L'auberge espagnole - Wiedersehen in St. Petersburg

So, here's one of the most anticipated movies of the year 2005 and the sequel to one of the biggest French hits in 2002: "l'Auberge Espagnole" which also acts as a commendable and valuable ambassador for French cinema abroad, "les Poupees Russes".

Lucid, the director Cédric Klapisch didn't opt for "l'Auberge Espagnole 2". Anyway one can't renew the Erasmus stay (which I am currently experiencing!) a second time. "Les Poupees Russes" has nothing in common with the corny sequels that Hollwood cinema has been cramming us for years. And as Francis Veber once said: "what is a sequel? It's generally a shoddy remake of the original movie". So Cédric Klapisch finds again his character of Xavier and undertook to tell his life in his early thirties. Five years after his experience as an Erasmus student in Spain, he is back. He had said in the first movie:"my life has always been a mess and will always be...". These words appear to be visionary. His life is far from satisfying him: he has become a writer but he has to pen biographies of celebrities and scenarios for mawkish sitcoms. His private life is hardly better: he struggles hard to find the perfect girl though his charismatic part. In short, it's a rather murky life and have a look at the cover of the film. It depicts Xavier who moves forward, with a puzzled air. He is surrounded by pretty girls. Which one is the the perfect one? And anyway, does the perfect girl exist? And why do we have to love just one girl and not several ones. These are some the questions that Klapisch raises and doesn't bring a definitive answer to them. It's up to the audience to think about them on account of Klapisch's piece of work.

If Klapisch had built "l'Auberge Espagnole" from start to finish with as a source, his memories of cinema student in New York and her sister's who lived one year in Spain with other European fellows under the same roof, here one has to look in Truffaut's filmography for his credentials, more specifically the Antoine Doinel saga. Truffaut had shot in a series of films, the evolution of his favorite hero in his professional and private life. With "les Poupees Russes", it seems that we also have this beginning of device with so far better results for I am not really a Truffaut devotee. Would Xavier be the Antoine Doinel of the 2000's? Anything goes... Klapisch has his own trademark to shot the life or rather the various difficulties of his main figure and one is happy to realize that his film writing still works wonders. "Les Poupees Russes" looks like a sequel of a little maladjusted play lets in which Xavier tries to order a life eventually beyond his control. These play lets encompass a great thickness in their writing and a visual richness, the whole with a dash of humor and nostalgia. Their chief force is honesty: a substantial number of situations rings true and it's highly likely that the viewer has already known some of the filmed circumstances. And there's always this typical feature from the director to make a trite situation a dense one.

One word about the cast: it's a topnotch one. Romain Duris shines in a part that was tailor-made for him. He has never been so good with Klapisch. All his European sidekicks are present with a special mention to Kelly Reilly and Kevin Bishop as William, the future married in a more subdued part than in "l'Auberge Espagnole". He has found a soul mate and matured in spite of an explosive apparition: "Hello Paris! Bonjour Paris!".

After the bitter memory left by Klapisch's adventure in the film noir with "Ni Pour Ni Contre (Bien Au Contraire), 2003", the year 2005 saw him on clover again with a forte he had tapped in "le Péril Jeune" (1994): a right chronicle on young people of different ages and an accurate appraisal of their feelings. "Les Poupees Russes" constitutes the second opus of a more than estimable duo. Will there be a third chapter on Xavier's life?

In the same way that L'Auberge Espagnole dealt with the difficulties of career, school, and growing up in general, Russian Dolls deals with love and growing older. I think the great thing about both of these movies is that so many people can look at these characters- especially Xavier- and say, "Yes! I'm not the only one going through this stuff then!" During both movies there were certain phrases and quotes that made me stop and say, "Wow! That is dead on!" Like in L'Auberge when Xavier talks about how life seems less complicated for everybody else, more organized. Or the final line in Russian Dolls about the search for that special someone. Great movies, entertaining, but most of all they speak to those of us who are still trying to figure it all out!

I like this movie quite a bit. I think the movie has succeeded in depicting the life, the love that intertwines with it, the things that make us different, and those that transcend our cultural and personal differences.

When I first saw L'auberge espagnole, I was embarking on an education journey that would span two continents in the cohort of people from all around the world. L'auberge espagnole was a great prequel to my experience.

In this sequel named "Les Poupées Russes", I find myself again firmly planted in the midst of the characters. In his thirties, Xavier and others' confused relationships reflect a bewilderment in that age group, as some choose to settle down, and some continue to seek the ephemeral.

As for national boundaries, it is interesting that the story now depicts a different set of frontiers for Europe (before the recent constitutional crisis), the UK and Russia. The countries are very different but the people are very similar if you let look beneath the surface. Everyone is looking for a better life with love and happiness.

Ultimately, what makes it all work is what William has done in the movie. We need to make an effort, whether in life or in love, to rise above the walls separating us, perceived or real.

As for the individual characters, Wendy has indeed become quite a fox. If I were Xaiver, I am not sure I would be that interested in Celia. Your mileage may vary, of course. :) Cheers, and enjoy the movie.

We enjoyed this film and are planning on going back again. It was a good film about modern romance. It has a lot of depth. The story was good, and the editing was great, some visual treats.

The story covers a lot of ground but is very well paced,typified by the train going back and forth between London and Paris. Xavier, like many of the characters is experiencing love on many levels, not understanding everything that he is going through, and who hasn't experienced that! Sometimes we search for love, sometimes, like for William and Natacha you just know right away.

There were many great visual moments, but certainly there was one of the best "hand holding" scene's in a movie. The scene of Xavier and Wendy working in the library together was a wonderful visual ballet between two people working together. There were a lot of those moments in this film, that make us want to go back and see it again.

Even though the film is s sequel it stands very well on it's own.

We enjoyed, we hope you do too.

Like a lot of other people, I went to the cinema to watch part 2 of L'Auberge espagnole. That one was a light, fun movie. It had some meaningful thoughts in it, but overall it was pretty light. However I got something different. Part 2 is a lot deeper in my opinion. It's still entertaining, there are many funny parts. The plot develops quite slowly though, too slow for some people in fact. I'm not one of those, I liked the movie. If you're not against slower drama/romance, you'll probably appreciate it too. It has got artistic scenes, taking a step further in this aspect as well. Overall, it deals with how love works, and with the choices that young people have to make. Shall they chase new partners in order to find the perfect one, or rather settle down? All of this with a fresh, entertaining, and realistic approach - to think of it, I had a similar feeling after I had finished watching Sideways.

Oh I almost forgot - the music is amazing. And Kelly Reilly - you are so hot. A lot better looking than the girl who played the dream girl in fact. :)