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APRIL 29-JUNE 11
One of the most distinctive of all directors, Robert Bresson developed a style and a philosophy of equal austerity. Known for the luminous simplicity of his work, Bresson has a kinship with Dostoevsky and a distaste for actors (he used mostly nonprofessionals). This series features four of the only 13 features he’s made since his 1943 debut, Les Anges du Peche. It opens with Pickpocket, the exhiliratingly spartan tale of a thief’s redemption that was improbably remade as American Gigolo. Upcoming are Lancelot du Lac, the director’s Grail anti-epic (May 7), L’Argent, which follows a counterfeit 500-franc note on its corrupting journey (May 28), and Le Diable Probablement (The Devil Probably), the director’s meditation on a threatened world, which has rarely been shown in the U.S. (June 11). At 7 p.m. at La Maison Francaise, Embassy of France, 4101 Reservoir Rd. NW. $5. (202) 944-6090. (Mark Jenkins)