French director offers his latest movie for free

Posted Friday, September 17, 2004 at 1:51 PM Central

by John Couture

Oscar-winning French director Claude Lelouch is getting his new movie to the masses, even if it means that he has to foot the bill. After critics in France trashed his new offering "Les Parisiens," Lelouch stuck back by proclaiming that he pay the admission for anyone that goes to see his new film in over 400 cinemas across France.

Lelouch, best known for 1966's A Man and A Woman, which took home Oscars for Best Foreign Film and Screenplay, has been fighting critics for the last several years. "I've taken this decision following an unprecedented media lynching. It's been years and years that the critics have regularly attacked my films and it's been years and years that the public has come to my rescue."

The last time a French director took the same course of action, it was a disaster as Philippe de Broca's 1966 offering "Le Roi de Coeur" performed poorly.