Et la tendresse?... Bordel! (1979)

Et la tendresse?... Bordel! is a French film comedy first released in 1979, directed by Patrick Schulmann.  The film stars Jean-Luc Bideau, Marie-Catherine Conti, Bernard Giraudeau, Evelyne Dress and Anne-Marie Philipe.  It has also been released under the title: Tenderness, My Fanny.  Our overall rating for this film is: good.


Three couples from three different backgrounds have three very different ideas about romance.  Businessman François, the master seducer and man of power, regards women as mere objects to satisfy his over-inflated libido, a situation which his partner Carole accepts with resignation.  Luc and Eva appear to be in a stable relationship – he spends his days interviewing people for surveys, she works in a psychiatric clinic – and their time together at home is warm and affectionate.  Léo, an aspiring lawyer, and Julie, a shop assistant, are attracted towards one another but each finds it hard to make the first move – until their shyness yields to the needs of desire.  Will any of the couples live happily ever after?

This slightly raunchy sex comedy has acquired the status of a cult classic, partly on account of its eccentric, comic-book humour, but most probably because of the memorable contributions from much-loved actors Jean-Luc Bideau and Bernard Giraudeau.  (The film also features Anne-Marie Philipe, the daughter of the legendary French actor Gérard Philipe.)  Whilst some of the jokes now appear somewhat dated whilst others are just frankly weird (where else would you be confronted with the surreal spectacle of a circulating penis?), the film has retained some of its charm and still offers plenty of good laughs.  Encouraged by the success of this film, its director, Patrick Schulmann, made a sequel entitled Zig Zag Story (Aka: Et la tendresse?... Bordel! N° 2), released in 1983.

© James Travers 2007

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