Film Review
Director Jean-Claude Brisseau presents an uncompromisingly modern and deeply cynical view
of love and romance in this bizarre erotic drama which will doubtless ruffle a few feathers.
Choses secrètes is daring both in its
choice of subject - the stark portrayal of attractive young women heartlessly using
their sexuality to destroy male egos - and in its explicit content (which includes an
orgy scene which appears to have been inspired by a Hieronymous
Bosch painting). Where the film falls down is in its lack of realism and its weak
characterisation, which rob the story of any real credibility and renders much of the
film almost unbearably ridiculous. It's virtually impossible to watch the cliché-riddled
last ten minutes of the film without laughing - it looks stylish and is well acted, but
it just provokes the wrong kind of reaction.
The two female leads, Sabrina Seyvecou and Coralie Revel, are impressive and give
a near-convincing portrayal of the darker side of female sexuality that is as disturbing
as it is provocative. With its numerous explicit sex scenes, pretentious dialogue and
some way over-the-top artistic excesses,
Choses
secrètes risks being categorised as just
another tatty piece of softcore porn of the
Emmanuelle
variety, which is unfair because there is more to it than that. This is
a film which paints some unpalatable truths about the extent to which our society is devaluing
sex, and how male-female relationships are becoming dangerous emotional war games, with
women finally learning to get the upper hand. Brisseau followed this
with the equally provocative
Les Anges exterminateurs (2006)
and
À l'aventure (2009).
© James Travers 2006
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
Sandrine and Nathalie decide to embark on a campaign of revenge against the
male sex after losing their jobs in a pornographic nightclub. Flaunting
their sexuality for all it is worth, the two women have no difficulty finding
office jobs in a large, high prestige company, and soon they have access
to all the information they need to begin their private war. The company's
personnel database proves to be a goldmine and within no time the two merciless
females are working their way up the company ladder, with easily seduced
men serving as mere rungs beneath their unforgiving feet. The duo's
ultimate target is Christophe, the son of the company's managing director.
He has a reputation for being a sadistic womaniser who drives women to kill
themselves. Christophe's unsavoury past history does not deter Sandrine,
who believes he will be an easy conquest. In fact, she is about to
embark on the most dangerous game of her life. Christophe is not only
an outrageous libertine, he is a man who delights in making women suffer...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.