Although I've been a fan of French cinema for many years, it wasn't until 2004 that I managed to see a film at a French cinema. Having been a regular visitor to France in the years leading up to that baptism, I figured (correctly or otherwise) that my French had by then reached a level where I could navigate a feature film. Or, pruning the ambition back just a little, at the very least I felt reasonably confident I could successfully negotiate a ticket for the film of my choice -- as opposed to entering a potentially very unlucky dip that might well have seen me spending a couple of hours with a French-dubbed Kate Hudson (no such problems occurred on my first visit, as it was -- very handily -- a one-screen cinema. With no Kate Hudson film showing).
Since then, I've managed to get to over 20 other French cinemas, seeing an average of around 3 films in each. I always enjoy going to new cinemas, and have long toyed with the idea of making some sort of record of all the ones I've visited before they leak out of my head for good -- notes about what I'd seen, when and where I'd seen it, plus a bit of a ramble about what the experience was like, etc. If by some astronomical chance you're like-minded, you may find it to be useful (improbable) and/or mildly interesting (slightly less improbable).
Looking back at all the cinemas I've been to in France, an obvious pattern emerged -- none were south of Paris (for some inexplicable reason, a lengthy stay in sunny Biarritz drew a blank on the cinemagoing front. Although, it didn't rain there that much, so perhaps it really isn't that inexplicable at all). So I thought about an appropriate name for this little project -- "Cinemas of Northern France" was my not-remotely-prosaic working title (OK, actual title for a while as I put more time into thinking up meaningless, confusing tags/labels for my own amusement -- the sole survivor which appears below this post. Don't bother looking. The others are actually relatively useful, though). In the end (for those who've been blocking out the large word at the top of this page) I settled for "Noroît" because I've always (i.e. since 2006) liked both the word and the eerie, little-seen film by Jacques Rivette. It also appears to be my name, at least according to how all these posts are signed. As Reverend Jim might say, what are the chances of that? If you do somehow manage to get further than this introduction you'll find that not too many of the cinemas listed here are in the Northwest (sorry, Nor'west) of France, so it's a bit of a misnomer, really -- and one that may well make you slam your laptop shut in disgust now I've foolishly drawn it to your attention. I understand the feeling that you've been had.
Having thought about how best to structure it, after a very long time it occurred to me that a blog-style layout might be the way to go, as it would allow for easy additions and amendments. If you're not familiar with blogs, I'm really not at all sure as to why exactly you would want this to be your first experience of them, but navigating it is pretty simple, and easy access can be had from the archive menu on the right, which lists (and links to) all the cinemas. The labels underneath a post can be clicked so you can group together all cinemas from that town or department (the two digit number at the start of the labels), and there are also a few other bits and pieces thrown in there, such as directors and actors' names, cinema chains, and so on (see? I really didn't lie about the usefulness of those labels). Each film seen is linked to its IMDb page, and I think it's true to say that every film was caught on its initial theatrical release (and here's the exception that proves the rule). A link to the cinema's website is given at the end of the post, or if the cinema is too apathetic to have its own site then a link to their page on the excellent Allocine is given; if (when) any of the links go dead due to my probable neglect of this project, Allocine is the place to go. But if you do need to get in touch for any reason, please contact me via Holland Focus.
Current leaderboard: 1: Gaumont Coquelles (22) / 2: Les Stars (10) / 3: Cinéma Alhambra (7) / 4: Le Familia (6) / 5: Les Clubs (3)
