‘SALUTE TO NEW FRENCH CINEMA’ SET

Between Wednesday and Feb. 12 the Monica and Town & Country will present “A Salute to New French Cinema,” consisting of 15 features as yet without U.S. distribution. They’re not all masterpieces, of course, but there are some gems among the first dozen.

“Viva la Vie” (Monica on Wednesday, T&C; on Friday), a Claude Lelouch variant on “Close Encounters” with anti-nuke sentiments, lets down after a mysterious and exciting start. Christian de Chalonge’s “Malevil” (Monica on Thursday, T&C; on Wednesday), a post-apocalyptic allegory set in a castle, looks intriguing but was previewed in an unwatchable dubbed print; a subtitled print is promised for the public showings. Roger Vadim’s “Surprise Party” (Monica on Friday, T&C; on Thursday) is a sort of Gallic “American Graffiti,” tender, funny and sexy.

Jose Pinheiro’s “Les Mots Pour le Dire” (Monica on Saturday, T&C; next Monday) becomes a demanding allegory of Algeria’s struggle for independence as a neurotic young woman (Nicole Garcia, remarkable) fights to free herself from her formidable mother (Marie-Christine Barrault). “Le Bon Plaisir” (Monica on Saturday, T&C; next Monday), the biggest disappointment so far, is a tedious tale about the president of France (Jean-Louis Trintignant) and his ex-mistress (Catherine Deneuve) coping with an amateur blackmailer. “Le Fantomes du Chapelier” (Monica on Saturday, T&C; next Monday) is vintage Chabrol, a wonderfully atmospheric Simenon tale of psychological suspense, starring Michel Serrault and Charles Aznavour.

“Le Leopard” (Monica on Sunday, T&C; on Saturday) closely resembles “Romancing the Stone” but is lively and funny enough to succeed on its own merits. “Garcon” (Monica on Sunday, T&C; on Saturday) is top-notch Sautet, with Yves Montand as a charming Parisian waiter with a complicated personal life. “L’Etincelle” (Monica on Sunday, T&C; on Saturday) reunites “The Gift” director Michel Lang and star Clio Goldsmith in a far better film, a blithe romantic comedy in which London deejay Goldsmith gradually becomes involved with a burly, middle-aged restaurateur (Roger Hanin).

“La Scarlatine” (Monica next Monday, T&C; on Sunday) is a poignant whimsy about a little boy growing up with three generations of vivid, aristocratic women (Brigitte Fossey, Stephane Audran--a standout--and Hella Petri). In Andre Delvaux’s bleakly brilliant “Benvenuta” (Monica next Monday, T&C; on Sunday), Fanny Ardant hopelessly pursues the married Vittorio Gassman, and Yannick Bellon’s “La Triche” (Monica next Monday, T&C; on Sunday), another heartbreaker of subtle and devastating implications, finds middle-aged cop Victor Lanoux caught up in an affair with young musician Xavier Delluc.

For show times: Monica, 394-9741; Town & Country, (8l8) 981-9811.

The murkiness of the print fails to dim the charm of Sadao Yamanaka’s 1935 “A Pot Worth a Million Ryo” (UCLA’s Melnitz Theater tonight at 7:30, followed by Keisuke Kinoshita’s 1943 “Blossoming Port”). The only film available for preview in this week’s offerings in the ongoing “Before ‘Rashomon’ ” series, it’s a funny, exquisitely wrought parable of greed. Screening Sunday at 2 p.m.: Shimizu’s “Mr. Thank You” (1936) and Gosho’s “The Burden of Life” (1935).

A generous sampling of newsreels from 1929-33 would surely chart the course of the Great Depression, right? Wrong! Besides a few words of uplift from John D. Rockefeller and Hoover aides, and the breakup of the Bonus Army demonstrators, too big an event to bypass, Wednesday evening’s program (at UCLA’s Melnitz at 7:30 p.m.) of beautifully restored Hearst Metrotone newsreels makes few references to the economic calamity. Naive, silly and superficial, this is surely one of the most entertaining programs in the Archival Treasures series.