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French News Round-up<\/h3>\n
It\u2019s been a while since we\u2019ve looked at what\u2019s happening\u00a0\u00e0\u00a0la une des actualit\u00e9s fran\u00e7aises<\/strong>1<\/a><\/sup>the headlines in French current events<\/em><\/span>. The past week\u2019s highlights include a death, a trial, and a slowdown while the week ahead is culturally rich.<\/p>\n The great French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo passed away last week. B\u00e9b\u00e9l, as he was sometimes known, was a giant of French cinema whose career exploded with\u00a0\u00c0 bout de souffle<\/strong>2<\/a><\/sup>Breathless, in English, though a more literal translation might be closer to \u2018Out of breath<\/em>\u2019<\/span> de Jean-Luc Goddard \u2026 ushering in the genre<\/a> known as la nouvelle vague<\/strong>3<\/a><\/sup>the new wave<\/em><\/span> de French Cinema.<\/p>\n Over the course of his career<\/a> he worked with many great French r\u00e9alisateurs<\/strong>4<\/a><\/sup>r\u00e9alisateur<\/em> is the term for a director on films. You may also encounter the expression metteur en sc\u00e8ne<\/em> which is also a director, but comes from the theater. The two terms are often used interchangeably when speaking of film.<\/span>\u00a0(including Louis Malle and Francois Truffaut), actors (notably another giant of French cinema, Alain Delon), and actresses<\/a> (from Catherine Deneuve, Jeanne Moreau, and Sophia Loren to Sophie Marceau, Merlene Jobert, and Mia Farrrow).<\/p>\n Le 9 septembre<\/strong>5<\/a><\/sup>September 9th<\/em><\/span>, a national ceremony was held for B\u00e9bel at which President Emmanuel Macon \u00e0 prononc\u00e9 l\u2019\u00e9loge fun\u00e8bre<\/strong><\/a>6<\/a><\/sup>delivered the eulogy<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n As part of its ongoing efforts to\u00a0r\u00e9duire la place de la voiture\u00a0\u00e0 Paris<\/strong>7<\/a><\/sup>reduce the role of the car in Paris<\/em><\/span>\u00a0et am\u00e9liorer la qualit\u00e9 de l\u2019air<\/strong>8<\/a><\/sup>improve air quality<\/em><\/span>\u00a0la Marie de Paris has been making moves for some time now to reduce car traffic in the city.<\/p>\n Initiatives have included la fermeture des quais de la Seine<\/a> aux voitures<\/strong>9<\/a><\/sup>the closing of the quais along the Seine to cars<\/em><\/span>, the establishment of une Zone \u00e0\u00a0Faible\u00a0\u00c9missions (ZFE<\/a>)<\/strong>10<\/a><\/sup>a Limited (weak) Emissions Zone<\/em><\/span>, and plans to create more pedestrian zones in the city<\/a>.\u00a0The latest move to make the city more people friendly is a 30 km\/h speed limit for cars within the city limits<\/a> which went into effect le lundi 30 ao\u00fbt<\/strong>11<\/a><\/sup>Monday, August 30th<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n While I\u2019m all in favor of safer driving, less cars, and less pollution, I have to admit that the news made me nostalgic for the days when my French host brother would race me around Paris – including les quais – in his Peugeot 205 at speeds that would have made my mother cringe!<\/p>\n According to a recent IFOP survey, \u201cLes Parisiens et les Parisiennes se r\u00e9v\u00e8lent largement favorables \u00e0 l\u2019entr\u00e9e en vigueur d\u2019une limitation quasi-g\u00e9n\u00e9rale de la circulation \u00e0 30 km\/h (61% d\u2019entre eux y sont favorables dont 29% y sont m\u00eame \u00ab\u00a0tr\u00e8s favorables\u00a0\u00bb)<\/strong>\u201d12<\/a><\/sup>The Parisians (male and female) show themselves to be largely in favor of a near-global reduction in speed to 30 km\/h (61%, with 29% \u201cvery favorable\u201d)<\/em><\/span>\\. The survey also reveals that \u201c[l]a majorit\u00e9 des Parisiens demeurent favorables \u00e0 la politique de r\u00e9duction de la place de la voiture dans Paris (58%)<\/strong>\u201d13<\/a><\/sup>the majority of Parisians remain favorable to the idea of reducing cars in Paris (58%)<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n You can see what else the current residence of la r\u00e9gion parisienne think about the latest developments here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Almost 6 years after the horrific events of le 13 novembre<\/strong><\/a>15<\/a><\/sup>November 13<\/em><\/span> 2015 in Paris, le proc\u00e8s<\/strong>16<\/a><\/sup>the trial<\/em><\/span> against those accused of perpetrating the terrible terrorist attacks \u201cqui ont fait 130 morts et des centaines de bless\u00e9s \u00e0 Paris et Saint-Denis<\/strong><\/a>\u201d17<\/a><\/sup>that left 130 dead and hundreds injured in Paris and Saint-Denis<\/em><\/span> has begun in Paris.<\/p>\n Ce week-end (le 18 et 19 septembre)<\/strong>18<\/a><\/sup>This weekend (September 18 and 19)<\/em><\/span> is the 38e \u00e9dition des Journ\u00e9es europ\u00e9ennes du patrimoine<\/strong>19<\/a><\/sup>38th edition of the European Days of Patrimony<\/em><\/span>. You can explore the events planned in France (and accros Europe) here<\/a>.<\/p>\n This weekend will also see the official unveiling of the wrapped Arch de Triomphe<\/a>, an event that not everyone, it appears, is happy about. L\u2019architecte<\/strong>20<\/a><\/sup>The architect<\/em><\/span> Carlo Ratti feels, among other things, that the time is wrong for a wasteful display of this kind<\/a>. While that may be a valid point, the material is already cut, the work is under way, and I, for one, am excited to see (sadly only virtually!) what it will look like!<\/p>\n Zazie dans le m\u00e9tro . . . et ailleurs !*<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nJean-Paul Belmondo<\/h3>\n
Slow it down<\/h3>\n
Ailleurs \u00e0 la une14<\/a><\/sup>Other headlines<\/span><\/h3>\n