L'étudiante et Monsieur Henri

Another french feel-good comedy, once more with two outsiders helping each other getting on with life. Though a bit formulaic, this is a good one - entertaining, funny, well paced and with some feeling AND even an "edgy" or slightly unexpected ending (at least for a feel-good comedy, that is). First landlord and lodger, the grumpy old widower Henri, and the nice but shrewd and stubborn student, Constance, soon become a bit more invested than each of them planned to.

The high points are the three main actors (Henri - he gets most laughs; Constance; and Henri's 40ish son, Paul, who initiated the whole lodging scheme so his father is not all alone). Other characters (among them Paul's wife) get rather shortchanged. The movie is based on a stage play, so the dialogue is snappy and very funny; the downside is that the whole thing is not very cinematic - I guess it wouldn't lose much on a home screen. But I recommend seeing this with a weekend crowd in the theater, always a nice experience with those comedies!

I watched like more than 300 movies until now , but never felt the urge to writte a review like in this moment. This movie it s not about like a '3 steps to pursue succes' movie, it s about the pain of struggling that makes u accept the fail in order to grow up succesful. Constance showed everyone that we must suffer before being proud of ourself, her acting was so smooth like it s not a simple role, she just made me feel like she truly accepted the fail by knowing that one day everyting will be fine. Congrats for creating such a strong carachter like Constance , the kindness in her smile while she knew her life it s far from being perfect , the patience she shows in every second it s incredible. The thing is, u never know how life it s gonna surprise you, just let it be, stop pretending everything it s fine when it s not, just take everything as it is and hope for the better.

A young woman coming of age. Finding one's direction in life. A man who has given up on life. A couple trying to preserve theirs. This is a film about relationships, and while considerably predictable is still well-done. From directing to camera work, sound and acting, everything is neatly packaged. It is a fairly basic story but enjoyable to watch. If one does not go in expecting Oscar-winning material and instead simply wishes for a good story, this will work. It is not perfect, but few films are. It achieves what it set out to achieve.

The plot can be a bit tropey, but it is enjoyable nonetheless. It has a few cringe-worthy moments, but they are quickly forgotten as the story progresses, because overall it is a pleasant watch...a story about found families and young people finding their dreams and learning to believe in themselves. I found it uplifting and entertaining enough, not a masterpiece but worth the watch.

I ask myself time and again... how do the French do this? They have a superb knack for taking a very simple story and turning it, without sentiment, into a beautiful, moving, intelligent and uplifting experience.

This is another such gem. Beautifully acted by all players, a simple story of a girl who always 'fails' is turned into a story about how we all are... just humans who are trying to find our way. And sometimes it takes a stranger to see who we really are. Definitely one for parents who might need to put on their thinking caps.

Highly recommended. Delightful.