Mariées mais pas trop (2003) - film review

Laurence, aged 20, is ready for love, but she always manages to fall for the wrong guy.  After the death of her mother, she engages a private detective to track down her missing grandmother, Renée, who shares none of Laurence’s romanticism.  For Renée, men are merely the means to an end: the wealth she needs for her luxurious lifestyle.  Her seemingly foolproof system is to seduce a wealthy man, marry him, dispose of him as quickly as decency and opportunity will allow and then collect on the life assurance.  Having been let down by her latest amorous adventure (with a young insurance salesman, Thomas), Laurence decides to follow her grandmother’s example and marry for wealth.  Whilst she ties the knot with a rich garage owner, Renée hitches up with an ageing playboy.  It is not long before both women grow tired of their new husbands and wish they were rid of them.  Fortunately, fate is there to offers both of them a helping hand…

Mariées mais pas trop will come as something of a surprise for anyone familiar with Catherine Corsini’s previous films – an outrageous comedy thriller which shows little of the originality or artistic flair of this director’s earlier works.  Although the film has a great sense of fun and energy (which derives mainly from its actors’ participation), the absurd characterisation, and even more absurd plot gives it the feel of a somewhat excessive and unsophisticated parody of a rather outdated genre.

Fortunately, whilst the cliché-ridden dialogue and plot are at best mediocre, at worst atrocious (offering little in the way of genuine surprise or credible characterisation), a high calibre cast prevents the film from being a totally wasted effort.   The pairing of Jane Birkin and Émilie Dequenne works surprisingly well, even if the former is cast against type as a cynical femme fatale (making a huge contrast with the public perception of the popular singer/actress).    Pierre Richard, a once hugely popular comic actor in France, brings the film to life just when its novelty value begins to flag at the mid-way point, whilst the young and talented Jérémie Elkaïm gives the film a further injection of exuberance and sex appeal.

It may not be a film you would ever admit to having enjoyed, but, in spite of its obvious faults, and providing you are in the right frame of mind, Mariées mais pas trop can still be enjoyed for what it is, a delightfully tongue-in-cheek comic romp.

© James Travers 2003

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