Le beau mariage

The contradiction between traditional and modern, intellectual and emotional. Everyone governs themselves with philosophy but reveals themselves more deeply in the minute details of expression. A momentary pause or a botched smile illustrates volumes of character.

A simple story placed in a windy village in the outskirts of Paris: a story which could have happened nowadays. A 25 years old girl not nice, but very strong minded who decides to get married to matter to whom. You perceive different worlds and environments: high and low bourgeoisie, the capital and the suburbs and in the middle a person with his problems, ideas, opinion, sentiments. It is a sweet and clever film and Rohmer is a master in describing his characters: you feel all the French great cultural tradition behind him.

Witty/romantic comedy. Headstrong/out-spoken Sabine (Béatrice Romand), working on her thesis in Art History, has tired of affairs with married men, such as Simon (Féodor Atkine). Playing Cupid, her confidante Clarisse (Arielle Dombasle) introduces her lawyer cousin Edmond (André Dusollier) to Sabine. Encouraged by Clarisse, Sabine impetuously decides that she will marry Edmond and tells her mother (Thamila Megrah) and sister Lise (Sophie Renoir). When confronted by Sabine, Edmond resorts to an astonishing/glib double-talk to explain why he is not ready for matrimony.

Béatrice Romand was the delightful/ talkative teen ager in ‘71 Claire's Knee, and commitment-shy widow in '98 Autumn Tale; Dusollier, in the whimsical '75 And Now My Love. Arielle Dombasle has appeared in many films, starting as a seductive beauty. Féodor Atkine played a somewhat slimy character in '83 Pauline on the Beach.

Beatrice Romand is a perfect cast for the hot-headed, impetuous, self-confident and immature young girl in the leading role, while Andre Dussollier plays the role of a quintessential bourgeois Frenchman, charming, courteous, discreet, and tactful. His tact has reached the point of being hypocritical which makes the audience exasperate for the young girl, who has been kept on tenterhooks for too long and would not take no for an answer. Her insistent and blind chase of a man who is obviously not interested in her is only made worse by the reticence of the object of her pursuit. Rohmer's films are usually wordy sometimes tedious, they suit only certain type of audience. This one is definitely not tedious. An interesting and comical study of manners and mentalities in different classes of French society of the late 20th century.

I'm a fan of the hushed qualities which are Rohmer's style. I admire the seamless flow between scenes in this film, between Paris, Le mans, the atelier, the train and her mothers house. Noteworthy is the almost complete lack of music as with many of his films, however there is a poignant somewhat outdated 80's electronic tune that runs in the beginning, the credits and at the party.

I found myself a little less hooked emotionally with this film then with 'Le Rayon Vert', 'Pauline a la Plage, and 'L'ami de Mon Amie'. When I watched those films I was really pulled at the heart strings by the plight of some of the characters.

What was different with this film? Well on the contrary to what others have wrote here I didn't find the leading actress Beatrice Romand to be nearly as compelling as Rohmer's other leads. I think she took the idea of a head strong young woman a little too far, ie; marching around like a bulldog for half the film, seemingly bursting in and out where ever she went. I think she could have played the head-strong role with a bit more subtlety. However at the scene of her party and in one of the final scenes in an office she played the role divinely. Particularly at the party there is a sense of tension which is unexplainable which she radiates.

As a big fan of Rohmer and comparing with his other works I give this film a 7. This film for someone who has not experienced a Rohmer film will be like an almigthy gob smack. You will see with the simplest elements and without manipulation he is able to create a sense of compassion for the characters and tension with a slight pacing that resembles real life.