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PARIS (Reuters) - Between 180 and 200 French citizens have traveled to Syria in the past year to join a two-year-old rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad, le Monde reported on Saturday, citing figures from France's internal DCRI and external DGSE security services. That number, which is higher than a previous estimate of about 50, includes fighters who took up arms with rebel groups like the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. About two dozen have already returned to France, Le Monde said. ...

Whichever way the mistral wind blows on Sunday when Steven Spielberg’s jury hands out its awards, it’s fair to say that for critics, the Competition has been divisive. While a number of films received huzzahs in the Palais, several were met with mixed reactions. Among the best received were the Coen brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis, Steven Soderbergh’s Behind The Candelabra, Paolo Sorrentino’s The Great Beauty, Hirokazu Kore-Eda’s Like Father Like Son, and Abdellatif Kechiche’s Blue Is The Warmest Color. Among the not so hot were Nicolas Winding Refn’s Only God Forgives and Takashi Miike’s Shield Of Straw, both of which were subject to boos during press screenings. And, yet, each has its supporters. Only God Forgives had something to live up to. Winding Refn and star Ryan Gosling were the darlings of Cannes two years ago when the former won the directing prize for Drive. But God Forgives‘ violence and extreme exercise in style were a turn-off for many. Still, The Guardian gave it five stars. One veteran critic adds that supporters also “tend to be French and genre specialists.” Libération calls Gosling, “The greatest actor of all time in the galaxy of the world.” Shield Of ... Read More »