy" soundalike.
Ah! Very Allen with blissfully sumptuous shots of the city of lights in all its glory; clichéd perhaps but inevitable - a delight for any fan of the director's previous 40 films.
Yes it might be very much in the mould of the 75-year-old's other romantic comedies and slightly hackneyed in the way it presents the French capital, but what the heck.
It's Allen and fans probably won't be disappointed and there's that cast of course.
It combines Hollywood A-listers with a splash of European: a mix of Allen favourites, Oscar winners and a couple of bright young(ish) things
Apart from Owen - and in alphabetic order - there's (among others) Kathy Bates, Adrian Brody, Marion Cotillard, Rachel McAdams, Michael Sheen...and oh yes...a certain Carla Bruni (the "Sarkozy" part of her surname seems to have been dropped for some reason).
Carla Bruni-Sarkozy in Woody Allen's "Midnight in Paris" (screenshot from trailer)
Woo hoo. It has finally happened.
After modelling, singing (ongoing), and first-ladying, Bruni-Sarkozy now hits the big screen, just as Allen promised she would back in June 2009
Well if the truth be told it'll actually be Bruni-Sarkozy's second film appearance .
Her debut came back in Robert Altman's 1994 fashion satire "Pret-a-Porter". But perhaps that doesn't count as she played herself and that, only briefly.
This time though she speaks. And that, in spite of rumours (hotly denied by Allen) that it required rather a lot of takes (30 or more) for the Finely Chiselled One to get her lines right.
Bruni-Sarkozy has also survived the cutting room floor and although her performance might be overshadowed by the real stars, who cares?
There she is, larger than life and many times more beautiful, adding yet another string to her multi-talented bow of talents.
All right, so it might be a little exaggerated to judge her performance from the virtual nano-second trailer appearance (blink and you might miss it) but the French and others will get the chance to see for themselves on May 11.
That's when it'll be shown as the opening film at this year's annual bash in Cannes whose director, Thierry Frémaux, has described Allen's latest work as, "A wonderful love letter to Paris."
One thing's for sure, if the whole cast pitches up for the showing, the red carpet promises to come in for some serious tread.
The French won't have to wait too long to flood to the cinema to see their first lady as the film will open in cinemas across the country on the same day.
For those though that cannot wait, here's the trailer.
We're used to scenes of television presenters fluffing their lines or unable to hold back a fit of the giggles for one reason or another.
But it's surely unusual to see one so visibly moved that they're close to tears.
That's exactly what happened during Tuesday morning's edition of the Canal + breakfast programme "La Matinale".
The show's presenter, Maïtena Biraben, had difficulty controlling her emotions, as did fellow journalist Léon Mercadet.
And the reason was quite simple; their reaction to a short montage paying tribute to one of France's most enduring and acclaimed actresses, Annie Girardot, who died on Monday at the age of 79.
Annie Giradot - acceptance speech during Césars in 1996 (screenshot from YouTube video)
Annie Girardot may not be a name with which many people outside of France are that familiar - especially if you're not a lover of this country's cinema.
But she was a giant of the French film industry during the 1960s and 70s, and had a career that began as an accomplished theatre actress, spanned five decades and included more than 120 films for the big screen and over 50 for television.
Girardot starred in six films directed by Claude Lelouch who compared her to Edith Piaf, saying she was the stage "equivalent" of the French singing legend.
Her long career saw her win three Césars - the French equivalent of the Oscars.
In 1977 she picked up the best actress award for the title role in Jean-Louis Bertucelli's "Docteur Françoise Gailland".
And Girardot twice won best supporting actress; in 1996 for the part of Madame Thénardier in Claude Lelouch's "Les Misérables" and again in 2002 when she played Isabelle Huppert's mother in Michael Haneke's "La Pianiste" (Die Klavierspielerin).
Her acceptance speech at the 1996 awards was a "declaration of love" for the French film industry from which she had been sidelined for several years, and it was one that couldn't fail to touch the hearts of those in the audience and viewers at home.
