Janis & John

The influence of American culture on French media is huge.Most of the French people are passionate about English books,cinema and music.This is because of the fact that American troops were stationed in France on many occasions and their presence has left an indelible mark on the psyche of most of the French people who are not satisfied with what is produced in their country in the fields of arts and culture.This is the reason why since a long time Hollywood cinema is able to dominate cinema culture all over France.Janis and John is a good example of domination of Anglo Saxon culture over French culture.All credit must go to director Samuel Benchetrit for making a film about how French people view two of the most popular musical legends.Janis and John is an intelligent film as it has its own fair share of laughs.It has not been able to become a cult film despite the fact that it was one of the last films in which Marie Trintignant played a leading role before her untimely death.One of the most troublesome aspect of this film is the lack of good music whether in the form of some good songs or some good background score.The positive aspect of this film is the impeccable acting from versatile actors such as Jean Louis Trintignant,Sergi Lopez and François Cluzet.

The first time I watched this movie, I thought it was a good surprise as I'd never heard about it before: a funny comedy, with good actors and a creative director. But something in that film attracted me to watch it again (what I rarely do) and I really felt in love with it. Sergi Lopez, Francois Cluzet and Marie Trintigant are amazing: in an absurd situation, with extreme characters (especially Cluzet), they are more than credible. Sergi Lopez performance is unique: a subtle equilibrium between burlesque and tragedy.

The text is extremely well written and precise. Technically, the movie is very creative (I'm waiting for the next Benchetrit work).

Each time I see this movie, I love it more. rating: 10/10 as it is a cult movie to me

"Janis et John" begins with kind of a criticism of the modern life, and ends with such a parabola about love and loneliness. But that only takes us 10 or 15 minutes… in between we got a not very brilliant comedy, with an absurd plot, and such ridiculous dialogs ("¿In which band did Lennon play? Was it the Stones?"). A great soundtrack and a bunch of nice actors. There's nothing else to tell about one of the last works of Marie Trintignant (before his boyfriend beat her to death). Maybe "Janis et john" is not the best epitaph for an actress, but it definitely shows the talent of Marie.

My rate: 5/10

i happened to be in Paris for the opening night. i accidentally made it in to the showing by chance, i knew someone who knew someone, etc. the Joplin family was in attendance. also the family of Marie Trintignant who had just passed away soon before the showing of this. it was all very intense. i don't speak french much and since we were watching this in France there were no subtitles for me to read. even with all that, i could definitely follow the story well even without the words. i actually loved it. later i was able to get a script and a working copy subtitled and then i truly liked it even more. i wish it was out there available for us to see... it's a classic.

Of course, it's just impossible to see this movie without thinking about Marie Trintignant's death and for some sequences (like when Sergi Lopez is shouting at her), it's really hard and sad. But,this movie deserve to be seen also for what it is: a good comedy, funny, pretty original with a lot of excellent musical moments. Even Christophe Lambert is brilliant in it, playing an ex-LSD addict. So, if you like Janis Joplin, if you like to laugh and if you want to see how beautiful, gifted and touching Marie was, just see this film. Bye Marie.