Parlez-moi d’amour (2002) - film review

After 15 years of married life, Justine and Richard agree to separate.  Justine has grown tired of her husband’s drinking bouts and petty jealousies; Richard cannot forgive her for her marital infidelities.  Whilst Richard buries himself in his work as a screenwriter, Justine is fully occupied with their three young children.  Visiting her mother, Justine reflects on her own past – her parents’ bitter separation and her meeting with Richard…

Internationally renowned film actress Sophie Marceau makes her directorial debut with this ambitious, semi-autobiographical drama which won her an award at the 2002 Montreal World Film Festival.  Whilst Marceau shows some promise as a director, this bears all the tell-tale signs of a first film – it is overly directed, the narrative is weakened by unnecessary artistic excesses, and the actors are not given space to breathe.  The film starts well enough with its accurate portrayal of chaotic family life but quickly becomes tiresome when its lack of depth and any real emotional power become apparent.  Judith Godrèche and Niels Arestrup, both fine actors, have to struggle to make their characters convincing, and the script (again, Marceau’s own work) is largely to blame for this.  The attractive, appropriately moody cinematography cannot compensate for dull dialogue and empty characterisation.  If anything, the endlessly roving camera merely distances the audience from the protagonists, conveying a sense of detachment which robs the film of any real emotional impact.

© James Travers 2005

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