Marius e Jeannette

Maybe, the simplicity is the main virtue of this film mixing nostalgia, slices of ordinary lives, fair humor, serious problems, motherhood, romance, loneliness, addictions and honest perspectives about neighbors, their common existence, religion, sexual life, boyfriends and dreams of children, God and lies.

Short, a film for love it.

For acting, dialogues, atmosphere, narrator voice and something profound moving, escaping by definitions.

This film is how life should be portrayed. Those raised on a diet of Hollywood love stories where everyone has a new car, large house and unfeasibly white teeth will find this slice of Gallic realism a bit overpowering. Those of us who prefer our cinema with a bit of bite can appreciate the predicament the two leading characters are in and we can rally for them. A honest heartwarming film that moves at a slow pace (but then who meets a girl, falls in love, befriends her children and lives happily ever after in 97 minutes. I was lucky enough to buy this as a withdrawn VHS from my local library and I prize it as one of the 'top drawer' films in my film collection.

This movie kind of reminded me of a cross between "Life is Sweet" (a humorous examination of the lower-middle class), "The Bridges of Madison County" (an examination of how middle aged people actually continue to have libidos and emotions), and a random French romantic love farce.

The director tries to give this film a political slant, showing the perils of capitalism in favor of socialism, and dedicates this film "to all of the workers of the world." Ignore it. Focus instead on the characters, most of whom are people much like people you have met in your life, with French sensibilities. The love story between the main characters is basically an excuse to get to know this small community of neighbors and show how they interact.

This is not one of the great films of all time, but I enjoyed it. It was a pleasant way to spend a little under two hours.

A rather tender and poignant love story, about Jeannette who is an outspoken woman, and looses her job as a cashier because she is apt to speak her mind once too often. She meets up with the taciturn Marius. They both have painful pasts to deal with. Guediguian creates a finely judged low-key film from this story, weaving in some nice touches about the small community of friends from the industrial area where Jeannette lives. Guediguian's strong left-of-centre politics intrude into the narrative rather crudely at times, but not enough to spoil the film.

Recommended.

The love between Marius and Jeannette is sweet. Perhaps a film that would relate more with viewers 40+, this film still has some connection with most of the other age groups. I had to study this in school and it's funny how it relates to such issues as: • Belonging versus alienation • Coping with change • Tolerance of difference This film really works on two levels: entertainment and education. The story initially focuses on Jeannette and her family, but soon everyone in her neighbourhood gets involved in the storyline. Each character experiences love, pain, acceptance and changes. This film predominantly relies on its actors. All the actors really get into their roles, and it does show that they are having plenty of fun. Simply put, this film is simple and lovely.