Post by cigalechanta on Aug 4, 2009 12:57:28 GMT -5
French film buffs will LOVE this book ~ and so will everyone else who has any interest in the city of Paris. It takes you to neighborhoods you might otherwise overlook. Normally, we become a bit on edge when Paris, 'the City of Light' is called by someone 'the City of Lights'... plural...but in this case the subtitle is perfectly appropriate. This book is written by someone who really knows his French films, Paris scene by Paris scene. If you have a favorite French movie and a particular scene comes to mind when you simply hear the title mentioned, then you will most likely find the shooting location of that scene in Paris Movie Walks.
The cover invokes incredible memories for those of us who have been enjoying French films for decades. What photo could have been more appropriate for this book than one of Jean-Paul Belmondo strolling down the Champs Elysées with Jean Seberg in a scene from Jean-Luc Godard's À bout de souffle (Breathless)? Follow such scenes in this book and then take the exact walks yourself next time you are in Paris!
The author is very well versed in French film locations in Paris; for years he has been a walking guide taking visitors to the sights made famous, from the French New Wave classics to Parisian-filmed Hollywood blockbuster movies like The DaVinci Code. We found that the detailed information about the exact location of a film scene also includes what today stands on that very spot. This tying together of the movie location with, perhaps, a totally different backdrop today, makes it easy to find what you are looking for, even if there is disappointment because an old building has been replaced by a newer one.
Ten tours are presented in the book including The Edge of the Fashion District to the Île-St-Louis, Around Montmartre (did you know that the recent film, La Vie en Rose with Marion Cotillard was filmed there?), Pont d'Alma to the Eiffel Tower and Beyond, along with seven others. After the tenth tour, one of the final chapters, Further Afield, takes film aficionados to scene locations not included in the tours. Among them you will find - near the Cluny-Sorbonne métro station - the location for the Police headquarters in Steve Martin's The Pink Panther, and the UNESCO headquarters building behind l'Ecole Militaire for a shot of Audrey Hepburn in Charade, as well locations near La Défense, Bastille and others. The author also suggests some movies to see before going to Paris to provide you with a sense of seldom-seen neighborhoods and Paris history in a more entertaining light than a guide book...through French film.
The photos in the book are not scenes from movies, but they are places mentioned in the text. In fact, we believe the only movie scene is the one on the cover. But, the book is a wealth of information and the photos are quite incidental.
A great index lists over 210 films covered in the book...a wonderful anthology of movies you could use as a checklist to mark off those you've viewed and those you would like to see. Each tour provides maps as well, although we believe this is only place the book fell short. As each section has two maps, it would have made sense to put them on opposing pages so they could be viewed in total, but, instead, there is a map on one page that has North to your left, for example, and causes you to have to turn the book sideways to read it. Then two pages later is the second map ~ a continuation of the first ~ that may have North at the top of the page. We believe all the maps should have been with the North arrow up and should have been able to be read without maneuvering the book around. The maps themselves, aren't marked with scene locations, so one must know the street and then find it on the map. Bring your reading glasses ~ the street names are very small. You will find the author gives very detailed walking directions, so none of the sights in the book will be difficult to find.
Overall, this is a great book to take with you to Paris. Even if you don't intend to do an entire tour presented by Michael Schürmann, you might want to pick an interesting scene from the book and make your way over to that very spot. For example, James Bond fans might recall the eye patched villain parking his car across the street from 35, avenue d'Eylau ~ a building supposedly housing the 'International Brotherhood for the Assistance of Stateless Persons' ~ only to discover it is the secret headquarters of the sinister organization, SPECTRE. Bravo to the author for his knowledge and sharing it with us in such an effective and interesting way!
Michael Schürmann is a journalist, broadcaster and translator who has lived in Paris since 1993.
Paris Movie Walks: Ten Guided Tours Through the City of Lights! Action! Camera!
was published June 25, 2009 by The Intrepid Traveler, P O Box 531, Branford, CT USA 06405
ISBN 978-1-887140-83-6
You can buy his book in your local bookstore
or with a click below from Amazon.com.
The cover invokes incredible memories for those of us who have been enjoying French films for decades. What photo could have been more appropriate for this book than one of Jean-Paul Belmondo strolling down the Champs Elysées with Jean Seberg in a scene from Jean-Luc Godard's À bout de souffle (Breathless)? Follow such scenes in this book and then take the exact walks yourself next time you are in Paris!
The author is very well versed in French film locations in Paris; for years he has been a walking guide taking visitors to the sights made famous, from the French New Wave classics to Parisian-filmed Hollywood blockbuster movies like The DaVinci Code. We found that the detailed information about the exact location of a film scene also includes what today stands on that very spot. This tying together of the movie location with, perhaps, a totally different backdrop today, makes it easy to find what you are looking for, even if there is disappointment because an old building has been replaced by a newer one.
Ten tours are presented in the book including The Edge of the Fashion District to the Île-St-Louis, Around Montmartre (did you know that the recent film, La Vie en Rose with Marion Cotillard was filmed there?), Pont d'Alma to the Eiffel Tower and Beyond, along with seven others. After the tenth tour, one of the final chapters, Further Afield, takes film aficionados to scene locations not included in the tours. Among them you will find - near the Cluny-Sorbonne métro station - the location for the Police headquarters in Steve Martin's The Pink Panther, and the UNESCO headquarters building behind l'Ecole Militaire for a shot of Audrey Hepburn in Charade, as well locations near La Défense, Bastille and others. The author also suggests some movies to see before going to Paris to provide you with a sense of seldom-seen neighborhoods and Paris history in a more entertaining light than a guide book...through French film.
The photos in the book are not scenes from movies, but they are places mentioned in the text. In fact, we believe the only movie scene is the one on the cover. But, the book is a wealth of information and the photos are quite incidental.
A great index lists over 210 films covered in the book...a wonderful anthology of movies you could use as a checklist to mark off those you've viewed and those you would like to see. Each tour provides maps as well, although we believe this is only place the book fell short. As each section has two maps, it would have made sense to put them on opposing pages so they could be viewed in total, but, instead, there is a map on one page that has North to your left, for example, and causes you to have to turn the book sideways to read it. Then two pages later is the second map ~ a continuation of the first ~ that may have North at the top of the page. We believe all the maps should have been with the North arrow up and should have been able to be read without maneuvering the book around. The maps themselves, aren't marked with scene locations, so one must know the street and then find it on the map. Bring your reading glasses ~ the street names are very small. You will find the author gives very detailed walking directions, so none of the sights in the book will be difficult to find.
Overall, this is a great book to take with you to Paris. Even if you don't intend to do an entire tour presented by Michael Schürmann, you might want to pick an interesting scene from the book and make your way over to that very spot. For example, James Bond fans might recall the eye patched villain parking his car across the street from 35, avenue d'Eylau ~ a building supposedly housing the 'International Brotherhood for the Assistance of Stateless Persons' ~ only to discover it is the secret headquarters of the sinister organization, SPECTRE. Bravo to the author for his knowledge and sharing it with us in such an effective and interesting way!
Michael Schürmann is a journalist, broadcaster and translator who has lived in Paris since 1993.
Paris Movie Walks: Ten Guided Tours Through the City of Lights! Action! Camera!
was published June 25, 2009 by The Intrepid Traveler, P O Box 531, Branford, CT USA 06405
ISBN 978-1-887140-83-6
You can buy his book in your local bookstore
or with a click below from Amazon.com.
Let the riot begin! LOL - 
hahahha