Catrier party wrist band.jpg	Michael with translator in Casino Theater.jpg	beachs of normandy from hotel window-with horses.jpg	bidet or foot washer in France.jpg	claire and michael with old projector in Casino Theater Lobby.jpg
claire naps.jpg	claire pouts.jpg	claire stretches.jpg	claire wakes from nap.jpg	deauville breakfast.jpg
deauville breakfast2.jpg	deauville royal hotel--chocolet in room with photos of hotel etched into it.jpg	deauville royal hotel--my room.jpg	deauville royal hotel--my room -balcony MD.jpg	deauville royal hotel--my room -balcony MD2.jpg

The festival was great. It was a huge honor to be shown with the films we were shown with:
PROTOCOLS OF ZION
SERENITY
BROKEN FLOWERS
THE ICE HARVEST
ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS IN THE ROOM
GRIZZLY MAN
THE 40 YEAR-OLD VIRGIN
KISS KISS, BANG BANG
CRASH
EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED
THE MATADOR
LA PETITE JERUSALEM
FOUR BROTHERS

Our showings were great and we had a lot of fun and a good response. The luxury hotel they put me up in was awesome. There were also paparazzi and fans with cameras in front of the hotel the whole weekend, starting about 7 am, sometimes hiding in the bushes.

They were stalking the stars in the festival. But they were very polite (someone told me, "Ever since Diana dies, the French paparazzi have mellowed out.") But they do yell the stars' names loudly when they walk by.

My friend Claire came up from Paris and hung out. (and interperted for me when I couldn't understand people!). We had a blast. Here's her photos from the weekend.

I could see the ocean (the beaches of Normandy!) from my window, and they fed me too. Someone asked me for my autograph. And I got interviewed three times in one day, once on national TV, once for the radio, and once for a website. Also got trotted through the press photographer room. Like paparazzi, but scheduled and planned, and not just the famous people. They did me too. There were about 50 photographers yelling, "Michael! Michael! Look here!" "No, look HERE!!"/ after i had to nap. They each stole a little of my soul. It was cool and an honor, but was trying not to laugh.

The European press is ripping Bush a new asshole for his response to the New Orleans disaster. But they still LOVE American artists in Deauville.

also, The mayor of Deauville opened the festival by "sending our hope for New Orleans, that most French of American cities."

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Last night in Deauville:

Dinner with Robert Towne (script writer of Chinatown, Mission: Impossible, Shampoo and a lot of other really good films. He also was script doctor on The Godfather.) was better than I thought. I thought it would be like lunch today when I was invited to "dinner with the mayor of Deauville", and there were 200 people.

There were 13 people at this dinner. It was Robert Towne, his wife; the festival founder and his wife; Elaine from Elaine's restaurant in NYC, French director Jean-Jacques Annaud, and his wife; photographer Jessica Burstein, the head festival press attache, myself and three other friends of the people above.

Robert Downey, his wife, and Val Kilmer were eating upstairs. (they were staying in the same hotel as me, a few doors down the hall. Very very nice hotel, the "hotel royal" in Deauville. Deauville is a small ocean-side town two hours from Paris.)

There were camera people outside the restaurant, maybe 50 of them, the whole time. We sat on the first floor by an open window, so there were about 8 feet away. It was surreal.

Rudha told me that Robert Towne requested that I come to this dinner.

Robert Towne told some amazing stories, including one about meeting Arthur Miller.

When Downey was leaving he went out into the throng of cameras that camped out outside the window of the restaurant (""Les Quatre Chats" or, "the four cats") for the entire meal. It was odd having the paparazzi around all the time.

Shared an elevator with Pierce Brosnan on the way down to get the limo back to the airport to come home. He thought I looked tired, I guess. Asked if I'd been up partying all night.

I lost five pounds in Europe, from eating better food, and walking a lot.

Someone tried to charge 90 dollars in drinks to my room. I was presented with a bill when i went to check out. I told them i didn't do it and they quickly changed it. I heard someone was doing that with a lot of people there. I guess they just looked at the listing of directors and went down the list.

I'm back in LA. It's good to be back, but I wish I could live in that French hotel forever.

click for wallpaper photo of the pigeon on my balcony.