Slogan

Aesthetics, purposeful provocations, young love, passion, possessiveness. it's an intimate movie, worth watching

I would say this tale of a May-December romance between a married frog-like advertisement producer/director (Serg Gainsbourg) and a naive but stunning British beauty (Jane Birkin) is pretty far-fetched,that is if life hadn't imitated art and the two actors hadn't become a real-life item. In fact, out of this unholy union was born the talented French actress Charlotte Gainsbourg--and one of the few actresses I find sexier than the younger Gainsbourg is her mother Jane Birkin, who I could quite happily watch clipping her toe-nails for 90 minutes.

This isn't really much of a movie beyond the two leads. But Birkin does a lot more than clip her toe-nails--she gives a very good performance as a breath-takingly beautiful but mentally unstable young woman. And Gainsbourg, despite looking like "Mr. Bean", has genuine charisma, kind of like a Gallic version of Humphrey Bogart (and he sure sucks down the cigarettes like Bogie). It's also pretty neat the way the movie incorporates the Gainsboug character's goofy TV ads into the story of their relationship, thus giving a kind of pop-art sensibilty to the whole thing. Yes, the movie is a little fluffy and shallow. It's not exactly "La Dolce Vida", but it does have the typical 60's European sensibilty. It's not great, but worth seeing perhaps if you enjoy the films of that era.

This film is only tolerable in short doses. The editing makes the film feel like a series of TV commercials. That might've been the intention but it doesn't make this a good film. Birkin was attractive, but her acting is as bad as her French was when the film was made. And Gainbourg is clearly playing himself (arrogant womaniser), which some people seem to like about him, but which does nothing for me. The story seems strangely prophetic... foreshadowing the end of their (Birkin and Gainsbourg's) relationship just as it was beginning. But even the historical context doesn't make this a film worth watching.

Serge Gainsbourg fans will have the pleasure to watch the movie during which one HE and Jane Birkin felt in love (in real).

It's quite a good kitch movie anyway, especially cause of the very funny TV adds the hero shoots... and of course thanks to Serge Gainsbourg's Music.

Gainsbourg and Birkin were actually quasi believable together, and the look of the film is 1000% late 60's "European" cinema. Nothing profound, but serviceable acting, decent production values, OK direction from Pierre Grimblat. Gainsbourg was not exactly a retiring sort of guy, to judge from the self-like character he plays in this film. His signature song of the era should have been titled "Je m'aime". Birkin had the ability to do ugly or beautiful, probably a source of her success as a model and sometime actress. I doubt that Birkin and Gainsbourg split up in the manner shown in the movie, but I don't know. "Slogan" is end of the decade mood music, which at the same time serves as a transition to the 70's. You can see where the look of things is headed in fashion, music, and popular culture generally from watching this movie, apparently a "lost film" for about 40 years.