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The third of Eric Rohmer's Four Seasons romances follows theindecision of a young man who juggles three women during his final summerbetween school and work. Drifting along the beaches of Brittany while waitingfor his commitment-shy girlfriend, Lena, to meet him, Gaspard (Melvil Poupaudof Diary of a Seducer) becomes fast friends with pretty waitressMargot (Amanda Langlet, the grown-up Pauline of Pauline at the Beach adecade earlier) and has a fling with Margot's aggressive and sexy friendSolene before Lena finally shows. By then, Gaspard has inadvertentlycommitted himself to all three women. It's a lovely portrait of awkwardnessand ambivalence set against the gorgeous land and seascape of Brittany, andpopulated by pretty young performers.

This, the most understated of Rohmer's sex farces, carries a bittersweetsting, but little of the emotional effervescence of his best films. Whilethese characters are no less pretentious or vulnerable than his other lovers(who all seem to be emotionally at sea), Rohmer just skims the surface oftheir emotional revelation. His greatest achievement is the evocation ofyoung adults caught between their teens and 20s, with little real experiencebut full of easily sidelined ideals. In the best Rohmer tradition, thecircular conversations and solipsistic monologues are neither glib norpretentious, merely the immature but sincere ramblings of vulnerable youthplaying adult games. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (5)

what a fresh french movie!!! I'm still in love with it!
I really don't have words to describe how sweet and delicated this movie is!!! I am still so in love with this movie; it can make me fly, just like in a dream... And the story is so real... Everyone can live a beautiful and modern story like that. When will I wake up from this fresh dream?

A very sweet story
Well, first of all i'm absolutely enchanted by the film. It's amazing how this script can be so simple and so interesting at the same time. Everything is perfect, specially the beautiful beaches of Britanny and the magnificient perform of Amanda Langlet as Margot.
There he was, Gaspar a young musician tourist, resting alone from his Maths studies in a paradisiac island dealing with cross-relations with three uncomparable women: Lena, wild beautiful but without any brain, Solene beautiful, determined and warm, and the lovely Margot, the most interesting character in the hole story, his friend and listener of his youth emotional confusions about the other two girls. I think Eric's design the Gaspar character as a perfect grown-up teenager...I don't believe how can a boy could not fell in love with a girl like the no less good-looking Margot. In fact she is very very beautifull...i confess i wouldn't resist to her charming presence.
My sincere congratulations to Amanda Langlet, you've conquered a big fan!

the convolutions of young love
Thoroughly enjoyable. Though I found the "I've learned nothing" ending a little difficult, but probably realistic. The characters are interesting and engaging, and in the case of Margot, enchanting. Though we may not have all experienced exactly these circumstances, the youthful difficulties of sorting out love and attachment ring true.

A Rohmer Gem
Summer's Tale (1996), dir. Eric Rohmer (Winstar DVD, 2000)

Reminds somewhat of Claire's Knee, similar lush landscapes, water resort type of setting, plenty of gorgeous beaches somewhere in the Atlantic side of France (Brittany), and of course typical Rohmer cinematography (Diane Baratier). Immensely entertaining, despite minimal action.

This is the third of a series of Tales of the Four Seasons (reminding of Vivaldi's?), and possibly the most enticing. Like most Rohmer's stories, it isone of relationships on the verge of dissolution, or, rather, in a state a flux. No relationship in a Rohmer tale seems to be of a permanent nature-all seem to evolve, shift, fade, and come to life only to fade again, like the direction of a wind on the sand dunes.

The format is similar to the others: one male, making choices between several females; one female choosing and rejecting suitors (Autumn Tale). Almost always, it seems a question of choices. In this case, a young man, Gaspard (Melvil Poupard), arrives at this seaside resort, to compose music on his guitar, while awaiting the arrival of his girlfriend Lena, who is to be there soon in the company of some cousins. Gaspard seems to have nothing else in mind but his music, but he does attract the attention of a young waitress, Margot (Amanda Langlet), with whom he starts a sort of platonic relationship. He has a Master's in mathematics, and she is a Ph.D. in ethnology. They take several walks together and exchange ideas, but no romance evolves. Margot is delicate, respecting his attachment to another girl, but evidently she likes him. Another girl, Solene (Gwenaelle Simon), vacationing there with her uncle and aunt and some friends, makes a stronger and more physical impression on him. But he is held back when she tells him that "on principle" she doesn't sleep with anyone on a first date. She in an in-between situation, having just "dumped" two former boyfriends. Solene does like Gaspard, though, but when he tells her he is waiting for Lena, she attempts to force him to make a decision: either her or me. Gaspard, not used to making decisions, wavers. Lena arrives in the meantime, but she, quite unlike the other two girls, is not always as well disposed and friendly. Her moods change constantly, "black and white" Gaspard calls them. She walks away in a fit of temper, so Gaspard now falls back on Solene, and when she turns moody, goes back to Margot, who by now feels like being the "substitute of a substitute." Gaspard only has a couple of days left for his vacation (the dates of each episode are flashed on the screen), but then Solene calls him and asks for a date, at 8:30 that evening; but then a few moments later, Lena, evidently in a turnabout "white" mood, also asks for a date, at 8:00 that evening, and he calls Margot to ask her advice; Margot, however is busy with her waitress chores-she will call back. Gaspard panics; what is he to do with three dates? But a phone call comes in the meantime, a friend telling Gaspard he has secured the purchase of a stereo he needed for a bargain price ($600 down immediately), which Gaspard has to borrow from his first month's upcoming job. This call saves him. Why bother about keeping his dates with these silly girls when his glorious music career is so promising? He is happy! One phone call has disentangled all these relationships.

He does tell Margot, though, who understands, and takes him to the boat. Ideally, she is could have been the one.

All three girls are attractive, Solene being the sexiest and the most evidently certain of her allurements. Lena has the most perfect body but the hardest of dispositions. Margot, somewhat chubby, is still good-looking, nicely disposed, and brainier than Gaspard. All are female temptations for this indecisive young Don Juan, who possesses all his male desires, but who understands nothing of what is called commitment.

The story is not a sad one; Rohmer is adepts in avoiding the pitfalls of sentimentality. There is not love at first sight (or the second one), and physical passion is not the animalistic urge one sees in most American movies-whether the male is Michael Douglas or Brad Pitt. Gaspard is not particularly controlled at certain moments, but his emotional side is not ardent-taking a back seat to his "plans" (never quite stated). His relationships with these girls are fluid, more matters of the moment than what is seen as passionate preludes to triumphant love. But that is what the stuff of life is made of. Love here is not as in Jane Austen stories: a commitment that will eventually define moral character as well. In Austen, commitment to a person one loves becomes the primary consideration. Romantic love also thrives on that. It presupposes a sterling honesty, a purity of feeling if you like, that must remain unadulterated through thin and thick. But Rohmer does not give us romantic characters, and rather bursts the balloon of that delusion called romantic love-though does incline to the platonic variety; the latter suits his cast members better-a great deal of talk of friendship in the movie. Friendship (platonic preference) stays, does not demand or brawl as an obligation, and does not drag the body into the messy relationship. Gaspard actually does develop a platonic setup with Margot-and both are forced to be content with that, having not achieved the other sort. They will see each other again, somewhere.

Beautifully told. An unpretentious tale that does not promise much, and what it delivers is an extra reward. Watching such a movie is a constant pleasure, one that one does not want to give up. All the moments between these four people are precious, nothing is wasted. The groupings are quite special-mostly two people against a lushly photographed background-waves, a flat and wide beach, a room, some country paths, and some scenes on a boat. As usual, there is no musical score, but there is music, only that which is heard in the background or sung by the participants. Complex simplicity, and unpretentious beauty-Rohmer trademarks.

A fortnight by the sea in charming company.
Gaspard, played by Melvil Poupaud, is a song writer, a good-looking but dull young man, a gauche loner with a flat voice and an inexpressive face who comes to this delightful holiday island of Dinard off the Brittany coast to await the arrival of his "sort-of" girl friend, who demonstrates how much she loves him by keeping him waiting for two weeks. During those two weeks, however, he finds two other girl friends - or rather they find him. It must be his good-looks, it can't be anything else. First he is picked up in a restaurant by Margot, a waitress, who turns out not to be a waitress but an Ethnologist, just helping out her aunt who owns the restaurant. Obviously such a bright and intelligent girl could not be merely working-class!

