Trip to The Institut Francais

On Monday the 28^th January, a group of French students from year 11-13 set off to the Institut Francais in South Kensington to see an evening screening of a French film (with English subtitles). This film was “One Nation, One King” (Un peuple et son roi) which followed the personal and political lives of citizens during the French revolution. The film encompassed many of the main events of the Revolution from the storming of the Bastille in 1789 to the guillotine execution of Louis XVI in 1883. The film was sectioned in a way that allowed the viewer to parallel the difficult, unsettled and frustrated lives of the poorer classes in old regime France with the pressure the politicians of the time were put under to make vital decisions; such as the execution of the King (Robbespierre represented the third estate and was a key figure in this decision). Many famous French actors and actresses such as Gaspard Ulliel, Adel Haenel, Louis Garrel, Denis Levant and singer Izia took on very different roles which all seemed to embody the individual feelings that might have been felt from different classes in this changing time. The success of “One Nation, One King” can be seen through the fact it has received two César Award nominations.

Overall, the trip was very beneficial to us as we were able to expand our knowledge on such an important part of history as well as well as improve our French language. The Institut Francais is a very welcoming place for anyone interested in expanding their cultural horizons.