Fabienne sans son Jules (1964), dir. Jacques Godbout—prod. ONF
Fabienne stars the iconic Pauline Julien in the title role, playing a free-spirited chanteuse much like herself. The film is notable for its scenes of Montreal nightlife and of the city at night more generally (which is why it was part of a “Night and the City” screening that some friends of mine and I organized at the Cinémathèque québécoise 20 years ago), but it also has something to say about cycling and romance and the airport and cinephilia (the film’s central conceit is that Fabienne is trying to get in touch with none other than Jean-Luc Godard):
“J’adore le cinéma!”
And with Montreal presently in thrall to an epic early spring (and the cycle-mania that comes with it), well…
[cycling; flowers; romance; cinephilia; Montréal-Dorval; YUL; cigarette smoke; telephone booths; newsstands; singers; chanteuses; Pauline Julien]
Watch this film here (en français).
And for more about Pauline Julien, her art, her career, and her politics, check out Pascale Ferland’s Pauline Julien, Intimate and Political (2018) here.
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