Un uomo, una donna

That night Anne Gauthier (Aimée) missed her train… Jean-Louis Duroc (Trintignant) offered her a ride back to Paris… Both had their children at the Deauville boarding school… She has a girl named Françoise and he has a boy named Antoine… Jean-Louis knew that her husband was a stuntman who had a tragic accident… She knew that he was married and his wife commits suicide…

Claude Lelouch begins his sensitive exploration on that boat ride where there was a completely different energy in the air, where the sea was seen alive in all its many mood and through intentions looks, and lingering hands he let us know that yes, something was beginning to happen between Anne and Jean-Louis… On that wonderful beach—and through long shots—we see the couple with their children walking, playing, running with hundreds of seagulls screaming all around…

There was a great chemistry between Aimée and Trintignant in "A Man and a Woman"… The attraction between the two stars really resonated… Aimée was very sweet and gorgeous as a woman, but her constant incursions into the past left her experience with more sorrow than joy…

Trintignant was charming… His acting extremely natural… When he received Anne's telegram he left his elegant dinner and took his car driving hundreds of kilometers to join Anne and be with the children…

Lelouch captures breathtaking shots of Deauville's spectacular beach… We all remember the unforgettable scene of the man walking alike as his dog…

The film won Oscars for Best Original Screenplay and Best Foreign Language Film

I was a film major and saw this movie in a class and it became my No.1 movie immediately and has been ever since. This film is where you think maybe movie can be art and really influence people's life. the storyline is simple but the mood of the film is so deep but natural. I especially like the part when Anne and Jean-Louis walk on the beach in the late afternoon and talk about the story of an artist and his cat. Lelouch did the love story about two mid-age parents when he was 28 and he did a brilliant job. He couldn't afford all colored film but he totally made this film a colored/ black-and-white style classic. The only scene looks bad in color and should be in black-and-white is the scene with Jean-Louis's ex. a great movie and it doesn't age at all.

`A Man and A Woman (Un homme et une femme)'. ****. (1966, France, Not Rated 102 min. Directed by Claude Lelouch with Anouk Aimée, Jean-Louis Trintignant). I recently watched `Lumière and Company' which celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the movie industry. Forty directors from around the world produced 52-second films using the Lumière camera. The fifty-two second time limit and other constraints follow the construct of the first Lumière movie. Of the 40 films, the by-far-and-away best is the one of two lovers kissing. The man and woman are on a rotating stage so we get a 360-degree view of their kiss. In the background we see photographers each with progressively more modern cameras. The love or passion of the man and the woman don't change only the way we are able to view them now and then.

So what does this have to do with Claude Lelouch's 1996 movie, `A Man and A Woman'? Well he's the director that made the above mentioned film and it reminded me that it has been years since I last watched `A Man and A Woman.' I rented and watched it again.

Jean-Louis Duroc (Trintignant) and Anne Gauthier (Aimée) are a man and woman. They meet incidentally at the boarding school where they visit their children each weekend. He visits his son, she her daughter. She misses her train and he offers her ride back to ride back to Paris in his car. Slowly and cautiously we learn about them as they learn about one another. We learn about their jobs, their former spouses, and other details of their lives that have the movie viewer hoping this man and woman can become a couple.

Lelouch's technique in telling the story is wonderful. The film switches from black and white to color. The switch usually comes on the change from person-to-person conversation to personal thoughts or a recounting of the past. It's like Lelouch is using this change as quotation marks or thought balloons on the screen. We see/hear Jean-Louis' and Anne's thoughts as they question their feelings about beginning a new personnel relationship. I first saw this movie as a college student in 1966. I really liked it then. I wondered if I'd liked it now. The movie hasn't changed but I can assure you I have. `A Man and A Woman' proves that a good story, well told can be appreciated now and then. I highly recommend that you rent and watch `A Man and A Woman.'

After so many decades, Claude Lelouch's poetic and romantic 'Un Homme et Une Femme' feels exceptionally refreshing. More so than most romantic films that have released in recent years. Lelouch's execution is very simple. The director had intended to make it an all-colour feature but due to financial constraints, some of the scenes in black and white. Lelouch not only managed to make this work but this itself brings out a certain quality and gives it a unique touch. The cinematography, editing and score are remarkable. 'Un Homme et Une Femme' has a very European, more specifically French (obviously) look that is authentic, pure and certainly adds to the charm of the film. Lelouch and his co-writer Uytterhoeven's writing breathes poetry. The dialogues are of a few words and yet they feel so real, like any normal conversation between a man and a woman. The casting is terrific. A charismatic Jean-Louis Trintignant and a gorgeous Anouk Aimée have a natural chemistry and their sincere performances shine. Even the child actors have done a very good job.

Pure, genuine, lyrical, visually dazzling and charming, 'Un Homme et Une Femme' is a fine example of romantic cinema at its best.

Sometimes you do not need to hear anyone in order to understand what he/she is saying, and this is the merit of this Claude Lelouch's film. The main actress and actor, i.e. Anouk Aimée and Jean Louis Trintignant, respectively, were able to act in a way that feelings, desires, sadness well were expressed by both without the need of spoken dialogues. The plot is quite simple, but the merit again is here the way to make it coherent. Another interesting characteristic was the successful use of nice soundtrack in several scenes. Similarly the story of each were said with several mute scenes. According to Lelouch the film gained its intensity because of its fast way of realization. It was made in less than three months, and the scenes were taken in three weeks keeping all actors and actresses working tense. Lelouch never expected to have the success and awards the film had and obtained.