"I don't know if the French cinema missed me," she said.
"But I missed the French cinema...so much."
In 2006 Girardot went public with the news that she was suffering from Alzheimer's and became something of a symbol of the illness here in France especially after the screening in 2008 of Nicolas Baulieu's "Ainsi va la vie".
It was a documentary which managed to bring home the full force of Alzheimer's while remaining a mostly dignified, tender, loving homage to the star.
Baulieu followed the actress and her family until filming stopped in February 2007 when he said that Girardot was no longer aware of the presence of the cameras.
Among the many, many tributes that have been paid to Girardot since the news of her death was announced is that of France's minister of culture, Frédéric Mitterrand.
"She lit the stage as she lit life: with a humanity and a dramatic depth that touched everyone," he wrote.
"Her death is a painful moment for French cinema, which has lost one of its biggest stars, but also for the public, with whom she had a long and affectionate relationship."
Little wonder perhaps then, that both Biraben and Mercadet had trouble holding back their tears on Tuesday morning - and they probably weren't alone.
Maybe celebrities shouldn't get involved in politics, but they often do and sometimes perhaps needs must.
That must surely have been the thinking behind Belgian actor Benoît Poelvoorde's rather novel suggestion for solving his country's political deadlock.
He has called on his fellow countrymen to refrain from shaving until a new government has been formed.
Belgian actor Benoît Poelvoorde (screenshot RTL television)
Belgium has been politically deadlocked and without an elected government for almost seven months.
National elections last June saw the Flemish centre-right separatist party, Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie (New Flemish Alliance, NVA) emerge as the largest parliamentary party.
But the country has been in a political crisis ever since as negotiations to form a new government have been deadlocked in spite of attempts by Johan Vande Lanotte, a mediator appointed the country's king, Albert II, to enable parties to reach a deal.
In the meantime Belgium has been governed by a caretaker government under the previous prime minister Yves Leterme, he of French national anthem fame.
This week Poelvoorde appeared on Belgium's RTL television in a 30-second clip with to urge those (men) watching to refrain from shaving until politicians finally managed to form a government.
"Don't be surprised by the hair," an unshaven Poelvoorde says in the video.
"I've decided - on the initiative of my colleague- not to shave for as long as Belgium is without a government," he continues, dragging (the very bearded) RTL film critic Nicolas Buytaers in front of the camera alongside him.
"If everyone else does the same, then the politicians will realise that we're all united.
"It was his idea (he motions to Buytaers) and I think it's a fabulous one," asserts Poelvoorde.
"Let's keep our beards until Belgium rises again."
All right so it's perhaps one of the oddest proposals to have been put forward so far in the country's search for an end to its political stalemate.
But it's entirely in keeping with the character of the French-speaking Poelvoorde, who is just as famous in France as he is in his own country.
Whether anyone will actually take his idea seriously is surely doubtful, but at the very least it has raised a smile - at home and abroad - at a time when, as France's Europe 1 radio says, the political impasse is a causing a sense of weariness among Belgians.
Belgium is a country of almost 11 million people with a Dutch-speaking majority and a French-speaking minority separated into Flanders and Wallonia respectively.
There's also another, much smaller, German-speaking minority.
The differences between the Dutch-speaking and French-speaking communities have often been at the heart of the country's political divide and are very much part of the reason for its current problems in establishing agreement over an elected national government.
The funeral will be held in the Polish capital Warsaw on Thursday of one of the country's most well-known and popular actors, Krzysztof Kolberger.
He died last weekend at the age of 60 following a long battle with cancer.
A graduate of the Warsaw Academy of Dramatic Arts in 1972, Kolberger began his acting career at the Teatru Śląskiego in the southern Polish city of Katowice but shortly afterwards joined the National Theatre in Warsaw where he made his name and remained a member of the company until 1982 and rejoining it in 1999.
