La Belle Deneuve

I’ve waited for 20 years to see “Belle de Jour.” At last, it’s here (“Time Stands Still for La ‘Belle,’ ” Calendar, June 24). Many thanks to Martin Scorsese for his effort. It is always a pleasure to have Catherine Deneuve grace our city. What a shame Hollywood never knew what to do with her stunning beauty and great talent. Like Ms. Deneuve, I, too, decry the dearth of French films in America. Perhaps the reason for this is because our movie industry is too busy stealing them to film as our own and we don’t want anyone to know.

In fact, about a week ago, cable TV’s USA network featured an “original” movie, “When the Dark Man Calls,” which would have seemed a bit familiar to Ms. Deneuve. In a fit of deja vu , she might have thought it was her movie from a few years ago called “Frequence Meurtre.” So you see, “Martin Guerre” begat “Sommersby,” “Troise Hommes . . .” begat “Three Men and a Baby” and on and on. For those of us who care about originality, please give us our French films.

J.C. SATOW

Los Angeles