Le Coeur des hommes is a French romantic film drama first released in 2003, directed by Marc Esposito.  The film stars Bernard Campan, Gérard Darmon, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Marc Lavoine and Ludmila Mikaël.  It has also been released under the title: Frenchmen.  Our overall rating for this film is: good.


Antoine, Jeff, Manu and Alex have been friends since they played in the same football team twenty years ago.  Aged about 50, each is beset by some deep emotional crisis, around which the others attempt to rally with whatever support they can muster.  Antoine has just walked out on his family when his wife admitted to being unfaithful to him.  Jeff cannot decide whether to marry a woman who is half his age.  Manu mourns the loss of his recently deceased father.  And Alex is a serial adulterer whose married life is becoming increasingly turbulent...

Having made a successful career as a journalist, and with a few screenplays to his name, Marc Esposito finally fulfilled his ambition to become a director with Le Coeur des hommes, an engaging comedy drama which proved to be a great commercial success in France.  Admittedly, the film won’t win many awards for originality, but it is an attractive, well-structured film which handles its subject (the male menopause) with warmth and sensitivity.  Esposito is well-served by his four male lead actors, each of whom delivers a convincing and sympathetic portrayal of mid-life turmoil.  Whilst the film is generally simplistic in its portrayal of women and general outlook, it occasionally surprises with its keen appreciation of male psychology.   Alex’s amusing bed-hopping antics make a poignant contrast with Antoine’s inward torment over his wife’s infidelity.  It’s a handsome depiction of the worth and power of male friendship – not too profound, not too serious, but intelligent, and surprisingly uplifting.

© James Travers 2005

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