Discovering France

Writing about Discovering France in VL-1/95, I called it "a strikingly beautiful look at the land of baguettes and guillotines. Moving around the sections of an animated map, the program begins in Brittany with the Mont-Saint-Michel abbey, journeys to Paris to sample the masterworks of art on display at the Louvre (one contemporary critic, long since forgotten, remarked of impressionist Monet's work "wallpaper in its embryonic state is more finished"), as well as the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, the Latin Quarter, and Versailles. Other highlights include visits to vintners (and a recounting of the discovery of champagne by the Benedictine monk Dom Perignon), watching a truffle-hunting swine in action, a stop at the Bayonne festival (where the French have their own mini-version of the Pamplona bull run--only these bulls are young and have their horns capped), and a peek inside Paul Bocuse's restaurant. Beautifully lensed, with sharp and informative narration, Discovering France is a winner." Six years later, it looks even better on DVD, and given the general nature of the program, is still reasonably up-to-date on the sights. In addition, the program offers nearly an hour's worth of extras, and while the opener "Romantic Paris" looks to have been shot sometime during the Vichy government (okay, maybe not that long ago, but I'd say a good quarter century ago), the other two segments on "Carnival at Limoux" and "Historic France" are solid shorts. Given the low price and beautiful imagery, this overview is--déjà vu!--highly recommended once again. Nine other expanded titles are also newly available on DVD at the same low price: Discovering Australia, Discovering Alaska, Discovering Egypt, Discovering England, Discovering Greece, Discovering Hawaii, Discovering Ireland, Discovering Italy and Discovering Spain. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)