INDEX

Sunday May 3, 2020

The names of French things

Learning French gives a new insight into the French film. Much can be learned from the names French film makers take or decide to retain. Cocteau, as in Jean of that ilk, the famous creator of La Belle et La Bete, means knife. Clearly Cocteau wanted to be an editor. Renoir, as in Jean the film maker son of the painter, means black bottom, apparently. A name that was more appropriate to his father, probably. He must have thought the name was a strong brand and he could not change it. Goddard is the French for a song and dance man. This came out very much in his film The Offsiders, about the inability of the French to understand the intricacies of the rules of Soccer. Alain Robbe-Grillet, is obvious. It means a person who specialises in stealing from fish and chip shops, a rare name in France since there aren't any. My favourite French director Patrice Leconte took his name from a Sesame Street character, which is odd because he was making films many years before the American series was shown. Rohmer, as in Eric, literally means a person who counts the silverware before eating. And, of course, Chabrol, as in Claude, means a tea maker, the French equivalent of a samovar.

Posted by Jonathan Brind.

INDEX

Sunday May 3, 2020