Pauline à la plage (1983)

Pauline à la plage is a French romantic film drama first released in 1983, directed by Eric Rohmer.  The film stars Amanda Langlet, Arielle Dombasle, Pascal Greggory, Féodor Atkine and Simon de La Brosse.  It has also been released under the title: Pauline at the Beach.  Our overall rating for this film is: excellent.


Fifteen year old Pauline and her older cousin Marion decide to spend their summer holidays together in a resort on the north coast of France.   Here, Marion meets up with an old flame, Pierre, who is keen to renew their former romance.  Still bearing the scars of a disastrous marriage, Marion has resolved that her next affair will be one of burning passion, and this is what she gets when she meets Henri, a passing acquaintance of Pierre.  Henri is under no illusion that this romance will last, so he resumes an affair with another woman without Marion knowing.  Meanwhile, Pauline has been bitten by the love bug and has embarked on her first teenage romance with a boy of her own age, Sylvain.  When Pierre sees a strange woman frolicking about naked in Henri’s bedroom, he draws the obvious conclusion, but the quick-thinking Henri arranges things so that Sylvain is cast as the guilty party.  Naturally, Pierre cannot prevent himself from dropping a few hints to Pauline, to the effect that her new boyfriend is a nasty two-timing Don Juan...

The third instalment in Eric Rohmer’s Comédies et proverbes series is one of the director’s most popular and enjoyable films, a playful yet probing exploration of the complexities of love and infidelity.  The film takes its cue from the wise old proverb "Qui trop parole, il se mesfait", which translates as "Whoever talks too much does himself a bad turn", attributed to Chrétien de Troyes (from his poem Perceval, Le Conte du Graal).  A loose tongue can be as deadly as a barrage of poisoned darts, and it is invariably the innocent who come off worst.  In this case the victim is a good-natured teenager named Pauline whose first experience of love proves to be a bittersweet affair that will doubtless scar her for life, thanks to the well-meaning friend who spoke too much, and wrecks his own chances of marital felicity as a result.

Pauline’s first amorous adventure with a cute boy of her own age is played alongside her cousin Marion’s latest romantic fling, a storm of passion that is destined to prove as short-lived as a super-model’s acting career.  Marion is in the process of going through a painful divorce and has become disillusioned with love.  Tired of wading in tepid waters, she wants her next romance to be an all-consuming passion that will last a lifetime.  Of course she is deluding herself and so she proves to be easy prey for the serial philanderer Henri, whose skill at hoovering up anything in a skirt or bikini makes him look like the human equivalent of a Dyson super-deluxe.  Marion’s obvious soul mate is Pierre - he is clearly what she needs, but because the match is so perfect it will never come off.  Despite her inexperience when it comes to matters of the heart, Pauline appears wiser than Marion and she is well-served by Eros, until Pierre’s wagging tongue upsets the applecart and not only ends a promising romance but also puts the kibosh on several friendships.  Still, all’s well that ends well, and both Marion and Pauline emerge wiser and stronger after their seaside seductions - they know that one of them is completely deluded, but happily they do not know which.

Pauline à la plage is one of Rohmer’s sunniest and most engaging films, and what makes it a particular delight are the captivating performances from its extremely talented cast.  Arielle Dombasle has never looked more radiantly beautiful and, well-served by Rohmer’s flawless screenplay, she gives what is unquestionably her finest screen performance.   Equal praise goes to Pascal Greggory who, early in his career, proves that he is an actor of exceptional charm and ability - he had previously appeared with Dombasle in the preceding Rohmer film Le Beau mariage (1982).  Amanda Langlet is excellent in the role of Pauline, a portrayal that subtly evokes the vulnerability and confusion of a teenager experiencing her first taste of love, whilst Féodor Atkine is well-cast as the film’s most complex and ambiguous character, the charming but devious womaniser Henri.  Making his screen debut as the too-good-to-be-true teenage love Sylvain is Simon de La Brosse, another gifted young actor (with Mark Hamill good looks) - tragically, after a promising start to his career on film and television, he later had difficulty finding work and died by suicide in 1998, aged 32.

Pauline à la plage perfectly demonstrates both Eric Rohmer’s flair for crafting enchanting slice-of-life comedy-dramas and his extraordinary perceptiveness when it comes to intimate human relationships.  The film was not only a notable commercial success, it was also highly acclaimed by the critics and won Rohmer the Best Director award at the 1983 Berlin International Film Festival.  For those who have yet to be acquainted with the wonderful world of Eric Rohmer, this is probably the best introduction to his work - a film of exquisite charm, wit and tenderness, with just a soupçon of acerbic mockery.

© James Travers 2000-2011

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There is more to this film than meets the eye. From the moment the summer visitors open the gates for their little car too enter the rental property until the end, when they close the same gate behind them, we have the curtain rising and falling on a mischievous Marivaux comedy played out in bikinis rather than elaborate 18th century costumes. Here as usual, Rohmer focuses on self-deception. And the point is made lightly but indelibly that sometimes a teenager – in this story, Pauline – can have more common sense and wisdom then those who are older. Delightful and touching.
James Keller (California, USA) 

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