A Paris Education
Jean Paul Civeyrac’s A Paris Education is an affectionate tribute to the filmmakers of the French "new wave" — François Truffaut, Éric Rohmer, Claude Chabrol, Jacques Rivette, Jean-Luc Godard, Agnes Varda and others — and to the love of cinema which motivated their passionate debates about film (in Cahiers du cinéma) during that era.
The original French title for A Paris Education is Mes provinciales, a reference to a collection of letters written by French philosopher Blaise Pascal in the mid-1600s, in which (according to Wikipedia) the philosopher mocked "the moral and theological issues then exciting the intellectual and religious circles in the capital." This is one of a number of subtle but appropriate literary references for this film, which pokes gentle fun at the passions of the young, in this case: a trio of young filmmakers who are determined to dedicate their lives to the highest of values, and to make films without compromising their philosophical ideals.
The central figure of the three is Etienne, who comes to Paris from Lyon to study film and to make his own films. Etienne is passionate about film — or at least he longs to be as passionate about film as Mathias, a fellow film student, who argues vociferously in class, and disdains the work of most of his colleagues.
French literature features prominently in A Paris Education, with Etienne, Jean-Noël and Mathias wandering the night-time streets of Paris quoting from Rimbaud, Baudelaire and Gérard Nerval. Etienne browses through book stalls, and gradually builds an impressive library (impressive for a student's budget, at any rate) of books which express the ideals that have always attracted the young; in Etienne's case this includes Pascal's Mes provinciales, and the letters of Flaubert, and Pier Paolo Pasolini.
Among the questions addressed by A Paris Education is: what do you do when you begin to realize that your abilities fall short of your ambitions, and you find yourself unable to live up to the imperatives of your literary mentors? How to you come to terms with the possibility that you may need to compromise on your youthful ideals?
There are no more screenings of A Paris Eduction at this year's VIFF, but you can view a trailer for the film here.
