Confession of a Child of the Century

I was very surprised to read the negative reviews. This story is spot on!!! If it reminds you of Great Gatsby (the DiCaprio version of which followed this movie a year later, in 2013), that is not by accident. Another movie, that comes to mind after seeing it, is Suntan (2016)...

Without any spoilers, the unfolding of the events of this romantic 'love' has absolutely realistic twists & turns, full of lessons for both the young and the more mature. The acting is really great (Gainsburg never really fails in anything), and I think the story benefited greatly from the fact that the novel was written by a man (Musset), while the script was written by a woman (Verheyde).

This is an evergreen story, enjoy it, learn from it! 10/10

Yes, Pete Doherty appears to be out of his depth having been cast in a leading role here, but then maybe that doesn't matter, because the character he plays is out of his depth. Charlotte Gainsboug is acting her socks off (as usual) and the supporting cast are doing their best. The storyline seems to be an exploration of love, betrayal, jealousy and suchlike and so I found it engrossingly realistic - confusing at times, but then relationships so often are .... There is a bit of muttering and unintelligible whispering going on ( and Doherty is not the main culprit in this respect). But I have seen far worse films than this one with higher ratings, so I suspect that this has been too rigorously condemned - Doherty's manner is eccentric, but he looks the part, and, personally, I just accepted that Doherty's character was eccentric and enjoyed the film on the whole.

This is an anglo-saxon movie presupposed on The Romanticism of the Early 1800 's of Northern France. Scenes of Celtic Brittany and Germany give it away clearly. The movie is a polemic of sorts showing a viewer that love is either death or life. The obvious and tedious even grating truth is that is is both and neither. Charlotte's genius suffers and still shines through amongst a college theater seeming ensemble type who enjoy dressing up in period pieces for their own enjoyment.

Why it was made to seem "big"? Not sure. Cannes seems to pick out some movies just because they nod French, sad really, but i suppose they highlight aspects of France's vast cultural influence, how ever trite and shallow they may portray it. Does anyone ever ask if it really serves the purpose then?

So difficult to feel empathy for the neurosis of the elite

Lots of mumbling about love and not enough substantial storyline for me. Gainsbourg carried the acting component in this film but the other cast needed more direction... A long movie trying to be too stylish and delivering mostly fluff....