Making the transition from theatre to television and cinema, Kolberger became a household name in Poland and also worked with some of the country's greatest film directors including Andrzej Wajda and Krzysztof Zanussi.
He went on to become a director himself - both for theatre and opera, including what was acclaimed as a "spectacular recital dedicated to the memory of Pope John Paul II," which featured the poems of a "young Karol Wojtyła."
In his 40s Kolberger was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma, undergoing surgery several times which he is quoted as saying "changed in a significant way his approach to life and career, including the way he acted on stage and the way he directed."
I met Kolberger just once, a few years after he had been diagnosed, and remember him as a gentle, smiling man who took an interest in others and did not dwell on his own health.
It was, as Christophe Musial - an art collector and personal friend of the actor - said, a characteristic of not only the way Kolberger lived his life but also dealt with his illness.
"Krzysztof obviously couldn't keep to a tight schedule after he was diagnosed with cancer, but that didn't prevent him from working," Musial said.
"He simply changed the focus somewhat of what he was doing, and although he was still active in the theatre, the bulk of his most recent performances were on Polish television and in film.
"In addition to that though he also travelled quite a bit around Poland giving recitals. He was renowned for the beautiful timbre of his voice and people just loved to listen to him reading poetry.
What has been the reaction in Poland to the news of his death?
"It's quite amazing how much coverage there has been on television and radio and in the newspapers and it's an indication of how popular he was.
His death has been major news; TV channels cleared their schedules to carry so many tributes from the world of theatre, television and film and replay some of his most popular films. They also repeated interviews Krzysztof had given over the years
And thinking about it, it's more than understandable. Here was someone who in his early 20s became a national heartthrob. He was attractive, adorable and a good actor into the bargain. Everyone loved him.
As the years went by and he matured, his popularity didn't wane. Perhaps because I knew Krzysztof as a friend, I had lost sight somewhat of how widespread his appeal was as an actor."
I read one tribute from the Polish actress Joanna Szczepkowska who said, "Krzysztof was always smiling. That is what we must remember. He did so much for us and chose to give us all a good feeling." What did she mean by that?
"She was right. Krzysztof really was always smiling.
Joanna also said that Krzysztof was 'almost saint-like in his qualities' and by that she meant he radiated a warmth and goodness and, although he might have been suffering, did so in silence and never made a great deal about being ill.
On the contrary. When he went public several years ago that he had cancer, it was almost as though he was trying to break a taboo in Polish society.
Krzysztof set an example. He didn't talk about how cancer was affecting him, instead he was very matter-of-fact about it, showing that he was determined to continue working and encouraging others in a similar situation not to be afraid of the illness, not to give up the fight and to make the most of their lives.
I remember him saying once in an interview that it was as though he had a friend inside of him. 'It's my cancer,' he said. 'And we have to learn to live together.'
He also said that one of the most important moments of his career was when Polish television asked him to read the spiritual testament of John Paul II after the Pope’s death.
Krzysztof thought John Paul II was an inspiration in the way he coped with his illness not hiding it, not being afraid of it and not giving up.
You said tributes had been pouring in ever since Krzysztof's death was announced, not only for his acting ability but also for the way he publicly handled his illness in later years. What personal memory do you have of him that has left a lasting impression upon you?
"I remember a few years ago, shortly after Krzysztof had been through a major operation, I was at his home and he appeared weak, exhausted and had difficulty moving or even speaking.
That didn't stop him from returning to the theatre a couple of days later playing just a small role in which he was required to rush on stage, jump over some obstacles and begin shouting.
When I saw him perform, I couldn't believe it was the same man I had seen a few evenings previously. He was so full of vitality.
After the show though he was exactly the same as he had been before; drained and tired.
'Where had all the energy come from?' I asked him, amazed that he had been able to perform in the way he had.
'Ah you forget,' he replied.
'I'm an actor.'"
