The Princess Cinema and its Twin counterpart are celebrating their 38th year in business. The Princess has become a staple of KW entertainment, with much-anticipated annual traditions such as the Rocky Horror Picture show, screened every Halloween. Over the years, the Princess Cinema has been a tremendous supporter of French-language cinema.
Following the tradition of art-house cinemas, films at the Princess are presented in their original French version, with English subtitles. It gives viewers access to independent cinema not available in Cineplexes.
WLU has collaborated with the Princess on a number of occasions. The Laurier Wellbeing in Film Forum (LWFF) was launched in 2018. The Wilfrid Laurier student club screens one film a month, followed by discussions moderated by WLU professor Ketan Shankardass, as mentioned on CBC. Thanks to a grant from the region, the sessions are free and open to the community.
On October 23, Laurier students attended a screening of Caché, a film directed by Michael Haneke. The film focuses on the events of the Algerian War, as well as the reparation of the damage caused by French colonization.
Princess recently screened Solo, a French-Canadian film directed by Sophie Dupuis. The film, presented at this year’s TIFF, explores sexuality and queer expression in the modern world, through the perspective of the Drag community in Montreal.
From Oct. 29 to Nov. 2, Francophiles can discover a highly anticipated film at Princess: Justine Triet’s Anatomie d’une chute, which won the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. La Presse mentions the film’s popular and critical success in France, and talks of a possible presence at the Oscars.