Tutta una vita

Lelouch, the master of finding the humour and tragic desperation within human relationships has crafted a signature piece of romance for all us romantics. One annoying flaw is repetitiveness that could have been better edited, but the grand perspective is well worth the extra half hour. The film misses greatness but is well worth watching.

"And Now My Love" sums up the curious qualities of director Claude Lelouch. While his talents are in abundance he ultimately lacks the ability to pull it off. What has the makings of a classic in the final analysis can only be regarded as a failure.

In a masterly fashion, Lelouch deftly orchestrates the eventual meeting of a man and woman who destiny decrees should be together. It's a romantic notion that has been at the centre of numerous movies, but seldom so wittily and intelligently dished up as in "And Now My Love". The entire movie consists of the winding paths that the protagonists follow until their eventual meeting. Lelouch embroiders this process with historical fact, social criticism and much humor.

However the eventual meeting of the predestined coupling is something of a letdown. The chemistry simply isn't there. When the movie was first released it ended with this somewhat unsatisfactory finale. But despite the ending, the film as whole had enough charm to leave a favorable impression. However Lelouch must have been troubled by the poor resolution to his master work and in what can only be conceived as a desperate measure, he tacks on a truly ludicrous appendage, which instead of salvaging the film, completely sinks it.

His sci-fi ending is a disastrous artistic decision. Anything else would have been preferable. Unfortunately the DVD edition does not allow the option for viewing the edited version. So after well over two hours of much enjoyment one is subject to an ending which leaves a particularly bad taste.

This is a complex, gimmicky, manipulative and insanely romantic film, and it's my all-time favorite movie, bar none. And I prefer the U.S. version, which was truncated somewhat from Lelouche's original, because it punctuates the essence of the film -- that we are all somehow destined to our fate, even going several generations back, but we must cooperate by following our hearts and souls. I've seen this movie more than 20 times and it still fascinates me.

Loved it when it came in 1974, at 15 the fateful romance theme was intoxicating. Seeing it for the second time a few decades later, there was a slow stirring of emotions until the last 20 embarrassing minutes of which i had no recollection. Was relieved to read other user's reviews on this site, which explained the CD showed the unedited version. Now i know that i don't have Alzheimmer's. Heavy on the Schmaltz and platitudes, this time around i enjoyed rediscovering the songs of Gilbert Becaud. The lyrics of "Et maintenant" somehow sum up the movie and my relationship to it: the cherish memory of it has departed. At one point Sarah, (the main character) observes that one should not see again the people we have loved , and the same might apply to this movie.

This is my lifetime favorite movie too, replacing its predecessor of early years, IF. I don't know how many times I've seen it, more than 20. I like the music, the evolution of film portrayed in the techniques used, the love at first sight but you need to know the history to understand why it happens theme, the fact that the movie he's making in the movie is the movie you're seeing, the intricacy, the detail, the irreverence. The last scene through the airplane window when he notices she takes the mythical extra lump of sugar always makes me cry. I rarely see this film around in video stores anymore. I want to see it again. Haven't seen it in maybe a decade.