Amanda Langlet, who plays Margot and who appeared ten years earlier in Rohmer's "Pauline at the Beach." is clearly the star of this film. Much of the enjoyment of the film is derived from being in the company of this vivacious girl and being allowed to eavesdrop on her talk with Gaspard about love and relationships as they roam in the bright sunlight around this lovely French sea-side resort and the countryside beyond. She is such a very warm and sympathetic listener that it is difficult to understand why he doesn't fall in love with her. Why she doesn't fall in love with him is easier to understand. (you ask yourself; is this man a very good actor or a very bad one?) He makes a couple of inept attempts to move the relationship forward but is repulsed; she wants only friendship - and you feel he is lucky to get that - while she awaits the return of her Anthropologist boy-friend who is away in South America. Gaspard's dullness is made obvious when she takes him to hear an old sailor sing sea-shanties; her face so eager and enrapt as she listens intently; his face, alongside, so lifeless.

She encourages him to take up with Solene, played by Gwenaelle Simon in her first film, a friend of her's who they meet at a dance, but when he does, she is jealous, jealous of their friendship she says but secretly hurt that he now thinks of her as only a friend.

His relationship with Solene seems idyllic at first, they seem marvelously happy and well suited to each other. He is accepted warmly into her family, they all go sailing together and have a merry sing-a-long to one of his songs. But then, sadly, her true nature shows; she becomes aggressive and demanding, insisting that he take her to the island of Quessant or their relationship is at an end. And now Lena, his "sort-of" girl friend, played by Aurelia Nolin, appears and insists that he take her instead. He must now choose.

Rohmer's films are never plot-dependent; he prefers to dwell on the characters, to bring us into a close, intimate relation with them, while they reveal themselves in talk. And when the characters are as attractive as Margot, who could ask for anything more? ... Read more

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Gloomy young Parisian Delphine (Marie Rivière) faces her summer alone when her best friend cancels their travel plans to stay with her new boyfriend. Determined to have her vacation, she tries a number of alternatives but feels left out at a family retreat, runs into a former lover at a ski resort, and becomes completely cowed by her unlikely companion on the French shore, an uninhibited Swedish vacationer who sunbathes nude and picks up men for one night stands---a far cry from the insecure Delphine. Willowy Rivière plays Delphine with a combination of romantic idealism, headstrong determination, and uncompromising (often debilitating) demands, an impossible standard that leaves her lonely and wanting until she meets a handsome young man at the train station on her way back to Paris. The two become charmed by one another and, giddy with anticipation, Delphine insists they watch the setting sun to see the legendary green ray (the French title of the film is "Le Rayon Vert") in an ephemeral conclusion both magical and tenderly human. Rohmer changed his shooting style completely for the fifth film in his "Comedies and Proverbs" series, creating the characters in collaboration with the actors and shooting with only a script outline to create a largely improvised portrait of Delphine, but the easy rhythms, the gentle naturalism, and Rohmer's genuine affection for his characters, foibles and all, continue in his tradition of smart, sensitive, and delightfully witty romantic comedies. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (6)

one of the best
The subject of this film , on paper, sounds trivial or indulgent: a nervous young woman wanders around France and seemingly makes it as hard as possible for herself to find happiness - she won't play the games most people play to entertain themselves, she won't go sailing, she won't cut flowers or eat meat, she won't consider a guy who only wants to have fun. Some viewers might even find Delphine irritating or spoilt - why doesn't she just compromise with her impossibly high standards and settle for ordinary human happiness? As with other Rohmer films, but here even more subtly and beautifully, there is a deep spiritual theme speaking through the light comedy of the plot. Delphine's obstinacy is also her spiritual strength. In a world without God Delphine's awe in front of nature and her respect for the ideal of love are the next best thing to faith. Notice, for example the wonderful scene where she walks along the shore in Biaritz but doesn't dive in the waves like the others because she has a reverence for nature which they do not. Every detail counts in this film, even though the improvised dialogue and naturalistic camerawork disguise the artistry. The final ten minutes pack an emotional punch as great as anything in cinema. Delphine's faith in sheer existence pays off and Rohmer communicates to us the awe which we should all feel at being alive but which we lose through conventional ways of living.

Rohmer's Ode to Joy
The plot: Delphine, a nice enough girl who may or may not have a boyfriend living somewhere in Europe, spends her entire summer vacation alone at a seaside resort, having a bad time.

How can such a horrible premise make for such a wonderful film? Because Eric Rohmer has created a protagonist of such extraordinary depth. We easily put ourselves in Delphine's shoes. When she meets some shallow guy at a party, we want to tell him off. When her party-loving acquaintance picks up the cutest boy on the beach, we wonder why we can't do the same. When she is invited to a cookout where everyone mocks her vegetarian ways, we remember when we were outsiders and root for her to put them in their place.

But mostly, during the magical climax, we are transported to a special moment in our own lives when our dream really did come true.

The French title of Rohmer's masterpiece translates into "The Green Ray". Having seen this film a half dozen times, I can no longer watch the sunset without looking for the Green Ray. If you know what I mean, then you will surely love this film.

Admittedly, the Fox Lorber transfer is lousy. I managed to get a halfway decent picture by tweaking the settings on my TV (turn the sharpness way up!)

A French Version of the Italian Neo-Realist
Anyone who thinks De Sica ("The Bicycle Thief") and Fellini ("La Strada," "8 1/2") have a corner on the neo-realist market obviously has not seen Eric Rohmer's brilliant and perceptive film, "Summer," starring the very talented Marie Riviere. Even though Rohmer does not believe in hand-held cameras, I enjoyed how he filmed common people on the streets of Paris, in the backyard of a French country home, at a beach in Biarritz, etc. In one scene he has a guy following Rivere in a Parisian park; in another scene he has Rivere bump into an old friend at a sidewalk cafe in Paris; in yet another scene he has Riviere meet a topless Swedish girl at a Biarritz beach. These may sound like ordinary scenes but they were very well drawn. What I liked about this film was how perceptive it was on the human condition. The Rivere character is very particular of people yet she doesn't like being alone. Friends try to help her but have a difficult time understanding who she is and how she interracts with other people. She is the type of person who does not like to be in the center of attention and would prefer to sit in the back of a train station than in the front where everyone can see her--including guys who might hit on her. You can tell she feels very uncomfortable with guys who she does not know unlike her friends who hit on guys as if it's second nature for them. Another thing I liked about this film is just how natural everything seemed--the actors seemed natural, the dialogue seemed natural, the pacing of the film seemed natural, and especially the ending seemed natural. The "naturalness" of this film is what makes it a superior film in its own right amongst the greatest Italian Neo-realist filmmakers.

GOOD MOVIE..........BAD DVD
I love this movie, so I was excited to get it on DVD. I was dissapointed. First, the image is full-screen, not matted, and it looked like I was watching a made-for-tv movie. Did Rohmer do this on film? I would assume so, but the image quality on this dvd is poor, grainy, and very faded. I would wait till the next DVD release, if there is one. The sound is okay, the subtitles are PERMANENT, so you can't remove them, and the scene access is a joke, there are only six scenes according to FoxLorber. But all in all, I think this ranks slightly above VHS (which is pathetic for a DVD), so if you want a better copy of this movie than your local video store get this!

CRYING IN THE SUN
French director Eric Rohmer's SUMMER is one of the last comedies and proverbs this master has produced in the eighties. And it's one of his best movies. Anyway, how not to be amazed by the global quality of his production during more than 40 years ? With Eric Rohmer, you can really say that this director is leaving an artistic work to the posterity like Dickens or Picasso.

SUMMER is a comedy ; not a comedy in the Disneyish sense of the word but rather a comedy reminding the pieces of the romantic French theatre of the XIXth century. One doesn't laugh during the vision of SUMMER, one smiles.

Delphine, played by the Rohmerian Marie Rivière, is desperate. Two weeks before her summer holiday, her best friend, Catherine, has found a new boy-friend and plans to spend the summer in his arms rather than in the company of Delphine, even if it means adios to a trip into the greek islands. What to do in Paris, alone, in august ? For a girl like Delphine, a secretary dreaming all year long of her next holiday, it's a drama. So we follow, day after day, her quest for happiness. At this point, the comedy becomes tragedy as we find out that Delphine is the archetype of the solitary ; refusing the occasions to make new acquaintances, developing her differences to the extreme. You have to watch this scene involving a vegetarian Delphine trying to explain to her guests, average French steak-eaters, why it is not fair to eat meat !

Marie Rivière is outstanding in the role of Delphine and would have deserved an international award for her interpretation. The DVD in itself is deceiving as always with WinStar (ex-Fox Lorber). Grainy images with few contrasts.