Krzysztof Kolberger, born Gdansk August 13, 1950, died Warsaw January 7, 2011
Less than a week after the announcement that US actor Robert De Niro would jury chairman at the 64th annual Cannes film festival in May comes the news that another American will be "topping the bill" so-to-speak at this year's César awards in February.
Jodie Foster, Berlin 2007 (image from Wikipedia, author Franz Richter)
Actress Jodie Foster will add her very own brand of American flair, in fluent French of course, to this country's equivalent of the Oscars next month as president of the 36th annual César awards ceremony to be held at Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris.
While De Niro's appointment continues a trend that will have seen three out of the last four jury presidents at Cannes coming from across the Pond (Sean Penn in 2008 and Tim Burton in 2010) Foster will become the first foreigner since the late Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni to preside over the César ceremony and only the fourth American ever after Kirk Douglas (1990), Gene Kelly (1984) and Orson Welles (1982)
The choice of the 48-year-old Foster perhaps comes as no surprise as the weekly national Le Journal du Dimanche pointed out on its website.
She is, as the paper reminds its readers, "an accomplished francophone" who studied at the Lycée Français in Los Angeles.
Apart from an acting career which includes the not-so trifling accolade of winning two Oscars for best actress (1988 in The Accused and 1991 in The Silence of the Lambs) and being nominated on two other occasions (for best supporting actress at just 14 years of age in the 1976 film Taxi Driver and again in the best actress category in the 1994 movie Nell) Foster has also directed and produced.
And, as US Daily reports, she is no stranger to French cinema having "appeared in Eric Le Hung's 1977 film Moi, Fleur Bleue (Stop Calling Me Baby (Moi, fleur bleue), Claude Chabrol's Le Sang des autres (The Blood of Others) in 1984 and Jean-Pierre Jeunet's Un long dimanche de fiançailles (A Very Long Engagement) in 2004.
The César award ceremony will take place on February 25 and be broadcast live on Canal + television.
The nominees in each of the categories will be announced on January 21 in Paris.
The double-American whammy should put paid (for a while at least) to those assertions that the French always look sniffily down their collective Gallic noses when it comes to US "culture", although perhaps both Foster and De Niro are noteworthy exceptions to the rule that "The world is turning Disney".
The making of the real The Silence of the lambs
The spoof starring Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders
It's official - well just as much as it can be until "properly" confirmed. France's first lady, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, will be appearing in a new Woody Allen film.
Shooting is reportedly due to begin in Paris this summer.
Rumours of Allen wanting to cast Bruni-Sarkozy in his as-yet untitled film, began last June when the 74-year-old director was in the French capital to promote his movie "Whatever works".
During an appearance on the mid-evening television news magazine "Le Grand Journal" on Canal +, Allen was full of praise for France's first lady, and underlined how much he would love to work with her.
"I would really like to offer her a role in my next film and what's more I promise that her participation wouldn't create any embarrassment for the president or the image of France."
A pearl of a statement for the French glossy magazines of course, who spent the next couple of months eagerly speculating whether the offer was a serious one and, if so, whether it would be accepted.
They (and the rest of us) didn't have to wait too long for the answer, as when Bruni-Sarkozy appeared on the very same TV programme in November, she was pretty clear when asked the inevitable question.
"When I'm a grandmother I'll be able to say I've been in a Woody Allen film."
So there you have it. After modelling, singing (ongoing) and first-ladying, Bruni-Sarkozy is venturing into pastures new.
Well not so new if the truth be told. She has of course already made an appearance on the Big Screen, albeit limited to playing herself briefly in Robert Altman's 1994 fashion satire "Pret-a-Porter".
But lest you think Allen's faith in Bruni-Sarkozy's potential is misplaced, don't forget she has a family acting pedigree.
Her mother, Marisa Borini, has appeared in several films and of course her older sister, Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi, is an accomplished film, television and theatre actress and director.
