César Awards Versus Art Films And Women
The French Oscars can't seem to fix its gender problems.
The César awards provide an annual event where the French can celebrate their love of film and controversy. The 2023 edition may not have been the most contentious, but it didn’t lack viral moments thanks to its continued fumbling of gender issues, protests, and even humor. Only the surprise appearance of famed French winemaker Brad Pitt seemed to provide a (somewhat) unifying moment.
The controversy part started well before the ceremony when the nominees for best director were announced and they didn’t include any women. Again. The five male nominees, picked by more than 4,700 members of the César Academy, included Cédric Klapisch (En Corps), Louis Garrel (L’innocent), Cédrik Jiminez (Novembre), Dominik Moll (La Nuit du 12) and Albert Serra (Pacifiction). Only Novembre wasn’t nominated for best picture.
All were very well reviewed, but it was impossible to ignore the fact at least three women who directed equally well-received films — Alice Winocour (Revoir Paris) and Rebecca Zlotowski (Les Enfants des Autres), and Alice Diop (Saint Omer) — were shut out.
In theory, the Césars had reformed their membership and nomination process following previous controversies, including making Romain Polanski ceremonial chief of the academy. They even took the bold step this year of banning people who are under suspicion of sexual assault after news broke that one potential nominee, Sofiane Bennacer, was the target of a rape investigation.
Naturally, Bannacer’s scandal came in connection with his appearance in the film Les Amandiers ("Forever Young"), which was the only film directed by a woman in the running for a major award: Best picture.
If there was any consolation here, La Nuit du 12 won for best picture and best director. The film is based on a true story about a young woman who was walking home one night and encountered a man who doused her with gasoline and set her on fire. The story follows the detectives trying to track down the killer.
The murder and film touch on féminicides, a subject that has become a hot-button issue in France where such killings rose 20% from 2020 to 2021. One-third of those women were the victims of conjugal violence, and many reported such threats to the police who often did nothing.
Of course, the Césars can’t win for losing. While progressives critiqued the lack of diversity, rightwing elements blasted the ceremony (and films in general) for turning off viewers because they are too political and “woke.” Like this gem from the general secretary of France’s police union. “Why don’t we go to the cinema anymore? Because it’s not the cinema but rather politics and woke indoctrination.” Though the inclusion of a clip from Schindler’s List in the montage of “woke” films he tweeted would seem to suggest the Holocaust is just one more part of the woke agenda.
Will Smith Syndrome
Comedian and actor Jamel Debbouze hosted the ceremony, and he joked that he was the fifth choice after many others had turned down the gig.
“I understand their refusal. It has becomes dangerous to host this kind of ceremony,” he said. “You're not safe from a Will Smith. That’s why I’m watching all of you. We never know who is the equivalent of Will Smith.”
Oddly enough, it turned out Juliette Binoche took on that role. Debbouze during his monologue, later joked about the decline of cinema and why no one goes to theaters anymore. He pointed the finger of blame at American streaming services such as Amazon Prime, Disney Plus, and Netflix.
“For 9 euros, you have unlimited access to very very good films,” he said. “For €9 you have your incredible actors like DiCaprio, Depardieu, Meryl Streep or Sandra Bullock. How have they managed to have it for €9? Seriously, you can watch movies comfortably in your living room or with your wife in your bed. You can hit pause, get a yogurt, come back, and all that for the cursed sum of €9. This offer is exceptional and we are in the shit.”
He compared that to the €60 it cost for a couple to go to the movies, including the popcorn and the babysitter. He proposed a national program to reduce the costs of babysitters because, hey, they just sit on the couch and watch Netflix after the kids are asleep, right? LOL.
But then he really crossed a line when he suggested that the other problem is that maybe French films are a bit too artsy and boring. Maybe replace some of that slow pacing with, I dunno, martial arts?
"Not a single stunt, not a single special effect! Is that normal? Do you want to sell tickets or not?" he said. Instead, he said, reading from a pretend script: "Vincent Lindon walks languidly towards Juliette Binoche' (...) With ‘languidly,’ the theater is empty. If you replace 'languidly' with ninjas, on my mother's life, it is not the same movie.”
At this point Binoche, who was nominated for best actress, rose in the audience and gave the comedian a piece of her mind. “I don’t agree!” she said. “No, Jamel. We also sell tickets!”
As Binoche noted on her Instagram post after the show: “Sorry Jamel, with all the respect and love I have for you, I don't agree to let you denigrate cinema, nor those who take the risk of doing it. It's too easy," she wrote. “Artistic cinema brings a singular, sometimes new look, different tangents, which sometimes has difficulty finding its audience, which makes fewer admissions than Asterix, but which also finds it…So no, no sneering. Tolerance, and a little appreciation of differences."
“You’re lucky I’m not the sister of Will Smith!”
In other words: “Keep my art films out of your mouth!”
Le Dude
The ceremony managed a few other awkward moments. Like the environmental activist who jumped on stage to remind viewers that, hey, yuck it up tonight but FYI the planet is burning.
Canal+, which broadcasts the ceremony, tried to edit it out in real time while the presenters cracked a few jokes.
Perhaps the most rousing moment came during a segment to honor non-French director David Fincher. Pitt, who co-owns a French château and vineyard, and also sometimes appears on film, came on stage to pay hommage to Fincher.
Canal+ then did that weird thing it does which is to broadcast Pitt’s speech at the same volume as the voice-over, making it impossible to understand either.
Well, whatever he said, people in the auditorium seemed to be quite uplifted by it. And Pitt’s appearance helped bring the ceremony full circle in a way because, as many viewers noted on Twitter, he has also been accused of domestic violence by his ex-wife Angelina Jolie.
So, lessons learned. Or not!
Chris O’Brien
Le Pecq
Ohhhh such a good recap. What a mess. They NEVER learn.