A DVD for your library. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Wonderful film for medieval music lovers
Interesting everyone here seems either to hate this film or love it. Little in between. I found the "fake" sets fascinating because they were very effectively evocative of medieval manuscript illuminations -- in fact the whole film seemed like a manuscript motion. The way the musicians stand in consort, the way the ladies hold their hands, etc., resemble countless examples seen in paintings and manuscripts of the 15th century and before. The music is unfailingly authentic: any that is not sung to actual 13th century French melodies is stylistically perfect. Then there are the occasional snippets of actual well-known pieces, such as the lament of Richard the Lion-Hearted that appears briefly in purely instrumental form. I recommend it, but if you would tend to be turned off by the things the negative reviewers harp on, see something else. The things people have written here are factually correct; whether it strikes you as fabulous or unconscionable will depend entirely on your personal sensibilities and taste.

"I want your love as a reward."
Eric Rohmer's film "Perceval" is the story of the Arthurian knight. The script is based on the 12th century novel by Chretien de Troyes. The role of Perceval is played by a very young Fabrice Luchini. When the film begins, Perceval is a callow youth who lives with his widowed mother. He encounters some knights, and he's so fascinated by them, he decides he wants to be one too. This film retells Perceval's adventures.

The sets are very amateurish--no doubt deliberately so. The castles appear to be made of cardboard and many of the distant scenes are paintings. The sets are more fitting for a stage play. Throughout the film, musicians play medieval-style instruments, and honestly, this was one of the best parts of the film. The jousting scenes are ridiculously simple, and the sword fights--awful.

Some of the characters are just downright bizarre. One actress looks as though she has a starched octopus stuck on her head, and one of the musicians looks like a deranged jester. Fabrice Luchini is one of my favourite actors, but his talent did not shine through in this role. Perceval is selfish and shallow. Another knight says of Perceval "this lad hasn't much wit, but he's well born." And that sums it up. Rohmer's Perceval is not noble or good--in fact, he's a bit thick. The portrayal of King Arthur is no better. The film seemed to make an effort when portraying courtly love, and that is to be commended.

One of the most annoying things about this film is the manner in which characters stop talking to each other and begin to narrate in the third person. For example, a damsel spoke directly to Perceval and then faced the camera and announced "she led him to her room." This sort of shift to third person was distracting and frequent.

Eric Rohmer is one of my favourite directors. His films are intellectual feasts, yet this film did absolutely nothing for me--displacedhuman

CHRETIEN DE TROYES' ORIGINAL GRAIL FANTASY
Eric Rohmer's French adaptation of Chretien de Troyes' 12th-century story of the Grail Quest is a unique, highly experimental film that alternates between hypnotic allure and apathetic disenchantment. Filmed on blatantly artificial but picturesque sets more reminiscent of a play than a film, Rohmer's episodic tale of the naive Perceval and his quest for knightly glory never quite lives up to its literary pedigree. The cast, which comes complete with a prominent chorus, is for the most part excellent, though Fabrici Luchini as the title character is outdone by Pascale de Boysson's much smaller but more convincing performance as Gauvin. The biggest problem with Rohmer's film is that he and Luchini set Perceval up less as the raw, untutored but essentially noble youth of Chretien's book than as a truly stupid, selfish boor, thereby undercutting much of the story's age-old appeal. Rohmer's Perceval is too callow to engender much viewer sympathy, and only begins to show signs of growth near the very end of the film, when it's too late (for the viewer, anyway!). Moreover, while the surreal set design is usually one of the movie's assets, the lack of realism definitely affects the several fight scenes, which fail to ever be more than cartoonish. Some may also resent the movie's lack of a real ending, but in fact that's part of the original story's enigmatic charm: Chretien didn't finish the book, so Rohmer is just beeing faithful to his source material. Overall, Rohmer's Perceval is an earnest, largely admirable production that gets high marks for sincerity and originality. But the movie's inability to capture the original book's character and spirit is an undeniably major flaw. Because of this drawback, and the film's sheer unconventionality, I only recommend Perceval to die-hard Arthurian fans (like myself). Others may be better off with the likes of Excalibur and Knights of the Round Table, more conventional American films that are both more accessible than Rohmer's piece and moreover provide versions of Perceval more in line with this reviewer's opinion of how the character should be realized.

Psychadelic and gothic dreamyness prevails
Combine some modern - looking sculpted metal stage props with neon sand, then add rich gothic singing, and you have Perceval.

At first, I sat watching the movie thinking "ok what did I get myself into?" because the singing irked me at first. Then I got used to it, and it became a chief and quite ingenious form of communication between the narrator, the actors, and the audience. Knowing a little bit of French eases the rapidity of a foreign language versus flashy subtitles.

The story fails to get boring at any point, and the film is upbeat and interesting from every angle you look at it.

Perceval is a lovable film with romance, duty, and gothic mysticism interwoven throughout. There's a small bit of nudity, but nothing offensively portrayed in a hardcore fashion. It's not your typical independent French film!

Not your typical Rohmer
This movie is extremely stylized and not at all like Rohmer's other films. I'm a big Rohmer fan and was really disappointed by it. It is spoken in the original (?) dialogue of the Perceval story and is filmed entirely on intentionally fake-looking sets. You'll only like this movie if if you're actually interested in seeing a theatrical version of Perceval. ... Read more

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Louise (Pascale Ogier), a restless designer bored with sleepy suburbanlife outside of Paris, lives with her lover, Remy (Tcheky Karyo), a stable architect happy with a calm home life and a long-term relationship. The independent Louise decides to move back into her old Paris apartment during the week, losing herself in the bustle of dinner parties and nightclubs and single men, while spending her weekends back with Remy. Louise becomes briefly entangled with another man, a spontaneous musician who is the opposite of Remy, but in a neat twist on the formula, Remy himself drifts to another--at the suggestion of Louise herself. The fourth of Rohmer's Comedies and Proverbs is the most ironic and, in many ways, the most judgmental of his films. Willowy Ogier's kittenish sexuality andzest for life are wrapped in a self-absorbed determination that borders on indifference, but for the most part this is another wryly witty look at modern love from the master of the sophisticated romantic comedy. Fabrice Luchini plays Louise's best friend and conniving confidante, Octave, and Laszlo Szabo appears as a café patron who pontificates on the magical effects of the full moon. Ogier, who died shortly after the film's release, designed many of the handsome sets. Rohmer followed this with perhaps his most generous character study, the modestly magical romantic adventure Summer. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Beware of Distraction . . .
One short point to add to the many excellent reviews of this movie, if you watch the early scene "Camille's Party" very carefully, ignoring the distraction of the conflict between Remi and Louise that brackets other key meetings, you may increase your enjoyment of this subtle French talkie. Or you may choose to view this scene again at the end of the movie. It's all there, clear as a bell, but one is distracted by the cameras attention to the neurotic young focus of the movie.

In fact, this is the only Rohmer movie out of half a dozen I've viewed where a couple clearly and emphatically makes the transition to a mature, happy and probably lifelong relationship. But it is mostly done off camera.

A couple of other tiny points: The married writer who pursues Louise is probably Rohmer's alter ego in the film, and Louise probably represents his neurotic early films that typically don't go anywhere. The movie also seems to have some message about the project-like surburbs with their cold metal facilities, vs. the warm hubub of Paris. In other Rohmer movies, Parisians retreat to georgeous country homes with gardens, or seaside villas, but pointedly not in this movie.

If you have known people like the characters in the film, who say they want to be alone but compulsively hang out with whoever is available, becoming distracted from their true goals; if you like irony and don't need everything spelled out, and like to think about movies, you will enjoy this one. If you just want a light romantic comedy, watch an American film.

Full Moon, Full Marks.
Director Eric Rohmer's FULL MOON IN PARIS is the fourth in his series of "Comedies and Proverbs" starring Pascale Ogier and Tcheky Karyo. To some, Rohmer is an acquired taste. You either embrace or dislike his style of filmmaking. He is one of the few directors that really know how to direct women. He has an uncanny knack of getting inside their minds, and Full Moon In Paris is no exception.

The story opens in Louise's (Pascale Ogier) apartment home in Marne-La-Vallee that she shares with boyfriend Remi (Tcheky Karyo). Remi is an architect and a home bird, while Louise is more the out going type. She is the very opposite to Remi's rather conservative personality. Although in love with him, she feels uncomfortable whenever they go out together, as she senses that Remi is ill at ease over her long hours of socializing. Ideally, she wants to move to Paris where she works as a designer so that she can enjoy the nightlife with her friends.

