‘Leaving’ (‘Partir’) plays at The Lexi from Friday 16 July and ‘I’ve Loved You So Long’ (‘Il y a longtemps que je t’aime’) plays Sunday 18 July at 5.30pm. Buy tickets online or on 0871 704 2069

While we’re waiting for the distribution rights clearance for ‘Allo, ‘Allo – Season 2′ (‘the golden season’), our French summer at The Lexi continues with a cracking collaboration between director Catherine Corsini and Kristin Scott Thomas, following on – at the same high standard – where she left off with ‘I’ve Loved You So Long‘.

Here’s the opening paragraph of Carin’s ‘Leaving’ preview:

‘Here mid-life discontent provides fertile ground for wife and mother Suzanne’s (Scott Thomas) affair with hunky ex-con Ivan (Lopez, of Pan’s Labyrinth fame). Amour fou becomes something else, though, in response to the reaction of husband Samuel (Attal) whose pressing need-to-know (‘How often? Where?’ – everything except ‘How big?’!) reveals that Suzanne is possession first, partner second. And indeed the film’s main theme is power.  The lovers are both outsiders, with no economic importance: Suzanne is English, Ivan a Spanish migrant worker. Samuel on the other hand is a doctor, influential in local politics and culture, and he mounts a campaign of revenge and blackmail to bring errant Suzanne to heel. An ambiguous prologue sets up the tragedy ahead, inevitable when love ‘n’ lust trigger an atavistic struggle for dominance.’   READ THE FULL PREVIEW HERE…

So, basically pretty similar to the René/Edith/Yvette scenario in ‘Allo, ‘Allo…