Paris Was Burning

In 1968 there was an unpopular war being fought on foreign soil and political and social upheaval at home. Home in this case was Paris, France — although you could have plugged “the U.S.” in there, too, and still had a true statement. (Change the date to “2008” and you’d still be pretty accurate; are you freaked out?). But back to May of 1968 in Paris: That was the month that college students rose up and took over the city, waging war in the streets with petrol bombs and rocks. (How ’bout now? Now are you freaked out?) The Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (3750 Washington Boulevard; 314-535-4660 or www.contemporarystl.org) commemorates the 40th anniversary of that month of dissent with the May ’68 Film Series, a double feature of revolutionary films every Thursday through the end of the month (May 15 through 29). First up is a pair of films by Jean-Luc Godard, Le Petit Soldat and La Chinoise. Both predate 1968, and both examine the nature of radical political thought. Le Petit Soldat was so radical as to be suppressed by the French censors for three years, as it depicted French soldiers torturing insurgents in Algeria, a fact the government denied — oh, come on. You have to be freaked out now. Films begin at 6 and 8 p.m., admission is free and a cash bar will be available.
Thu., May 15, 2008