Enter Octave, played by Fabrice Luchini. Octave is a writer who is married with one child. He also happens to be Louise's confidant. There is a great scene in Octave's home, when Louise, who is trying to resist his advances, offer's her opinion about when women should have children. Ogier looks really beautiful in this scene, and I love her hairstyle. In someway her dress demeanor is like a montage. She's impish, sexy, and refined at the same time. As Octave says she is flirty without realizing it.

This encounter with Octave shows that Louise is a woman of some intellect. For instance, her observations of life are well defined. She is conscious that some women have a limbo period in their mid- twenties, and that nature is forcing her to re-examine her own life.
As she says herself, she has been in and out of relationships since she was fifteen, and now needs time and space to be on her own. She is not prepared to make a long-term commitment to Remi just yet, and fears if she did she would lose contact with her youth.

In a way, Remi's stifling persona is partly to blame for her problem. He is several years older than her, and cannot comprehend why she does not behave like he does. She is artistic and likes socializing. While he plays tennis and doesn't. Clearly in his thirties, Remi has enjoyed his life as a twenty something, but now wants to curtail Louise of that privilege by pressing her into marriage. In essence, Louise senses that Remi is killing her youth. (There is a common thread in Rohmer's films, about lovers from different generations falling in and out of love, and Full Moon continues this theme).

When Louise eventually moves into her old Parisian apartment, she tries to convince Remi that her decision to stay in Paris during weekdays, only returning to him at weekends, would be best for both of them. Alas, her wish to have a more independent lifestyle does not last, and the loneliness of staying at home without a partner is well underlined during this segment of the film.

Desperate to have some company she meets Octave in a café bar. Where during a trip to the ladies room, she almost stumbles upon Remi. When she returns she tells Octave what she had just seen. While he claims he did not see Remi, he did observe a woman that looked rather familiar. Liking her to someone that they both met at an earlier function. But he wasn't sure. Louise looking worried recalls a joke she had made to Remi. It was a test about going out with other partners to see if they were still committed to each other.
This apparent discovery sends Louise on a rebound where she meets Bastien, a musician played by Christian Vadim. The two of them enjoy each other's company, but Octave, who also has designs on her, arrives at the same party and disapproves of Louise's newfound friendship. It is at this point that the film evolves, with some fascinating insights into the female mind.

Without doubt, Rohmer's screenplay delivers some of the best dialogue ever written for the big screen. Fabrice Luchini, who later returns in one of Rohmer's finest films
4 ADVENTURES OF REINETTE & MIRABELLE, is perfectly cast as Octave.
I have a strong suspicion that Luchini's character is really Eric Rohmer in disguise, much the same way that Jean-Pierre-Leaud played Truffaunt's altered ego in STOLEN KISSES. Viriginie Thevenet and Laszlo Szabo are also excellent in supporting roles. Lastly, one must not overlook Tcheky Karyo's portrayal of Remi. His performance as a man frustrated with Louise's outgoing personality is a memorable one.

The film ends in double irony, one intended by the screenplay, and the other following completion of the film. While Tcheky Karyo is now an international star, playing in blockbusters like The PATROIT, GOLDENEYE, and most notably as the villain in BAD BOYS, fate was not so kind to Pascale Ogier. Sadly, she died from a heart attack several months after the film was made on October 25th 1984.

Pascale not only starred in Full Moon In Paris, she was set designer as well. The Master (Rohmer) is known for letting colors flow in his films, but Ogier, obviously in the driving seat, appeared to have controlled the amount of color used in this film. The net result is a striking presentation of less is more by Ogier. Eric Rohmer has always been faithful to those who have worked with him, and no doubt had she lived he would have used Pascale Ogier again. She was a beautiful talented soul that was taken from us at just twenty-four years of age.

In a fitting appreciation of her contribution to the motion picture industry,
Pascale Ogier was awarded Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival in 1984 for her performance in Full Moon In Paris.

"A myriad possibilities were out there waiting."
"Full Moon in Paris" is one of director Eric Rohmer's films from his Comedies and Proverbs series, and this film is inspired by the proverb: 'A man who has two women, loses his soul. A man who has two houses loses his mind.'

Interior designer, Louise, works in Paris, but lives in the suburbs with boyfriend, Remi. Remi wants to get married, but Louise drags her heels, and says she needs 'space.' She decides to renovate her apartment in Paris and rather than rent it out, she keeps it for herself. Remi objects, but Louise is adamant that she needs time to herself. She claims "the experience I've missed is loneliness." Louise wants to stay in Paris on Friday nights and attend parties--without Remi. This becomes a point of contention between them. Remi accepts it, but he doesn't like it. It's clear to the viewer that the last thing Louise wants on a Friday night in Paris--is to be alone.

Louise begins to attend parties either alone--or with a male friend, Octave, in attendance. Octave (Fabrice Luchini) is a writer, and although he's married and has a child, he admits that he loves seducing women. He'd like to seduce Louise, but she really isn't into the physical side of a relationship, so their relationship boils down to discussions that consist of Louise's largely untested and self-focused opinions about relationships. Octave is a little bit of a voyeur, and one gets the sense that he enjoys observing Louise for material for his next novel.

The character of Louise is played nicely by Pascale Ogier. Her hair annoyed me beyond reason, but her acting was excellent. Louise is slightly prim and proper, shallow, selfish and not particularly intelligent. Unwilling to commit, she finds herself uncommitted to. Fabrice Luchini is a treat in this film. All too often, he is relegated to the supporting male role. Luchini as Octave follows Louise around looking desperately for a crumb of hope. I love Luchini's facial expressions; he has a sort of fanatical joy at times, and in this film, his eyes gleam when he discusses future plots with Louise. Octave and Louise seem an unlikely couple--although this doesn't deter Octave in the slightest. The fact that Louise lacks intelligence and introspection does not cool Octave's ardor. And even Louise's little cat-and-mouse game doesn't deter him from his goal.

"Full Moon in Paris" is one of the very best Rohmer films. It is full of delectable conversations between the characters, but perhaps the most revealing conversation of the film is the conversation between Louise and an unidentified artist. It's the artist who points out that the men in Louise's life have some say in what happens. If you've watched and enjoyed other Rohmer films, you will enjoy this one. Most people either love or hate Rohmer films--there seems little middle ground here. If you are a die-hard French film fan, then I highly recommend "Full Moon in Paris"--displacedhuman.

One of the most touching films that I have ever seen!!!!!
"Full Moon in Paris" is an absolute gem, far more than words can say! It is an absolutely joy and pleasure, to watch, and I can honestly say that, of all the films in my video library, this one is, by far, the most frequently viewed!

All of the actors in this film give exceptionally commendable performances! Having said that, however, I must say that, quite truly, this movie really belongs to the lovely French actress, Pascale Ogier, who portrayed the character "Louise". I only hope and pray, that she won an award for best actress, as a result of her stellar performance, in this brilliantly glorious film.

I was quite saddened to learn, however, that Ms. Ogier, quite tragically, died of a heart attack in 1984, which was the same year "Full Moon in Paris" was released. She was only 24 years old.

Thus, in very many ways, this movie is made all that very much more significant, for it is a final tribute to Pascale Ogier, whose shining light was cast into darkness, far too soon.

Goodbye, Pascale. You were one of France's true gems. You shall forever be lovingly remembered, as the sparkling star of "Full Moon in Paris", whose exceptionally promising film career tragically ended, before it barely had a chance, to begin.

ANOTHER GEM OF ONE OF THE LAST TRUE GIANTS OF TODAY CINEMA
Fourth movie of director Eric Rohmer's COMEDIES AND PROVERBS serie, FULL MOON IN PARIS is without contest a masterpiece. Three terrific actors : Tchéky Kario who, 10 years later, will be the villain in GOLDENEYE, Fabrice Luchini who has managed, in the nineties, to be present in all major french movies and Pascale Ogier who will tragically disappear in 1984, the year of the theatrical release of FULL MOON IN PARIS. A more than clever screenplay with subtle dialogs will clean your ears, or your eyes if you don't understand french, from the spoken insanities of today cinema.

Pascale "Louise" Ogier is living with Tchéky "Rémi" Karyo in the suburbs of Paris. She likes to pass her spare time with her ancient friends while Rémi stays at home. So, in order to save their relationship, she decides to sleep every friday night in a flat in Paris, alone. FULL MOON IN PARIS describes the consequences of this decision during the three months that follow.

