Bit to Do

Parenthood is incredibly difficult. It is wonderful, but it can be very trying even at the best of times. You can get used to the lack of sleep; you can get used to the diapers (seriously: the various contents, colors, and consistencies of my daughter’s poop has provided endless hours of fascination for my wife and me, and I have to often remind myself not to wax eloquent on the subject to my friends, as they will likely not appreciate it); I don’t think I’ll ever get used to tantrums. It’s hard. But I am lucky enough to have a perfectly healthy child, and so I stand in awe of parents with children who suffer from various horrible diseases and cancers.

One such [fictional] story has recently come out of France via film: Village 8 Louisville Exclusives presents a limited run of the movie “Declaration of War” (original French title: “La Guerre est Déclarée”) which was the official French submission for Best Foreign Language Film at this year’s academy awards (it did not get a nomination). “Declaration of War” tells the story of a young couple whose newborn child is incredibly ill. Unwilling to give up and determined to save the life of their child, they declare war on the disease.

The film’s director and co-writer, Valérie Donzelli, stars as the mother, Juliette, and her husband Romeo is played by co-writer Jérémie Elkaïm. (It is unlikely that American audiences have seen Elkaïm before, but it is interesting to note that he portrays the character of Paul Delorme in “Le Bureau,” the French incarnation of “The Office”; Delorme is the same character as Tim Canterbury in the original British television series, and Jim Halpert in the American version.)

“Declaration of War” plays at Village 8 until Thursday, March 22. Theater information and showtimes can be found at the Village 8 website.

Image courtesy of the Internet Movie Database.