The Taiwanese feature film Face, or Visage in French, a production paid for in part by the Louvre Museum in Paris, is scheduled to make its debut at the National Concert Hall in Taipei on Sept. 22.
Henri Loyrette, president and director of the Louvre Museum, will attend the showing of the film, directed by Malaysian-born, Taiwan-based filmmaker Tsai Ming-liang (蔡明亮), said Tchen Yu-chiou (陳郁秀), chairwoman of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall board of trustees.
Visage is the pride of Taiwan, Tchen told a press conference at the National Concert Hall on Monday.
The production, which features French actors Laetitia Casta, Fanny Ardant and Jean-Pierre Leaud, as well as Taiwanese actors Lee Kang-sheng (李康生) and Lu Yi-ching (陸奕靜), is one in a collection of films sponsored by the Louvre.
Visage, Tsai’s 10th film and a tribute to French New Wave cinema, is described as a film within a film.
It tells the story of a Taiwanese filmmaker who heads to the Louvre to shoot a film about the myth of Salome and her request to her father Herod that St. John the Baptist be beheaded.
Tsai said at the press conference that he was told by Loyrette that Visage, a Taiwanese-French-Belgian-Dutch co-production, is “on a par with other art” at the Louvre.
Tchen said the movie was an artistic masterpiece that deserved to be presented at the National Concert Hall.
Tchen said the visual effects in the film are stunning.
The addition of Visage to the Louvre collection is something Taiwan can feel proud of, she said, adding that most of the Louvre’s works date prior to 1900.
Tsai said he hoped the film would encourage Taiwanese, particularly students, to appreciate real art.
On the film’s prospects for this year’s Golden Horse Festival, Tsai said he doubted the film would be a hit because of its unconventional style.
The film, which was screened at the Cannes Film Festival in May, will be shown around Taiwan from Oct. 2 and will be shown regularly at the Louvre starting next May, Tsai said.
RSS