Tonight on the SFFS Screen: The Romance of Astrea and Celadon

Medieval Times
By Meredith Brody

As the San Francisco Film Society’s screen at the Sundance Kabuki opens its third movie today, the latest from famed French director Eric Rohmer, The Romance of Astrea and Celadon, the word on the street is twofold: audiences are flocking to see the programming, but wishing the films were playing more than just a week. Like that museum exposition or play you were meaning to see, there’s a stop date that comes faster than you thought it would. So if you’re in the mood for a costume fable of a rule-breaking romance between a shepherd and a shepherdess, in fifth-century pastoral settings featuring some casual nudity, remember to get yourself over to the Sundance Kabuki before next Friday rolls around and another interesting tidbit from world cinema pops up. Fans of Rohmer’s usual fare, featuring contemporary intelligent talky folk walking around urban settings, should be warned that this is quite a departure: there’s plenty of talk in this Romeo-and-Julietic tale, but it’s rather Druidic.