Attractive looking romance fails to fully engage, despite glorious landscapes, Parisian backdrops and a glamorous A-list cast including a memorable performance by an enchanting Joan Fontaine. Her apparently fading allure is causing her husband Luc (Brazzi) to philander, his attentions straying to the nubile Parisian college student Dominique (Carere). To add to the evolving interlude, Brazzi is Bertrand's (Dillman) uncle, who in turn is enamoured by Dominique, chasing her tail all over Paris in spite of her sometimes erratic and distant behaviour (although Bertrand himself might be a little overbearing and loose with the vermouth).
At the intermission, Johnny Mathis steps up to croon the title tune, and thus escalates Luc's affections for a playful Dominique, partially inebriated on the grape juice. Fontaine seems to suspect Luc may be straying, displaying some subtle gestures, her wisdom laboured over years of Luc's infidelity. The scene in which Fontaine emasculates Brazzi for his adultery, and the one in which she coolly chides Carere's naivety are among the film's dramatic highlights. In essence, Fontaine steals this picture with her mature, dignified portrayal of a woman scorned.
Carere on the other hand is lukewarm, the nuances of her character aren't conveyed in her stilted performance; Brazzi, at the opposite extreme, lays it on too thick, like some hormonal Latin lover crying rivers of guilt and remorse as he laments the mutual attraction as some kind of perverse affliction of which he can't be cured. Dillman, in his debut picture, offers some character depth, but ends up merely a tragic cuckold and bystander in this colourful melodrama. The remainder of the supporting cast (Franz, Locke and Livingston) are reliable if largely uninvolved.
Next to Fontaine, the French Riviera is the most attractive feature - the sets, costumes, colour and sound are all assets, but the dramatic tone never seems to sustain the right pitch. Tepid and a little overlong if however you still revere Fontaine, or pine for the Paris lifestyle, this glossy magazine cover might still be worth the time.
