And Now... Ladies and Gentlemen... (2002)

And Now... Ladies and Gentlemen... is a French thriller film first released in 2002, directed by Claude Lelouch.  The film stars Jeremy Irons, Patricia Kaas, Thierry Lhermitte, Alessandra Martines and Claudia Cardinale.  Our overall rating for this film is: good.


Tired of his career as a jewel thief, Valentin buys a boat and sets out on a round-the-world tour.  A serious head injury puts an end to his maritime adventure when he arrives on the coast  of Morocco.  Whilst he receives medical treatment, he meets Jane, a singer who has also started to show symptoms of memory loss.  Whilst Valentin is clearly attracted to her, Jane appears reluctant to start another relationship…

Even die-hard fans of Claude Lelouch’s work are unlikely to be overly impressed with this latest offering from the “director critics love to hate”.  True, there are some moments of well-intended hilarity (Jeremy Irons dragged up to his high teeth is about as good as it gets) and the glossy production values at least create the impression of a classy piece of cinema.  The problem is that – as with many of Lelouch’s films lately – clumsy artistic pretensions vastly overwhelm any real merit, so whilst the film is pretty to look at, it offers no more than a shallow cinematic experience.  Patricia Kaas is probably the film’s strongest selling point – her portrayal of a woman in mid-life turmoil is at least sympathetic, although this is effectively undermined by the obvious lack of chemistry with her wooden English co-star.

© James Travers 2006

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