Film Screening:

Polisse
(Maïwenn, 2011, 127 min, France, in French with English subtitles, Color, 35mm)

-- Introduced by Christelle Gonthier, Romance Studies (Q&A to follow).

Based on real cases from the Paris Child Protection Unit, Polisse examines the brutal tasks of ten CPU officers, bringing together an ensemble cast composed of some of the finest actors working in France today. Much like superlative TV procedurals such as The Wire, Polisse - the title is a child's misspelling of police - has the immediacy of news ripped from the headlines.

Director Maïwenn (who also cowrote the script) immerses viewers into the unimaginable work this tireless corps of civil servants have devoted themselves to: investigating sexual and physical abuse against children, stopping kids from harming themselves or other youngsters. Their assignments are unremittingly horrific, and Polisse smartly explores the toll this grueling labor takes on the officers, both on the job and at home. Marriages and other personal relationships unravel, once-close colleagues become bitter enemies, and supervisors interfere with endless bureaucracy and red tape. But no matter the difficulties in their private and professional lives, these CPU cops remain constantly dedicated to rescuing society's most vulnerable members from unspeakable harm.

Cost: Free and Open to the Public

Sponsors: Center for French and Francophone Studies, Program in the Arts of the Moving Image (AMI), and Department of Romance Studies. Made possible by the support of the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, the French Ministry of Culture (CNC), the Florence Gould Foundation, the Grand Marnier Foundation, and highbrow entertainment.