Masquerade - Ladri d'amore

Pierre Niney is excellent here in this crook gigolo role and Isabelle Adjani more than convincing in the wealthy old maid in love with this gigolo who takes advantage of her and also despises her. Excellent cast, including François Cluzet as the sucker, the patsy. The story telling using a smart editing is not that new, but still efficient to keep the audiences glued to this story taking place on the French Riviera, paradise of superficiality, hypocrisy, where very wealthy people get bored, wealthy dream to get wealthier, and the less wealthy envy those wealthier than them.... Light hearted drama without being a comedy but a true and accurate portrait of human condition. Not a masterpiece but worth viewing.

Very stylish, flawlessly acted (particularly loved François Cluzet), intricate yet realistic and not overly dramatic.

I disagree with it being characterised as satire in another review - this is subtle (or not so much) psychological drama from different viewpoints, which suffers only from its multidimensionality. Towards the end of the film it was difficult for me to keep track of the whole intrigue; nevertheless, it is a deep character study, without the scrutiny which would make it satirical.

The female characters are in their core earthy and sane, despite the ostensible drama; the males are unstable. This may be setting the record straight; I was in fact surprised the author is male.

The cinematography is lavish and pleasant.

I went to this movie on a whim cause I had nothing better to do. I didn't expect much going into it, but I had a great time.

The plot feels familiar but I was never bored or obviously predicting in my mind what was about to happen.

All of the actors did a great job in this movie, there was not one bad performance that stood out to me.

Throughout the movie I was continuously gripped by the story and laughing audibly.

The pace of the movie is amazing as well, there was never a dull moment where I felt like I could run to the bathroom to pee without missing something interesting.

The cinematography was very satisfying as well.

All in all this movie is very enjoyable, but dont expect to see something life-changing. Recommend checking it out!

Mascarade is a 2022 French film written and directed by Nicolas Bedos. The film stars Pierre Niney, Isabelle Adjani, François Cluzet, Marine Vacth, Emmanuelle Devos, Laura Morante, Charles Berling, James Wilby, Nicolas Briançon, Christiane Millet, Bruno Raffaelli, Philippe Uchan, and Daniel Hanssens.

The film follows Adrien (Niney), an attractive dancer whose career was shattered by a motorcycle accident. He squanders his youth in idleness, living off the largesse of older women. His life changes when he meets Margot (Vacth), a beautiful and manipulative woman who lives off scams and romantic entanglements. Together, they fantasize about a better life and set up a diabolical scheme, an emotional masquerade.

**Masquerade** is a stylish and well-acted film that is both funny and thought-provoking. Bedos's direction is sharp and confident, and he brings out the best in his cast. Niney and Vacth are both excellent, and they have great chemistry together. The supporting cast is also very good, with standout performances from Adjani, Cluzet, and Devos.

The film's biggest strength is its script. Bedos has written a clever and witty story that is full of surprises. The film is also surprisingly touching, and it explores some complex themes about love, deception, and identity.

However, the film is not without its flaws. The pacing can be a bit slow at times, and the film's ending is a bit too ambiguous for some tastes. Overall, though, **Masquerade** is a well-made and enjoyable film that is sure to please fans of French cinema.

No pun intended - the individuals here may be masking their true identity for some of the other characters involved, but we as viewers know them ... and I would assume most will not find much endearing or appealing ... which obviously is a problem if you do not have likeable characters ... rather the opposite to be honest.

The main female actress is super beautiful, but also a lot of trouble .. on the other hand, the love interest is not much better ... even if he seems to be naive and good (morally speaking) in the beginning ... now talking of her looks, there is nudity, there are sexual situations, but do not watch this, if that is what you are after. Even if there are quite a lot of "love making" it is (mostly) short and more of the movie showing us that they are crazy for each other ... or just try to get something from whomever they lay with and next to .. just saying - so you can do a movie, without really going into lengths in that respect.

The mystery is not really one I'd say ... but the actors really try their best to sell it to us. In different news and because I like numbers, this is review number 11102 ... Maxxine was 11100 - as in third part of the trilogy ... a nice little thing by the way ... and the kinds of kindness gets the "weird" number 11101 ... probably there is a binary meaning to that too ... as inconsequential as this all may sound ... as much as you probably will care about the destiny and fate of the characters in the movie ...