Like in the plays of Musset or Marivaux, tragedy is always hidden behind comedy and Pascale Ogier's smiles and tears form a wonderful rainbow.

As always in Fox Lorber presentations of european movies, subtitles can't be removed and sound & images are of VHS quality, no more.

A DVD for your library. ... Read more

Amazon.com

In the lighthearted third film in Eric Rohmer's "Comedies and Proverbs"series, 15-year-old Pauline (Amanda Langlet) gets an eye-opening lesson in thegames grown-ups play on a two-week summer vacation with her recently divorcedand ready-for-fun older cousin Marion (Arielle Dombasle, every inch thevivacious blonde goddess). Smitten young Pascal Greggory turns aggressive withjealousy when the smooth, seductive, happily shallow writer Féodor Atkine winsthe fancy of the "perfect" Marion while continuing to fool around on the side.The tangled affairs, mistaken identities, and white lies are the stuff of sexfarce, but Rohmer is more interested in the folly of love and the impulsive,illogical workings of human nature. He deftly crafts a gentle and sexy littlehuman comedy that ends with Pauline learning perhaps the right lessons afterall. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (10)

A flirtatious philosophy discussion of love...
Pauline at the Beach is exactly what the title suggests as it depicts the end of the 15-year-old Pauline's summer vacation. Pauline spends her time with her older cousin Marion, a stunningly attractive woman, who is in the middle of a divorce. Marion is getting away form her husband by staying at Pauline's parents summer home as she is candidly displaying her body and seeking attention from men. Pauline is a curious teenager that seeks love and what it all means as she innocently discovers the different shades of love at the French-Atlantic coast.

Eric Rohmer wrote and created a flirtatious drama in Pauline at the Beach, which in all essence is a philosophical discussion of love. The discussion is apparent as the dialogues in the story generate the driving fundamental theme, love, which is submerged in all conversations in the film. Under Rohmer's direction the cinematic debate becomes an enlightening experience as it displays several different angles of how love is either reciprocal or one-sided. Through these insights of experience of love Pauline at the Beach offers a delightful and intriguing cinematic experience.

Delightful Pauline
Pauline at the Beach is a charming, funny and wise film from Eric Rohmer. It is the story of pretty teenager Pauline who is staying with her older cousin Marion on the French coast. In the course of this holiday they interact with three men, which leads to romance for both of them and to various complications. The story is engaging, with fully developed believable characters. The acting is superb, especially that of Amanda Langlet as Pauline. Rohmer shows once more that he remains in tune with youth and can direct a performance from a teenager better than most.

The film is part of Rohmer's comedies and proverbs series, which makes it a pity that the film's proverb by Chretien de Troyes is left untranslated on the DVD. This proverb ("Qui trop parole, il se mesfait") means roughly that he who talks too much damages himself. This is an interesting comment on the film, both in terms of what happens and in terms of Rohmer's style of filmmaking. As in all Rohmer films there is a lot of talk with characters endlessly discussing the nature of love and their relationships. Rohmer seems to be saying that it is this talk which leads to the problems they encounter, for by intellectualising they fail to talk honestly and directly.

Rohmer is not for everyone. Even fans of French film may find his films difficult. But he is a director who is well worth getting to know and Pauline at the Beach is a very good introduction to his work. It is light and beautiful to look at with stunning photography of French beaches. This is a fine DVD with a good print shown in its original aspect ratio of 1.66:1. The sound is clear and audible and the dialogue, as far as I could tell, is translated well. For those with better French than mine, the subtitles are removable. The only extra is a trailer without subtitles. For Rohmer fans this DVD is essential, for those who have yet to discover him, my advice is to give Pauline a try.

"I stayed true to my desire."
Fifteen-year-old Pauline (Amanda Langlet) is on holiday on the Normandy coast with her gorgeous, older, soon-to-be divorced cousin, Marion (Arielle Dombasle). On the first day of their holiday, they run into Pierre (Pascal Greggory), an old flame of Marion's. Just as Pierre digests the fact that the delectable Marion is once again up-for-grabs, an acquaintance, Henri (Feodor Atkine), who owns a house on the beach, scoops Marion up, and indulges in a relationship with her. Marion is so vain and shallow, she can't for a moment contemplate the awful truth--Henri is just having a fling. Henri is a world-weary roue who takes opportunities as he finds them. Pierre sees this, but his objections to Marion's relationship are considered self-interested, and Marion's vanity won't allow her to see beyond the delicious idea that two men are madly in love with her. Pauline also begins a summer romance with a young boy she meets on the beach. While Marion believes in wild, passionate love-at-first sight, Pauline's more serious and principled nature dictates that she must know a person before treading into a relationship. The foibles of the older characters, Henri, Pierre and Marion, are played in contrast to Pauline's steady, rock-solid common sense. Pauline learns some lessons in love--but as an observer, and ultimately Pauline's newfound knowledge and experience must take a backseat to Marion's determined and one-sided perceptions of the world.

Fans of Rohmer films should delight in "Pauline at the Beach", for the film is yet another fascinating tale. The film offers plenty of insightful dialogue as the story dissects the characters of those involved in the drama. When it comes to dialogue, I don't think there's a director who can match Rohmer for realism. There's one scene, in particular, when the characters exchange their philosophical theories about love--on another level, Marion, Henri, and Pierre are subtly marking out the territorial zones between each other. All of the acting is quite superb. "Pauline at the Beach" is one of the films in Eric Rohmer's Comedies and Proverbs series. It's not necessary to watch the other films in the series in order to understand and appreciate this film--displacedhuman

I loved this movie...
Rare is a movie where you can get into the head of a character who acts like a real person. I would love to find more movies like this. This movie is about a teenager and her adult cousin who vacation at the beach, and about the people they meet and relationships they form. And for those who did enjoy this movie, check out "A Summer's Tale". You will be able to see Pauline (the teenager in this movie) 13 years older. Rohmer is a fantastic director who looks at people, and lets them display their humanity. I highly reccomend this movie for people of any age who are interested in the interpersonal dynamics between people.

I also reccomend this movie because it stands up to repeated veiwings. With each additional viewing, more can be discovered about the characters.

A very intelligent movie
This is a movie where there is no action, rather we are the fly on the wall and we listen in to conversations. The main character in the movie is Pauline, a teenager, vacationing at the beach with her older cousin. The older cousin is married, but not happily married. During their vacation, they meet some men, have conversations about life, and love. We see relationships develop, others fall apart, some tell the truth, and others lie. What this film illustrates, in such a subtle way, is the people who are honest are the ones who are the most happy. Those who lie to others, or to themselves, seem stuck in a melancholic exsistance. By the end of the movie, it turns out the teenage girl is the one who is the wisest of them all.

The DVD has good picture quality, as good as from any movie made in the 1980's I have seen. You can turn the subtitles on or off, unlike some DVDs that burn the subtitles into the picture. ... Read more

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The title of Eric Rohmer's sixth and final film in his Comedies andProverbs series, Boyfriends and Girlfriends, makes much more sense in its original French form: L'ami de mon amie (The Friend of My Friend). In this series, each stand-alone film is based on a proverb, in this case, "the friends of my friends are my friends."Thus when conservative 24-year-old Blanche (the beautiful and talented Emmanuelle Chaulet) is befriended by wild-child 22-year-old Lea (the exotic Sophie Renoir), they find themselves each tempted by the love interests of the other. Fabien (Eric Viellard) is Lea's long-term beau, into windsurfing and hiking, which fills Lea with ennui; she'd much rather party all night. Blanche is besotted with Alexandre (François-Eric Gendron), a ladies' man who barely acknowledges her existence and who is dating Adrienne (Anne-Laure Meury). But of course, as things always go, Fabien is enamoured with the sporty Blanche, and Alexandre finds Lea irresistible.

In typical Rohmer fashion, the film is heavy on dialogue and light on action. By stripping away the veneer--no unusual camera work, no elaborate settings, no pounding soundtrack--Rohmer is able to effectively focus on the empty lives of the modern suburbanites (they all live in a spanking-clean suburb of Paris, Clergy-Pontoise, where the sparseness of the apartments and streets echoes their lives) and his New Wave influences show in the simple theme, the fickle nature of the heart. Yet his characters are immensely likable and their situations comical and ordinary enough for the viewer to relate to.This is an excellent entry into the world of Eric Rohmer for the New Wave neophyte and a refreshing, lighter outing for those who are already fans. --Jenny Brown ... Read more

Reviews (4)

"L' Ami de mon amie"
This review refers to the Fox Lorber DVD World Class Cinema DVD Edition of "Boyfriends and Girlfriends"...

