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Starring |
Ludivine Sagnier
,
Benoit Magimel
,
Francois Berleand
,
Mathilda May
,
Caroline Sihol
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Directed By |
Claude Chabrol
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Audio
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Dolby Digital 5.1
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Visuals
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16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen
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Running Time |
110 mins
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UK Release Date |
September 7, 2009
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Genre |
Drama, Thriller
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Our Rating |
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User Rating |
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Fear not: no girls were actually cut in two during the making of this film. The girl in question, played by Ludivine Sagnier, is only really “cut in two” in a symbolic sense, in that she is torn between the love of two men. Sounds boring, eh?
Well, actually no. Gabrielle is young, pretty, naive and still lives with her mum. She is also a TV weathergirl and while it may not literally be “raining men” outside (which would actually be incredibly dangerous), you wouldn’t have to be a meteorologist to suss out from her first encounter with ageing author Saint-Denis (Berleand) that the imminent forecast for her own love life looks decidedly stormy. Not only is Saint-Denis old enough to be her father but he’s already married. Worse still, Gabrielle soon finds herself drawn to the more youthful but highly unstable pharmaceuticals heir Paul Gaudens (Magimel). With Gaudens already harbouring an intense dislike for the writer, a fierce power struggle for Gabrielle’s love quickly ensues.
Were this an American film it would doubtless feature Matthew McConaughey and Ryan Reynolds vying for Ellen Pompeo’s affections. Thankfully, it’s French and little attempt is made to make any of the characters likeable. Indeed, despite being well acted and well made, much of the film is bizarre in the extreme. Gabrielle’s attraction to the blatantly psychotic Gaudens seems particularly inexplicable. Ignoring his wealth (which doesn’t seem to be Gabrielle’s motivation anyway), he’s clearly bonkers from the outset, dressing like a posh version of Jarvis Cocker and attempting to make up with Gabrielle after an attempt to attack her with a bunch of flowers. Disturbingly, this seems to work.
With an interview with Sagnier included on the disc, this is a a consistently intriguing film that might leave you cursing the actions of its characters.
Overall Verdict: Not exactly To Die For bur enjoyable enough. And Ludivine Sagnier is clearly talent to watch in the future.
Special Features:
Interview with Actress Ludivine Sagnier
Reviewer: Chris Hallam
