French Twist

This is one of those films where you can see each plot twist coming before the last is finished. The writers probably sat around saying "...and wouldn't it be funny if ..." and then just added another episode in this episodic picture. But it is fun, light, and doesn't try to press an ideology about human relationships on the viewer. What a relief! And the ending leaves a nice gap which the viewer can fill for himself. Perfect, to my mind. Fun fluff.

French twist is a lighthearted comedy which centers around three characters in a love triangle not often seen in mainstream film. When it was made in 1995, this film was very controversial in America due to the nature and portrayal of sexuality in the film. However it was accepted more openly in Europe at the time. Now however the film and its subject matter, while still controversial to a point, are much more accepted in America. The characters in the film are good. Not incredibly deep but they are not two dimensional. You do feel for them and care for their feelings. And the film does a good job of having you care for each of the characters at some point or another during the film so that it is hard to pick sides and root for a single character. This film does a good job a showing the double standards between woman and men. Furthermore being a comedy it makes it easier to take in the once "edgy" and still somewhat controversial subject matter of the film. The theme throughout the film is that of love. The film tries to show that love does not depend on one's sex but rather on the people themselves. This is made clear many times through the movie. The topic of the film may seem rather heavy but the director and actors do an excellent job of keeping the movie light and comedic. There are plenty of points throughout the movie that were both surprising and rather amusing. Overall I think that the movie is definitely worth watching. It is a funny comedy and it does make you think. If you like lighthearted comedies which are outside the norm, you will enjoy this movie.

I read the user comment for this film, my point of view is quite different :

1. I am surprised to see that Gazon Maudit was rated R and 18 in most countries. I saw this movie at 20:30 PM, on Sunday evening, on the main TV french channel, and I don't remember any scandal for this (and we have our share of intolerant bigots in France too...). OK, this picture is about sex, lesbians, homosexuality and triolism, we can see a few times Victoria Abril half or totally naked and Josiane Balasko smokes a lot of pot, but it is basically a comedy with no real provocation. I find much more vulgarity in, mmmh, let's say, the "American Pie" pictures - even if they don't show nudity - than in Gazon Maudit.

2. This movie is funny. No big laughs, but a good story and brilliant acting. We know that the situations are implausible (a nice married woman falls in love at first glance with a butch-lesbian-truck-driver, who will have a baby with her husband) but the characters are funny enough to forget minor errors in the script and you will enjoy the way of cross that the unfaithful husband (Alain Chabat) will have to go through.

3. I gave a rating of 6 because it's not a masterpiece. But if you find the plot outline attracting, if you ever wonder "What would I do if my wife leaves me for another woman ?", or if you want to see an uncommon film about relationships, you will not be disappointed !

As a comedy, the film stands out as it blends in the sexuality and gender issues in. It portraits these relatively controversial issues in an explicit approach. It won Best Screenplay at the 1995 French Academy of Cinema and got nominated for Best Picturefor 1995 French Academy of Cinema and Best Foreign Language Film for 1995 Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Personally, I think this movie is a successful one in terms of the story plot. The story line is easy to follow and the editing style is just the right pace. Things do not get messed up even the relationship between the three is rather complicated. The scenes are nicely set up and every single scene contributes their importance to the whole film. Some may argue that such issue should not be shown in such explicit style, for instance, when Loli and Marijo were naked in the bath tube, at least it should not be rated "Universal" in Europe. However, we may have to refer back to the cultural context since it is rated differently in America. For European countries, it may be accepted to present controversial issues such as sexuality and lesbian relationships in a direct way compared to other countries such as the ones in Asia, where these are considered as taboos.

Overall, I think this is an entertaining film and it is worth watching. This movie is recommended to anyone who wants to know more about gender and sexuality issues, or anyone above illegal age.

very unique story with english subtitles. some titulation with the lesbian character who is attracted to loli. the pregnancy of the lesbian lover, complicates entire movie. it does still give you something to think about. the mixture of lesbian and heterosexual love and lust worked out between the three is very strange. the humor is dry and bizarre, but very entertaining. keeps your attention, dont like the addition of children involving this adult theme movie. worth renting or buying.