The final entry in Eric Rohmer's series of "Comedies and Proverbs" opens with this simple statement..."My friends' friends are my friends". A simple enough meaning..unless..we are talking matters of the heart. Then things could get a little complicated, as they do in this sweet and endearing French romantic comedy.

"Boyfriends and Girlfriends" from 1987 is one of those wonderful films that has staying power no matter how old it gets. It's a film about relationships...whether they be of a romantic nature or an enduring friendship, we see that times may change, but love, in any language(but especially in French), will always win out.

So in our little circle of friends in this story, we have Blanche and Lea, two young women, who although very different from each other, have become fast friends. There's the handsome and popular Alexandre, who Blanche has her eye on, but seems to be getting no where with, and last but certainly not least is Lea's boyfriend Fabien. Lea's and Fabien's romance is a little rocky, on the outs one second and hopelessly in love the next.
So far so good?....Now the fun begins...The gals tempt the fates,each devloping an attachment to the other's love, (this is where the matters of the heart get a little complicated), and who will wind up with who is anybody's guess!

The young stars(including Emmanuelle Chaulet and Sophie Renoir) are enchanting and will captivate your heart, as they try to work things out for themselves. Eric Rohmer's subtle wittiness, and his feel for human nature will leave you smiling.

Fox Lorber has brought to us some fabulous films in it's World Class Cinema Collection. This is one of them. The DVD includes filmographies, and English subtitles(which do not have the option to turn off).

Merci and enjoy...Laurie

"Some things are better left unsaid."
In the French film, "Boyfriends and Girlfriends" Blanche works for the Cultural Affairs office in a small urban town. She's 24 years old and single. One lunchtime, she meets Lea, a student, who lives with her boyfriend, Fabien. Lea and Blanche--although opposites in many ways, strike up a relationship, and soon they are the very best of friends. Blanche even begins giving Lea swimming lessons. One day, at the local swimming pool, Blanche spots Alexandre, and she's immediately smitten. Apparently, most of the women who come in contact with Alexandre are similarly smitten. He's a notorious ladies' man, but he's also known for his poor taste in women.

Lea immediately begins encouraging Blanche's interest in Alexandre, but at the same time, Lea emphasizes that he's not really Blanche's type. In fact, the more Lea talks about Alexandre, it seems likely that he's more Lea's type--at least she seems to feel the challenge of a relationship with him. Lea is also blatantly dissatisfied with Fabien, and she notes that with Fabien, "all my little games fall flat." Lea is just marking time before they break up.

Rohmer delightfully dissects the difficulties involved in both beginning and ending romantic relationships. The delicate progress of courtship is recorded before the characters even seem to be aware of the new relationships they find themselves in. The uncertainty surrounding Blanche's hopeful and desperate interest in the rather caddish Alexandre is touching. The characters--as always in Rohmer films--create all the interest. As a director, he enters the minds of his characters and studies their motivations through their conversations and their actions.

Blanche is sweet, pert and rather easy-going. Lea is much more elegant, complicated, and harder to please. Alexandre is very much at ease in his elegant skin. He's confident and suave--the complete opposite of the much more sincere Fabien. The film gravitates around the idea that opposites do indeed attract--and knowing one's 'type', does not necessarily lead to making better choices.

"Boyfriends and Girlfriends" is one of Eric Rohmer's Comedies and Proverbs series, and this series tends to be a little fluffier than many of Rohmer's other films. Rohmer's Moral Tales Series, for example, includes more substantial and philosophical films which deal with weightier subject matter. The Comedies and Proverbs are lighter--less serious fare and the other five films in this series are: "The Aviator's Wife" "Full Moon In Paris" "Le Beau Mariage" "Pauline at the Beach" and "Summer". Rohmer films are always full of conversations--there is rarely action here--and most of his films seem to mention, at the very least, holidays. The characters in this film find that their romantic lives are somewhat influenced by holidays. People seem to either love or loathe Rohmer films--the most critical find the films boring and pretentious--I, however, return many times to my Rohmer collection, and I am fascinated by the characters and the relationships they form-displacedhuman

GIVE ME YOURS AND I'LL GIVE YOU MINE
Another title of the famous " comedies and proverbs " cinematographic cycle of Eric Rohmer is now available in the DVD standard. I don't know whether the literal translation of the french proverb - the friends of my friends are my friends - does ring a bell in english speaking amazonians, but the various scenes of BOYFRIENDS AND GIRLFRIENDS illustrates, in a Rohmerian way of course, this french proverb.

So, let's admire one more time the subtle smartness of the dialogs and the actors who don't play a character but create a character by the sole charm of their ingenuousness, helped by a screenplay magistrally written.

With Eric Rohmer,Woody Allen and a few others, I know for sure that I'm going to pass a great evening and that I won't regret later these two hours. With years passing by, time becomes more valuable and intellectual pleasure more selective. So let's hope for more Rohmer movies to come.

A scene access, subtitles one can't remove and filmographies as bonus features. Images and sound surprisingly good for a Winstar release.

A healthy DVD.

THE BEST ROHMER FILM
This is one of the most insightful films on friendships and love relationships between men and women. It explores being infatuated with someone who you have nothing in common with and being friends with someone who you are not attracted to, and then deciding which is more important: physical attraction or common interests. James Joyce once said that a man and a woman could never be friends because of sex. This film proves him otherwise. I was thinking about this film for a few days after I saw it. Unlike most American movies, this film leaves you with something to think about. I highly recommend anyone to purchase or view this video. ... Read more

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French director Eric Rohmer, former critic and Cahiers du Cinema editor, created a very special romantic film series around the difficult choices men make when they fall in love with two women called "Six Moral Tales." My Night at Maud's was the third entry, and it was so well received in 1969 that it gave Rohmer international prominence. To this day, it remains Rohmer's masterpiece, a brilliantly insightful and sublime meditation on adult indiscretions. Jean-Louis Trintignant plays a chaste engineer who thinks he's met his soul mate in church (Marie-Christine Barrault), yet winds up accidentally spending the night with the seductive Maud (Francoise Fabian), who is more his intellectual equal. Filmed in stark black and white by Nestor Almendros, this is one of those rare films in which questions about philosophy translate into unexpected answers about the heart. It's slow and methodical, but well worth the experience. --Bill Desowitz ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Rohmer at His Best
This is the fourth and best of Eric Rohmer's six moral tales. Like many of Rohmer's films, "My Night at Maud's" is about the search for a life-partner, temptation and fidelity. Also, like most Rohmer films, "My Night at Maud's" is made up mainly of conversation's, and some might find it "boring" or "just talking." But the conversations are interesting and intellectually stimulating, and, at the films end, the last piece of the puzzle falls into place.
An engineer (Jean-Louis Trintignant) becomes infatuated with a woman he sees in Church (Marie-Christine Barrault). But before he is able to ask her out, he spends the night at the apartment of Maud (Francoise Fabian) trying to be faithful to his Catholic values by resisting her attempts at seduction. (I won't spoil the film by telling you how his night with Maud ends.) He later meets, dates, and eventually marries the woman from Church. Years later, after running into Maud at the beach, he discovers that his wife has a connection to Maud. (Again, I won't spoil the film by telling you what it is.)

My Night With Rohmer
There are few filmmakers whom I can say truly put me in a good mood and Rohmer is one of those filmmakers. What I love about Rohmer's films is the delicacy and the subtleness in them.
"My Night At Maud's" was the third film in Rohmer's "Six Moral Tales". And many see it not only as the best of the six, but, also as Rohmer's best film. And, they have a good case to give it that credit.
To those who are unaware of the story it goes something like this, and I'll try not to reveal any major plot-points.
A young man, Jean-Louis (Jean-Louis Trintignant) is searching for the perfect mate. A woman who must share his religious beliefs, which are catholic, and his views of love. He has set quite a high standard for himself, considering it's the "modern world". Where religion doesn't really play a big part in most people lives or at least in the women whom he meets. That is until he meets a beautiful blond,Francoise (Marie-Christine Barrault) in of all places, church! He soon finds himself, along with a friend, Vidal (Antoine Vitez) spending the night at Maud's. A "modern" woman with "modern" views. These two seem to be as different as they come. She is not really what he's looking for and he is too "old-fashion" for her.
What happens afterwards is truly priceless. As Rohmer has made a film that is about as funny as a film could be dealing with sexual morals. It also has some of the "smartest" dialogue I've ever heard. If you've never seen a Rohmer film, this is a wonderful place to start. One of the best French films of all-time and one of the true "classics" in cinema.
"My Night At Maud's" was nominated for two Oscars; "Best Foreign Film" and "Best Screenplay". It was also hailed as the best film of the year in 1970 by the late Gene Siskel.

