It's all in the taste

The first round of the French Presidential election on Sunday shook things up.  In France it's been described as an 'earthquake', a 'revolution' and a 'leap into the unknown'. Political novice Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine le Pen topped the lists and will go into the second round on May 7. This marks the first time in over half a century that the traditional ruling parties of left and right have both stumbled on the first hurdle. But enough of elections.
Let's get to the sweet things.

My friend just arrived from Paris post-election and brought these for a house gift. She's welcome anytime!

What a treat after coming back from the LATimes BookFestival to find this on the kitchen table.

That's Todd Goldberg, Gary Phillips and one of Todd's writing students.

Have you ever heard of a cheese latte? Found this in LA and did not try. Will stick with the Macaroons from Paris.

But I'd like to talk about a film. A French favorite, made in 1966, that in a recent article in a Paris paper seems to be a film that is shown every April during the school break (two weeks long!) Almost everyone appears to have made this a tradition during Easter time. It got the highest ratings, as always, again this year. La Grand Voudrille or Don't Look Now we're being shot At. This is with Louis de Funes, Bouvril and Terry-Thomas.

You can watch the whole movie on youtube here and a lot of it is in English.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0IpmQVVCms&t=3818s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0IpmQVVCms&t=3818s

 A film about two ordinary Frenchmen helping the crew of a Royal Air Force bomber shot down over Paris make their way through German-occupied France to escape arrest.

For over forty years, until the release of Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis, a comedy in 2008, La Grande Vadrouille was the most successful French film in France, topping the box office. It remains the third most successful film ever in France, of any nationality, behind the 1997 version of Titanic and Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis.

The plot is simple it's summer 1941. Over German-occupied France, a Royal Air Force bomber becomes lost after a mission and is shot down over Paris by German flak. Three of the crew, Sir Reginald (Terry-Thomas) Peter Cunningham and Alan MacIntosh, parachute out over the city, where they run into and are hidden by a house painter, Augustin Bouvet, (Bouvril) a puppet show operator, Juliette, and the grumbling conductor of the Opéra National de Paris, Stanislas Lefort (Louis de Funes). Involuntarily, Lefort, Juliette and Bouvet get themselves tangled up in the manhunt against the aviators led by Wehrmacht Major Achbach as they help the airmen to escape to the free zone with the help of Resistance fighters and sympathisers.

What better lens to view history then comedy?

Cara - Tuesday