ROTTEN TOMATOES: A Very Long Engagement Ruled Not French

A Very Long Engagement Ruled Not French

by RT Staff | November 30, 2004

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the Paris administrative court has ruled that because of foreign funding, Jean-Pierre Jeunet's romance "A Very Long Engagement" ("Un Long Dimanche de Fiancailles") does not qualify as a French film. As a result of the ruling, the film, which was primarily funded by Warner Bros., does not qualify for French subsidies. Such funding is provided for films that are not controlled by shareholders outside the European Union. The film's producers said they were disappointed, because the film was shot in France with French actors, extras, and technicians, and was based upon a French novel. The film is a WWI romance starring Audrey Tautou as a woman who searches for her fiancé, who disappeared during the war.

Related Items

Celeb:	Jean-Pierre Jeunet
	Audrey Tautou
Movie:	A Very Long Engagement

(1-1 of 1 posts) | Reply

RitterRed writes:
on Dec 01 2004 05:34 AM

[b]But Alexander, that's another story[/b]
I read about this the other day, and I was annoyed that a handful of producers used a technicality to keep Jeunet's film out of the Cannes submissions; it undermines the entire creative-filmmaking venture when they do this, but all they care about is limiting the field so that their own films will have a chance...thus diluting the quality of films in the process. A Very Long Engagement is nixed because not all of its funding came from France, in essence. So, why not enter it as a film from the US? Because if the film has been screened outside the country in which it's been produced, then it is not considered eligible. Since A Very Long Engagement has already been screened...in France no less! it no longer qualifies. A sad commentary on the machinations of a few mean-minded Machiavellians who probably have nothing more worthy to submit than some tripe such as Alexander.

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