This film is so tight!
Sublime. To me, this stealthily thrilling film exploits both the living quality of a theatrical performance and the privileged intimacy that cinema offers -- close-ups, mobile perspectives, and so on. Rohmer's tale seems put together to resemble a peculiarly intrusive documentary, an impossibly close piece of observational cinema. Half the joy of experiencing his fiction stems from the convincing impression that one is (secretly) watching a group of interesting adults socializing spontaneously in the manner of their culture and class. The other half of one's pleasure lies in the awareness, as the film concludes, that an intricate and subtle structure has been unfolding and cleverly weaving the tale's elements together all along. Rohmer's film works on several levels, and is well worth viewing by the socially curious and the open-minded.

Don't bother
Lame-o, Shmame-o. Horribly dated and boring beyond belief!

Romer at his most conversational
"The heart has it reasons which reason knows nothing of." --Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

This is the Eric Romer film they warned you about. There is a lot of talk, talk, and more talk. But the talk is very interesting. One of the main topics of discussion is Pascal's famous wager. Pascal believed that if there is even the slightest chance of the Christian heaven being true, then as a matter of probability, one ought to be a believer. Even a minuscule chance of everlasting paradise is worth the bet because infinity (eternity) times even a very small number is infinity. And, of course, if not believing puts one in however small the danger of eternal damnation, then again one should be a believer. But, as Vidal (Antoine Vitez) sagely remarks in the movie, infinity times zero is still zero.

Jean-Louis Trintignant stars as a 34-year-old Catholic mathematician who has a way with women. He runs into his old school chum, Vidal, who introduces him to Maud (Francoise Fabian), who has a way with men. Funny but they don't quite hit it off even though she manipulates him into spending the night with her. Their conversation is witty, subliminal and revealing. Maud believes in the supremacy of love, Jean-Louis in being morally flexible. Although a believing and practicing Catholic, he tells Maud that one is not going against God's will by chasing girls anymore than one is going against God's will by doing mathematics.

The girl that Jean-Louis is currently chasing is 22-year-old Francoise (Maire-Christine Barrault) a blonde, Catholic girl that he has spied at church. At first it seems that although he is certain that she is perfect for him, she is reluctant. They too fence with words as they try to mislead and reveal at the same time, and the audience is intrigued, so much so that at times you might forget you are watching a movie. In this sense a Romer film is like a stage play. Whereas contemporary directors try to get by with as little dialogue as possible, to let the action itself reveal character, Romer is not shy about using dialogue to reveal character, plot, theme--the whole works.

The film begins with a long close shot of Francoise's profile as she listens in church, turning twice briefly to face the camera. She is pretty and intriguing. Although we won't realize it until the movie is mostly over, she is the focal point of the balance between the world views of Jean-Louis and Maud. After the night at Maud's during which Maud uses her intuition and sly intelligence to figure out Jean-Louis's character, he spends the night with Francoise. She uses her instincts to figure out not his character so much as his aptness for her. And then it is revealed how Francoise figures twice in the life of Maud. I won't anticipate the revelation, but be sure and watch for it. Suffice it to say that there are two reasons that Francoise is far from Maud's favorite person! The film ends, as French films often do, with the ironic affirmation of bourgeois values.

For today's DVD hound this movie will play slowly or not at all. The use of dialogue as something over and above the plot and action of the film will seem demanding and perhaps old fashioned. The deliberately drawn out scenes at church may cause you to yawn. But I recommend you stay with it. The movie has a quality that lingers long after the action is gone. The underlying philosophy about the nature of human love and how it conflicts or is compatible with reason and/or religion really does reflect to some extent the quotation above from Pascal, whose spirit is akin, although he denies it, to that of Jean-Louis, the careful protagonist of this very interesting film. ... Read more

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The second of Eric Rohmer's "Comedies and Proverbs" series, A Good Marriage stars Béatrice Romand as Sabine, a headstrong, emotional Roller coaster of a searching single woman. She impulsively leaves her married lover one night and decides she's going to marry, setting out to find her man with a mixture of romantic idealism and calculated determination. When her best friend Clarisse (Arielle Dombasle, from Pauline at the Beach) introduces Sabine to her handsome cousin Edmond (André Dussollier, Perceval), she seems to have found her mate;it's just a matter of convincing him of the impending marriage. But, alas, all is not so simple in Rohmer's world of modern love. Romand's Sabine is a delightful conundrum: resolute, firm, and fiercely independent on the one hand; moody, impulsive, and emotionally fragile on the other. Like all of Rohmer's films, this is driven by conversation, from uncomfortable small talk to confessions between girlfriends, but Sabine also lives her life, passionately pursuing her goals with the single-minded zest of a woman on a mission. Her road to love may take a few unplanned detours, but Rohmer, the eternal romantic, concludes the film on a delightfully hopeful note packed in a few glances and a flirty smile. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Absolutely delightful
The movie is from Rohmer series of proverbs, and it is very kind and charming. For me, it was a story of a young girl coming out of age, about a conflict between her determination to achieve a goal despite all odds by trying to manipulate others and how life unfolds to shock the her that other people's emotions are not simple matter. What I love about Rohmer's films is the kindness and warmth that radiates, although the stories are somewhat melancholic. I wish movies like this be done nowadays, too, without that garish vulgarity that blights modern cinema.
This is not for Hollywood lovers, therefore.

YOU SHALL MARRY ME !
Second of the famous " comedies and proverbs " of French director Eric Rohmer, A GOOD MARRIAGE is a less serious movie than THE AVIATOR'S WIFE, the first movie of this great artistic achievement. One smiles and laughs a lot during A GOOD MARRIAGE, and that's not so common in Rohmer's filmography !

One fine day, Sabine, a 25 years old art student, decides to get married. She is sure that she won't have any problem at all to find the right man ; she's pretty, young and smart. A handsome Parisian lawyer, played by a terrific André Dussolier, will be the chosen one. Without knowing it. One suffers (if you're a man, of course) with the poor man, absolutely not in love with Sabine, trying to escape from the charming girl's arms without hurting her.

A GOOD MARRIAGE is showing in a comic manner that will is not sufficient to obtain what one desires proving, if necessary, by treating this subject that it is definitely not a Hollywood product.

Images and sound are surprisingly good for a Winstar DVD... but extra-features are still under-average.

A DVD dedicated to bachelors. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Abrasive, self-deluded humor tinges the prickly exploration of sexual politics in French director Eric Rohmer's world and it often makes for less-than-comfortable viewing. Though Rohmer has made movies for several decades, his best-known films comprise a cycle loosely dubbed "The Six Moral Tales" (one short, one featurette, and four features), which also includes La Collectionneuse, My Night at Maud's, and Chloe in the Afternoon. Rohmer's comedies are full of the disillusion and jaded settling that come with age and adulthood, and he sharply contrasts cynicism against the naiveté andeasy, innocent wisdom of youth. In Claire's Knee, Jean-Claude Brialy plays a diplomat named Jerome Montcharvin, who agrees to housesit a friend's rural but lavish country estate for a month. Jerome appears contented with life as he's recently become engaged to Lucinde, a woman he's known for six years. He takes refuge in the fact that she is his opposite, and placates his doubts by reminding himself that "a woman made for me would bore me." Into this summer idyll and Jerome's predictable, ordered life come two teenage girls who threaten his faithful but passionless ardor for his fiancée. To temperhis awakening libido, Jerome pretends to "experiment" with the young women's affections and, in doing so, exposes himself as a cruel, callous man who is clueless as to his true nature. Though a close woman friend cautions him that "in love, there is will," he dismisses the possibility yet in the end performs an act of "pure will" with one of the teens, the lovely Claire, and brashly hurts that which he most desires. Claire's Knee was shot by the brilliant cinematographer, the late Nestor Almendros, and the color palette in the film is a masterpiece of style and scheme. It's a Monet on celluloid, and its visual prowess, combined with the provocative, unsettling theme, earned the National Society of Film Critics' Best Film prize in 1971. (Unfortunately,the first "reel" of the DVD transfer contains several noticeable scratches and the color is also faded and purple.) --Paula Nechak ... Read more

