L'école de la chair

"School of Flesh" tells of the ebb and flow of a sex/love relationship between a well-to-do middle aged woman and a handsome young bisexual male hustler. In typical French fashion the pair of star-crossed protags are locked in constant maneuvering in order to better define the limits of their relationship and their influence over it. Though the film is very well acted and directed with Huppert exuding expressionless controlled intensity, the underlying story seems somehow worn, unoriginal, and lacking the psychodynamics required for audience satisfaction. Recommended only for Huppert fans and aficionados of French cinema. (B-)

There is something extraordinary about the two leads in this movie. Vincent Martinez was initially quite appalling to look at - scrawny, brooding with features more akin to a caricature! However, as the film progresses, one can sense a certain charisma and physical presence that he projects more and more palpably; yes, even from a man's perspective. But that's as far as it goes for him...

As for Isabelle, my! What an actress, what a woman! These French actress: Catherine Deneuve, Adjani, Beart - very few Hollywood actresses can be placed in the same league as them. This is my first time seeing Ms Huppert perform and I was really blown away. She brought so much contradicting sides to her character and she made them so believable. The character is strong in career and personality, yet vulnerable in her devotion to the above-mentioned man-animal. She is decisive and purposeful in life choices of career, marriage and the man-in-her-life yet defers constantly to the whims and fancies of him. You get the picture!

Anyway, with one single long shot of her face as betrayal, despair and sadness climax into a single track of tears - extraordinary! No self-pity, no cloying sentimentality; just plain sadness at the state of affair....At first glance, she did not appear extraordinarily beautiful. But as the film progresses, she looked increasingly radiant and one can't help but feel drawn to her.

One of the best film I've seen at this year's film festival where more is said through pregnant silences than confrontations and accusations a la Hollywood.

"Middle-aged divorcee picks up barman in gay bar" isn't a promising plot-line; the title's soft-porn suggestion is also off-putting. But in fact it's a delicate and attractive handling of what could have been sordid relationships. The key word, I suppose, is "tender"; we are frequently led to expect violence (the barman Quentin is a kick-boxer - we watch him attacking a punchbag during the title sequence) but are instead surprised by reasonableness and gentleness. The few nude scenes manage to be erotic without ever being vulgar. Relationships are weird, the film (and Mishima's novel) seems to say, but there can still be tenderness in life. Isabelle Huppert exudes French charm . . .

This film is near the top of my list for best films out of France. It is a superb production. The scenes between Dominique (Isabelle Huppert) and Quentin (Vincent Martinez) are completely convincing with natural conversation and sensitive mood changes. While the disparity of ages between lovers is not a new theme, it has never been handled more expertly than here where the older woman wants to "possess" the young call-boy but he is determined to remain a free spirit. What is so arresting in this story is that we know so little about the characters and their past. But information is gleaned bit by bit from their conversations, and never very much, so we hunger for more as the story unfolds. The dewy-eyed Isabelle Huppert in the final scenes reveals her talent as a fine actress. A wonderful piece of cinema that holds you to the end...and what an ending when the two characters realize that their dream has ended and they now face the harsh realities of life.

Director Benoît Jacquot (Right Now) has taken a script by Jacques Fieschi, based on a Japanese novel by Yukio Mishima, added superstar Isabelle Huppert (The Piano Teacher) and Vincent Martinez, in his first acting role to give us an interesting and satisfying look at the older woman/younger man romance.

While having a younger man was satisfying for Dominique (Huppert), the effort to keep him was physically and emotionally exhausting. It did not help that Quentin (Martinez) earned a living being available to men as well.

Huppert is a guarantee for a good show, and she can act, too - a satisfying combination.