Glitzy French Riviera village Saint-Tropez honored one of its most famous residents Saturday by showing "Et Dieu crea la femme” ("And God Created Woman”), the 1956 film that turned Brigitte Bardot - now 90 - into a megastar. The homage on Bardot’s birthday was "simple, Saint-Tropez style, just like she is”, mayor Sylvie Siri said. Saturday’s film showing was "a cry from the heart of Saint-Tropez residents, who are here to show how much they appreciate her lifelong attachment” to the Mediterranean village, she added.
Bardot did not attend the showing, which had to be held indoors rather than outside as the region’s chilly Mistral wind was blowing strongly. But Siri said the star had told her she was "very happy” with the honor.
Bardot’s 90th has also been marked by outdoor photo exhibits and two portraits affixed to the Saint-Tropez lighthouse. "And God Created Woman” was directed by Bardot’s then-husband Roger Vadim and filmed on the Pampelonne beach in Saint-Tropez’s neighboring village of Ramatuelle, as well as in Saint-Tropez itself. The work kicked off the transformation of the little fishing village into a world-famous tourist destination.
Bardot moved to Saint-Tropez in 1958, buying a sheltered property set apart from the town, La Madrague. Although she still lives there, she has not appeared in public for several years. Bardot bowed out of cinema in 1973, turning to animal-rights activism. The foundation she launched in her name in 1986 now employs 300 people to battle hunting, animal shows, slaughter without stunning and human consumption of horsemeat. — AFP