Plus if the deal is as "done" as it appears - and all will be revealed at the end of this week apparently - the success of the film won't rest entirely on Bruni-Sarkozy's shoulders.
The movie is also reported to star Marion Cottilard, winner of the 2007 Academy Award for best actress, as well as Hollywood actors Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams.
It was supposed to have been a family treat as a group that included six adults and nine children made their way to a cinema in Paris to see a matinée performance of the latest Disney film "The Princess and the Frog".
But it ended up with the police being called in and all of them being escorted from their seats and eventually out of the cinema.
It all happened the weekend before last at the UGC Ciné Cité des Halles - let's not beat about the bush with this as it has been all over the media here - right in the heart of the French capital.
After having bought their tickets, the group happily made their way to the auditorium, not knowing what was in store, because before being allowed to take their places they were asked the age of the youngest child.
Now, little Gabrielle was just two years and 10 months, which according to the rules of UGC was below the age at which any child could be allowed into a cinema, no matter what the film.
There's a law that says as much...after all this is France, a country in which to many, there seems to be a regulation governing everything.
All right, so it dates back to 1927, but it's there in black and white; article 198 of the ordinance of the prefecture of Paris, "prohibits children under three years from entering all cinemas."
And that's the law the UGC followed - to the letter - shortly afterwards.
The group of course was told that they couldn't take Gabrielle in as she was too young, but they said there had been no problems buying the tickets (totalling more than €100) from the cashier and they hadn't been told about the age limit.
So they ignored the employee and took their places.
Moments later though, after the commercials had finished and before the film had begun, the employee returned with three police officers who then escorted the whole group from their seats and into the foyer.
Once there apparently as Eric Bordron, one of the parents explained on national radio, they were joined by several other officers, and while the children started crying the adults were reminded of the regulation and were threatened with being taken down to the police station.
The group had their papers checked and eventually left quietly.
UGC stuck to its guns in terms of having been right to enforce the regulations about the age limit in the first place.
'The regulation is in place to ensure that comfort of the whole audience audience," he continued.
"And it can be very difficult for young children to concentrate for the duration of the film," he added.
While admitting that the regulations perhaps weren't clearly enough spelled out to cinema-goers ahead of a film, Dura said that signs would be put in place in all of the group's movie theatres so that a similar incident wouldn't occur again.
As to claims that the situation had been handled less than delicately, especially in the light of so many police being called in, the management of the UGC Ciné Cité des Halles, insisted that "usually such conflicts are resolved through dialogue, but here, unfortunately, that didn't seem to work."
And the lesson to be learnt from this tale - apart from the fact of course that in France "rules are rules"?
Appearing on the mid-evening French television news magazine "Le Grand Journal" on Canal + on Monday evening, Bruni-Sarkozy said that the possibility of working alongside Allen was too good to pass up.
When I'm a grandmother I'll be able to say I've been in a Woody Allen film."
Speculation of a possible role for France's first lady in Allen's next movie had been rife since the summer, when the 73-year-old director was in Paris to promote his most recent film, "Whatever works".
During an appearance on the very same Canal + programme back in June, Allen had expressed his desire to work with Bruni-Sarkozy, saying she was "an accomplished artist, very beautiful," and that he was "sure she had a gift for acting."
Bruni-Sarkozy has made a big screen appearance before - a brief one as "herself" in the late Robert Altman's 1994 fashion satire "Prêt-à-Porter" ("Ready to wear").
And of course her "character" recently made it to the small screen in an episode of the US animated television sitcom, "The Simpsons", as a rather unflattering "wine-swigging, chain-smoking man- eater."
In spite of Bruni's-Sarkozy's limited experience, perhaps Allen's faith in her potential could be based on what he describes as her "charisma" and also on the fact that she has a family acting pedigree.
Her mother, Marisa Borini, has appeared in several films and of course her older sister, Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi, is an accomplished film, television and theatre actress and director.
Filming for Allen's next movie is scheduled to begin in Paris next year.
