When I first watched this movie, I had absolutely no clue as to what it was about - perhaps one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much, since I (apparently unlike the other people who commented) didn't expect it to be a romantic comedy.
The movie itself is very surprising and funny - the story is that of Franssou, a young woman who inherits a large sum of money and decides to live it out in Cannes. There she meets Stéphane, a conman who desperately needs money... and from then on, the plot evolves into a delightful love story where Franssou tries to con Stéphane into admitting he's in love with her.
The dialogues were amazing and served by the acting: José Garcia was wonderful in his role - sure of himself and macho when conning people while sometimes completely baffled when faced with Carré's cheeky Franssou; Cluzet's René... I can't even begin to define how much the character made me laugh. The use of a few running jokes (René's obsession with cars, the Asiatic tourists at the hotel) didn't hamper the movie but indeed made it even more enjoyable and I can't help but find the writing truly wonderful. Another plus is Luis Rego's role in the movie - the man is always funny.
To address some of the other commenter's criticism, I'd like to say that: 1) While the movie does work with the same theme great American comedies of the 50's do, it uses their basic premise and works on it to achieve something different and new which, IMHO, is worth seeing. 2) Re: Mr Bowen's idea that because Stéphane is French-Arab, the movie is a parable for... well, he doesn't actually say, but apparently it's bad. I'm amused by that reaction because Stéphane's ancestry is not a plot-point in the movie - indeed it is not mentioned at all, which makes me wonder how he got "French-Arab" from an actor of Spanish decent. The film is a romantic comedy, stop trying to see metaphors on society in it.
This movie is basically good, light-hearted fun. Watch it and you'll have a smile on your face for the rest of the day - it's the best thing that can be said about a romantic comedy.
The movie itself is very surprising and funny - the story is that of Franssou, a young woman who inherits a large sum of money and decides to live it out in Cannes. There she meets Stéphane, a conman who desperately needs money... and from then on, the plot evolves into a delightful love story where Franssou tries to con Stéphane into admitting he's in love with her.
The dialogues were amazing and served by the acting: José Garcia was wonderful in his role - sure of himself and macho when conning people while sometimes completely baffled when faced with Carré's cheeky Franssou; Cluzet's René... I can't even begin to define how much the character made me laugh. The use of a few running jokes (René's obsession with cars, the Asiatic tourists at the hotel) didn't hamper the movie but indeed made it even more enjoyable and I can't help but find the writing truly wonderful. Another plus is Luis Rego's role in the movie - the man is always funny.
To address some of the other commenter's criticism, I'd like to say that: 1) While the movie does work with the same theme great American comedies of the 50's do, it uses their basic premise and works on it to achieve something different and new which, IMHO, is worth seeing. 2) Re: Mr Bowen's idea that because Stéphane is French-Arab, the movie is a parable for... well, he doesn't actually say, but apparently it's bad. I'm amused by that reaction because Stéphane's ancestry is not a plot-point in the movie - indeed it is not mentioned at all, which makes me wonder how he got "French-Arab" from an actor of Spanish decent. The film is a romantic comedy, stop trying to see metaphors on society in it.
This movie is basically good, light-hearted fun. Watch it and you'll have a smile on your face for the rest of the day - it's the best thing that can be said about a romantic comedy.
Tell Your Friends