Organizers of the petition to release Roman Polanski are none too pleased that Emma Thompson has withdrawn her name: one is accusing her of "petition tourism."
"Madame Emma Thompson is but passing through petitions," writes novelist and filmmaker Yann Moix on the website of Bernard-Henri Lévy's journal, La Règle du jeu, this morning. "She does not own, she is a tenant. Worse: she is there visiting, with the badge ‘guest.'"
He adds, "In life, we must choose between whims and ideas...We at La Règle du Jeu would like to now sign a petition that Madame Emma Thompson never again sign a petition, because it would not be her signature that would be ridiculed, but this time the cause."
(Translation courtesy of high school French and Google Translate, so let us know if we've missed something).
By the way, Thompson's name has already been removed from the petition. An associate of Lévy, Liliane Lazar, told us that it was Thompson's request to be removed by Wednesday.
Update: A native French speaker has weighed in and the translation has been tweaked accordingly, although the meaning remains the same.
Madame Emma Thompson "Se Retire" De La Pétition Pour Polanski Lancée Par La Règle Du Jeu!"
Earlier: Emma Thompson's Name to Be Removed from Polanski Petition This Week