The omnipresent mobile 'phone complete with camera capability can capture moments that many, and not just those in the media spotlight, might wish to forget.
A quick "click" and the damage is done with videos and pictures making their way to a wider audience via the Net as everyone and anyone becomes a "photojournalist".
But sometimes there has to be a limit, as would hopefully appear to be the case in the recent death of the French actor, Jocelyn Quivrin.
Just over a week ago Quivrin was killed in a road accident as he apparently lost control of his car at the entrance to a tunnel on a motorway in a western suburb of Paris.
Quivrin, who most recently appeared in the French film LOL (Laughing out loud) alongside Sophie Marceau, was just 30 years old.
Initial media reports suggested that he had been driving his Ariel Atom, a high performance sports car, well in excess of the speed limit especially as the vehicle's speedometer had been blocked on impact at 230 kilometres per hour (143 mph).
But the exact circumstances around Quivrin's death remain unclear even though police have called for eye witnesses, and this is perhaps where the tale takes a more than slightly macabre turn with the presence of a mobile 'phone.
Because someone on the scene shortly after the accident occurred and before the emergency services arrived decided to use their 'phone to take some images of what had happened and then try to sell them to the highest bidder.
Thankfully though the French media didn't take the bait. In fact among those offered the film there was outright condemnation.
"Pure voyeurism," headlined the French news website, Le Post, which also informed readers that a deputy editor-in-chief of a weekly magazine had turned down the pictures saying they had "been taken minutes after the accident, but there's no question of our buying them and to be quite honest it's appalling."
And from Jean-Claude Elfassi, one of this country's most notorious paparazzi and therefore no stranger to controversy himself, came equally strong language and the description of such behaviour as that of 'the new monsters".
"This person is sadly like so many others," he wrote.
"He tried to negotiate (payment) for these pictures with my friend, Guillaume Clavières, the head of photography for Paris Match, a magazine that has published some of the biggest scoops of the century," he continued.
"But Guillaume didn't want to sell his soul to the devil, and I can understand that."
While the pictures haven't yet surfaced in the pages of a magazine, maybe it's only a matter of time before an editor somewhere decides that it's worth paying a euro or two in an effort to boost circulation figures.
La rentrée, the time of the year when the French return from their summer holidays and get back to everyday life, has of course come and gone.
And it hasn't been without its problems. This year perhaps first and foremost has been the accompanying and much-predicted rapid spread of the H1N1 virus, especially as children started the new academic year.
But for students at the Geoffroy-Saint-Hilaire lycée or high school in the town of Etampes in the département of Essone, 48 kilometres south of the French capital, another completely different issue has been occupying their minds.
Last week more than 200 of them refused to follow a "request" made by the school's principal to dress "correctly" in other words for example to wear skirts that dropped beyond knee level or refrain from attending school in Bermuda shorts.
Instead they organised "The day of shorts" and turned up at school "inappropriately" dressed.
The move was undoubtedly inspired by the film "La journée de la jupe" (Skirt day) released in March this year in which among other things, the main character of the teacher Sonia Bergerac, (played by Isabelle Adjani) wears a skirt to school and in the process breaks a rule set by the principal.
Back to reality though, and the result of the demonstration was a three-day suspension for the main organiser of the "day of the shorts" which had quickly gathered support among students through social networking sites and of course text messages.
Far from being the beginning of a 1968-type student revolution, the action was, in the words of one student, "A way of making a point in as light-hearted a fashion as possible," especially as the weather was particularly hot.
And the protest is unlikely to rest there if some students have anything to do with it.
Another "event" has been planned and once again the Internet could prove to play a vital role in spreading the word as quickly as possible.
A Facebook group "The right to kiss" has been set up with over 300 members who apparently will be taking the opportunity to do exactly as the name suggests at the school on Tuesday.
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It's been a while since I have posted to Polly-Vous Francais! I am happy
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