France does not have drive-in theaters like in the US but in some cities you can still “drive-in” to a parc in the summer and enjoy movies outdoors. This is called “Cinéma en Plein Air” (Open-Air Cinema). This type of summer festivals takes place in some French cities and of course in Paris!
What a magical way to enjoy a summer night under the sky of Paris! It takes place at the Parc de la Villette (grass area called “prairie du triangle”) in the 19th arrondissement.
Open-Air Cinema at the Parc de la Villette
Admission is free or, for added comfort, you can borrow a lounge chair for 7 euros. Many people just bring a blanket and come early with a picnic while waiting for the movie. Unlike a drive-in theater, there is not set time to start, but they typically get going as soon as it gets dark (à la tombée de la nuit) — at about 10:30 pm. A big plus for English speaking moviegoers is that all the movies are shown in their original language (VO: Version Originale) so American movies are not dubbed but in English with French subtitled. In fact, a US movie was scheduled to kick off the 21st edition of the Parc de la Villette “Cinéma en Plein Air” last night. Unfortunately, due to the rain, the showing of Martin Scorsese’s movie “Taxi Driver” had to be cancelled (always a good idea to confirm the movie is still showing, especially this summer since the weather has been quite capricious!).
But why wait for Paris! How about enjoying a wholesome night with family or friends at an open-air theater in your area or a local old-fashion drive-in theater? And just for fun, we were curious to know what you thought about the US movies selected for this summer open-air cinema festival in Paris. If you were going to go this year, which US movie would you choose to see?
- Film #1: Taxi Driver, 1975 (Martin Scorsese)
- Film #2: 3:10 to Yuma (3h10 pour Yuma) , 2007 (James Mangold)
- Film #3: Kiss Me Deadly (En quatrième vitesse), 1955 (Robert Aldrich)
- Film #4: On the Town (Un jour à New York ), 1949 (Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen)
- Film #5: Bonnie and Clyde, 1967 (Arthur Penn)
- Film #6: Manhattan, 1979 (Woody Allen)
- Film #7: Collateral, 2004 (Michael Mann)
- Film #8: West Side Story, 1961 (Robert Wise)
So don’t forget to cast your vote with the US movie you would see under the sky of Paris. We’ll compile the results and report back on the Art of the Home readers’ choices. Simply leave us your film choice in the comment section: #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8!
And if you are interested, check below for the open-air cinema daily schedule in Paris:
| Movies July 2011 | |
| Tue. July 19th | Taxi Driver, 1975 (Martin Scorsese). (Age 12 and older only) |
| Wed. July 20th | Le Temps d’aimer et le temps de mourir, 1958 (Douglas Sirk) |
| Thu. July 21st | Tout sur ma mère, 1999 (Pedro Almodovar) |
| Fri. July 22nd | À bras le corps, 2005 (Katell Quillévéré) – short film Paranoid Park, 2007 (Gus Van Sant) |
| Sat. July 23rd | La Vieille Dame et les pigeons, 1998 (Sylvain Chomet) – short film Les Triplettes de Belleville, 2002 (Sylvain Chomet) |
| Sun. July 24th | Dans la ville blanche, 1982 (Alain Tanner) |
| Tue. July 26th | Mon trésor, 2004 (Keren Yedaya). (Age 12 and older only) |
| Wed. July 27th | Quai des Orfèvres Henri, 1947 (Georges Clouzot) |
| Thu. July 28th | 3h10 pour Yuma, 2007 (James Mangold) |
| Fri.y July 29th | Il fait beau dans la plus belle ville du monde, 2008 (Valérie Donzelli) |
| Sat. July 30th | Tokyo!, 2008 (Michel Gondry, Bong Joon-ho, Leos Carax) |
| Sun. July 31st | Le Cercle, 2000 (Jafar Panahi) |
| Movies August 2011 | |
| Tue. Aug. 2nd | En quatrième vitesse, 1955 (Robert Aldrich) |
| Wed. Aug. 3rd | Alice dans les villes, 1973 (Wim Wenders) |
| Thu. Aug. 4th | Gomorra, 2008 (Matteo Garrone). Viewers discretion advised. |
| Fri. Aug. 5th | L’Égoïste, 1996 (Jean-Loup Felicioli & Alain Gagnol) – short film Babel, 2006 (Alejandro González Iñárritu) |
| Sat. Aug. 6th | Le Poisson rouge, 1994 (Cédric Klapisch) – short film Chacun cherche son chat, 1995 (Cédric Klapisch) |
| Sunday Aug. 7th | Happy Together, 1997 (Wong Kar-wai) |
| Tue. Aug. 9th | Les Lumières du faubourg, 2006 (Aki Kaurismäki) |
| Wed. Aug. 10th | Un jour à New York, 1949 (Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen) |
| Thu. Aug. 11th | Le Temps qu’il reste, 2009 (Elia Suleiman) |
| Fri. Aug. 12th | Sur ses deux oreilles, 2006 (Emma Luchini) – short film Bonnie and Clyde, 1967 (Arthur Penn) |
| Sat. Aug. 13th | Cauchemar blanc, 1991 (Mathieu Kassovitz) – short film La Haine, 1995 (Mathieu Kassovitz) |
| Sun. Aug. 14th | El Bonaerense, 2002 (Pablo Trapero) |
| Tue. Aug. 16th | Les Nuits de la pleine lune, 1984 (Éric Rohmer) |
| Wed. Aug. 17th | Xiao Wu, artisan pickpocket, 1997 (Jia Zhang Ke) |
| Thu. Aug. 18th | Manhattan, 1979 (Woody Allen) |
| Fri. Aug. 19th | Des morceaux de ma femme, 2000 (Frédéric Pelle) – short film Collateral, 2004 (Michael Mann). Viewers discretion advised. |
| Sat. Aug. 20th | Soirée Tango pour prolonger les Scènes d’été Tango Overlord, 2004 (François Choquet) – short film Je ne suis pas là pour être aimé, 2005 (Stéphane Brizé) |
| Sun. Aug. 21st | West Side Story, 1961 (Robert Wise) |
Practical Information:
Location:
Parc de la Villette, Prairie du Triangle
211, avenue Jean Jaurès
75019 Paris
Metro: Porte de la Villette (Line 7) or Porte de Pantin (Line 5)
When
July 19th-August 21st, Tuesday thru Sunday. Start at dusk (about 10:30 pm)
Price
Free Admission. Lounge Chair rentals (transat): 7€ C for 1, 20€ for 5
Misc.
In case of inclement weather, call 01 40 03 76 92 after 8PM on the day of showing.
Warning: bring a sweater, it can get chilly at night.
So don’t forget to cast your vote, we’d love to hear from you.
- Film #1: Taxi Driver, 1975 (Martin Scorsese)
- Film #2: 3:10 to Yuma (3h10 pour Yuma) , 2007 (James Mangold)
- Film #3: Kiss Me Deadly (En quatrième vitesse), 1955 (Robert Aldrich)
- Film #4: On the Town (Un jour à New York ), 1949 (Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen)
- Film #5: Bonnie and Clyde, 1967 (Arthur Penn)
- Film #6: Manhattan, 1979 (Woody Allen)
- Film #7: Collateral, 2004 (Michael Mann)
- Film #8: West Side Story, 1961 (Robert Wise)