Amazon.com

A low-key, slightly creepy meditation on infidelity andadjustments to social expectations, Chloe in the Afternoon(1972) marksthe culmination of director Eric Rohmer's "Six Moral Tales" series. Thefilm, which traces the trajectory of Frederic, a married businessman,through temptation and an altogether standard midlife crisis, feelsremarkably ham-handed, and fails to offer anything more thanplatitudinous responses to complex problems.Zouzou proves fetching asthe title character, a bohemian drifter bent on seducing, and arguablytransforming, the comfortably bourgeois protagonist (the dull-lookingBernard Verley); the rest of the cast, given indistinct characters tointerpret, rarely provides much excitement.Severalscenes--particularly a revelatory encounter between Frederic and Chloe in thebasement of a dress shop--do manage to catch fire, but Rohmer dodgesthe implications of his own creative instincts and undermines hisown point by grafting on a pat conclusion that feels cheap and sudden. Lost in the slide toward obviousness is a genuinely intelligentscript--one that manages to feel bright without ever resorting to cleverness--and foggy-surreal location shooting in some of the less fashionableareas of Paris.Best suited for repentant philanderers and hardcoreFrancophiles.--Miles Bethany ... Read more

Reviews (6)

A masterpiece! However, if you must own it, buy the VHS.
First of all, I want to stress that there is siginifcant disjunction here between the excellence of Rohmer's film, and the dismal quality of the DVD. Thus, my criticism is not addressed to the film itself, but to the lackluster transfer by Fox Lorber. I can second the comment of the reviewer below, that the film itself deserves five stars, whereas the video and audio quality of this DVD are no better than a VHS tape (in fact, this would be very low quality for a VHS for that matter). Moreover, as with their Godard and Truffaut issues, Fox Lorber has marked only 6 chapter headings on this DVD. Now how hard is it to bookmark a chapter? Of course, I suppose that would actually require taking some interest in the film itself, and perhaps even watching it a couple of times, so as to gadge the appropriate moments to bookmark. Thus, this DVD does not even have the advantage of convenient chapter options. It is a shame that a company who owns the rights to so many great films repeatedly releases such poorly engineered DVDs. There are, of course, exceptions (more recent titles, many of the Truffaut issues, or Godard's "Vivre Sa Vie," for example). Nonetheless, I have come to expect from Fox Lorber below average video and audio quality, along with few special features, if any (even the director and actor videographies are often incomplete). Even though I own many DVDs from Fox Lorber, inspite of their mediocre quality, this is one issue that I cannot recommend. I first rented this film on DVD, but elected to purchase it on VHS, instead. This is my favorite Rohmer film, with "Claire's Knee" following a close second, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in international cinema. However, do not waste your money on this DVD edition.

Intriguing story about love and monogamy
Veteran French actor Bernard Verley stars as Frederic who is the kind of man who loves women with a great passion, but finds that he can direct all that love physically into one woman. Chloe is a woman, cynical about men, confident of her power of seduction, a woman who never wants to marry. They were friends and now they meet again. He is married, a successful businessman. She is single, living from day to day. What will happen? Will she entice him away from his wife? Will he find the French happiness with a wife and a mistress?

The title, while good, is misleading, as is the sexy cover on this video. (The French title, L'amour l'apres-midi, is better; but that title in English was taken by Love in the Afternoon (1957) starring Gary Cooper and Audrey Hepburn.) This is about as sexy as a Disney movie (although there is some backside nudity), yet it is an intriguing story about love, human sexuality and the question of monogamy. I can already see some of the other reviews: "Too talky." "Endless talk and no action." Ah, but they are wrong. This is a fascinating film in which the action is subtle and true and very interesting.

Francoise Verley plays Frederic's wife. She is not nearly as pretty as he thinks she is. Nor is she as removed from his life away from her as he naively believes. Eric Rohmer's subtle direction makes it clear that she knows more than she will ever tell him, that she loves him and perhaps prays that he still loves her. But she is above saying a single word. One gets the sense that she knows he is a man so attractive to other women that it is inevitable that he will stray. But does he? The final scene in which we know why she is crying--although ironically, he does not--is just beautifully done and ends the movie at exactly the right moment.

Zouzou plays Chloe who is Parisian, bohemian and quietly desperate. As usual with Rohmer there is a kind of realism in the movie that defies description. The people and the scenes and the events are real; there is no straining for effect, and everything is understated with a characteristic Rohmerian message about human nature.

This starts slow and never really speeds up, but do yourself a favor and stay with it. The denouement is beautifully turned and the revelation of the three principal characters is as clear and clean and agreeable as Chloe after her shower.

Chloe in the Afternoon
The lackluster direction of Rohmer doesn't match the intensity of the themes involved. It's like he's trying to imply a movie instead of making one. Everything looks frayed, but it goes deeper than mere understatement: nobody in the movie has a spine and it's as if they're being held upward by strings. The movie has such a soft mushy feel to it that the erotic scenes don't feel erotic. It's like he's trying to take away all the fun, but wants to tease us at the same time. And that's okay in itself -- Bergman's Persona is the ultimate tease -- but here you're not sure who is in control, and the experience just becomes tedious.

The Choices That We (Men) Make Define Us (Them)
An interesting take on infidelity. Rohmer's style is subtle and sparse, and his characters take first priority. The protagonist is a happily married man who still fantasizes about every pretty girl he sees while walking on the streets of Paris. A friend he hasn't seen for a while and wasn't particularly close to before, Chloe, drifts back into his life and thoughts, slowly but surely. Her affections for him seem to grow as they begin to spend generally platonic afternoons together, while at the same time his beautiful wife, who he truly adores, has their first child. The new father then continues his friendship with the young Chloe, and he ultimately must make the decision whether to cross that line with her.

Although there are two women to the one man in this story, as in the other Rohmer films I've seen, this film is about the Man, and His Choice. The Male protagonist speaks to us in the voice over, it is His Story. His thoughts, His dreams, His fantasies, and His choice.

One complaint, if it can be called that, is that the wife's character leaves less of a trace than Chloe. One would like to know why the protagonist makes the decision he must make in the end, and be able to compare the two women he shares his days with somehow. The main difference between his wife and Chloe seems to be that his wife is more submissive and less playful, almost melancholy in a way (but not necessarily unhappy). And fragile as a bird. As would be expected, she represents stability, continuity, home. Chloe on the other hand is a bohemian drifter type who appears and disappears just as easily. She represents, also as to be expected, freedom, spontaneity, possibility. But they are still, in some sense, fragments. Especially the wife. We do see her joy in motherhood and domesticity, but it's only in one dimension.

Rohmer's films are like a giant puzzle with One Proper Couple being formed as all the pieces come together. He is fascinated with the beginning/early stages of relationships, and the choices that are made at that point. Serving as a sort of match-maker for his characters, he foresees one suitable mate for his Protagonist, and Only One. And though these films are watchable and interesting, sometimes he leaves the information/emotional landscape which underlie the Protagonist's decision undefined and shadowy. We are left then, in the end, to only guess as to the reasons of the Protagonist's depth of feeling, and how he can be sure that his decision is the Right one. These men don't look back.

This one's in color (unlike the first few films in the Moral Tales series). The films in this series end somewhat abruptly, and as the FIN burns on the screen, you may find yourself with some questions. In this way, these films are good conversation-starters.

DEVIL IN A BLUE JEAN
Hélène, Frédéric's young and lovely wife, is the whole day long at home with her child. Frédéric, a successful businessman, likes to work during lunch hours and to walk in the streets of Paris in the afternoon in order to admire the beautiful lonely girls. He reads Captain Cook's travel books and daydreams a lot. He lives the "bourgeois" life by excellence.

Then come Chloe and Temptation. In fact, why not enjoy life and do like everybody else ? A wife for the saturday nights and a girlfriend for the rest of the week ! And Chloe is so fragile, she just wants a child from him. Is Frédéric going to fall ? Watch CHLOE IN THE AFTERNOON, the last of Eric Rohmer's moral tales, and try not to succumb to the disguises of the devil.

Like in the Holy Bible, the Devil can have different faces : in Frédéric's vision, Lucifer is hidden behind the faces of the women appearing in the two precedent Rohmer's movies : MY NIGHT AT MAUD'S and CLAIRE'S KNEE. Superb idea !

In CHLOE IN THE AFTERNOON, Rohmer's actors sound more professional than in the french director's other movies. But it's just an impression because if you take a look at the filmography of most of these actors, you scarcely will find other movie credits. It surely takes a while to get rid of the impression that these actors don't play well ; they are amateurs (at least, I think so !) playing according to Eric Rohmer's notion of Reality. His Reality.

As always, sound and audio are of VHS quality. No more. No extra-feature except a