Male fantasy is turned up to 11 in this one. It's a sex farce that I confess to enjoying, despite the silliness and objectification, because dear god it's 1957, Brigitte Bardot is 23, and the film has such a fun French playfulness to it.
As you might guess, the film revolves around Bardot, and she is in so many scenes designed to titillate that it's comical. Let's see, there's the buxom, lusty secretary wearing a tight sweater, the girl sneaking up to a hotel to start an affair with no strings attached, the bride taking off her gown and walking around in lingerie, and the disinterested woman who can be aroused to passion with kisses on the back of the neck. She's also in a low cut red evening dress, trying to seduce another man into an affair by getting down on her hands and knees, later takes a bath, lifting her legs skyward out of the tub, runs around in a towel, and presents breakfast in bed in a shirt and apron. The object of her affections is played by Henri Vidal, and the man she pursues to make him jealous is 58-year-old Charles Boyer. He jets her off to Nice for a swim, so we see her emerging from the sea in a bikini, then dancing seductively with him in a small café.
Bardot is gorgeous and immortalized in this movie, even if it is over-the-top. I might have liked it even more for going all the way in its over-the-top-ness, if that makes any sense. There are countless shots which are just fantastic, including one in front of a set of mirrors, reminiscent of Marilyn Monroe in 'How to Marry a Millionaire". I did like the open acknowledgment of affairs, which is so very French, but how the film points out they have to be conducted in the right way, with sensitivity and decorum, and the jealousy that even then may arise. It's not high art, and it's definitely not politically correct, but ooh la la, this one is a guilty pleasure.
