Max mon amour

Seen with an audience in a theater, Max Mon Amour can be a surprising and satisfying parable. When a womanizing diplomat (Anthony Higgins) realizes that his wife (Charlotte Rampling) may be having an affair, he's shocked, then disgusted that this lover is in fact a full-grown chimpanzee. At first, it appears that Rampling may be using the simian to exact emotional revenge on his wife; then, it seems that a special kind of love might be in play - which inflames his jealousy to the point of violence.

Nagisa Oshima frames the film as an offbeat comedy, but it's hard to ignore ignore its themes, which include the blindness of love, questioning to what degree we're human or animal. To the very last scenes, it's difficult to predict that will happen to the chimp or the strange romance. It's presented almost entirely without music, and filmed in French and English - as if to say the language spoken here is beyond words, speaking the language of the heart.

Of particular note is the rendering of the chimp, which is presented so realistically that you almost believe it's real. Charlotte Rampling is enigmatic and sensual as Max's "lover."

This is a humorously brilliant little film from renown Japanese director Nagisha Oshima with dialogue which flows between French and English and a storyline all about Zoophilia. Nicely compliments the newly released R-100. They would make a nice double feature together.

The film follows a French diplomat who suspects his wife is having an affair, after he finds out she has been secretly renting a second apartment from a private investigator he had hired.

When he goes to investigate for himself, he walks in on his wife....naked...in bed with a Chimpanzee.

Flabbergasted by the whole thing, he doesn't know what to think.

But, out of sheer curiosity, he accepts his wife's kinky fetish...and even asks her to bring Max (the chimp, which is more likely some dude in a chimp costume...or a puppet) to come and live with them and their son.

The most awkward and hilarious scene occurs when the couple has friends over for dinner- during which they hear Max screaming. Curious themselves, they ask to meet him. But when they bring him out he pretty much molests his human lover in front of their friends.

The film focuses less on the lustful aspects of the human-chimpanzee relationship, though, than it does on the psychological journey which our protagonist is swept through, as he tries to understand his wife's psychological condition...not to mention an attempt to fathom what exactly goes on between them behind closed doors. He needs to know...and it's driving him mad.

The entire spectacle is hilarious, and filled with bestial and zoophilic innuendo. Like when Peter's secretary/mistress set's the Queen up to visit a stud farm. At one point, Peter (the husband) hires a prostitute, and pays her to attempt to get Max to have sex with her...so he can watch (although, as it turns out....she wasn't his type...totally mine though!).

While hilarious from start to finish, I wouldn't exactly qualify this explicitly as a comedy. It's comedic element is more a result of the truly bizarre nature of the thematic content (from the perspective of general normality, if such a thing exists), than it is from a brazen attempt to make you laugh. The jokes require a bit of reflection, at least.

When all is said and done this a truly imaginative and deviant piece of cinema that should be experienced by everyone. It will make you think. It will make you laugh. And it will make you go "WHAT THE F**K!?". What more can you ask for, really? Oshima has nice framing too! 8.5 out for 10.

I watched this film as a part of a film class that I take. For the first time I really liked a Oshima film as I watched it and not only after we talked about it. The story crosses all kinds of lines of what love is and how it can be felt by anybody or anything. All and all a good film to see. Note that for 1986 Rick Bakers effects are the most life-like I have seen of a monkey. Sometimes you even think it is a the real thing

Mainly, this film is about Charlotte Ramplings love for a monkey (a chimpanzee, to be precise), and how her family, especially her husband, deals with it. In fact, upon finding out about his wives affair, Anthony Higgins' character remains surprisingly calm; he even proposes to have the monkey live with them in their house. Maybe he wants to prevent Rampling from leaving him; or he does so since he has an affair himself; or it is his attempt to be "open minded" even in front of an utmost unusual matter. But problems soon up: Not only does the maid (young Victoria Abril!) respond negative to the new guest; the couples friends slowly find up about the hidden secret and try to "help" by drawing in psychologist, zoologists, and so forth. Then, suddenly, Max, the monkey is gone... Sounds weird? It is. All over the film, one is reminded of some of Luis Bunuels work. In one particular scene, Higgins – eager to find if Rampling and Max do indeed share sexual experiences – pays a prostitute to "visit" Max, about which she has no problems (other than Max!). One could read it as a commentary about, once again, the lifestyle of the Bourgeoisie and the boredom that drives them, but in fact all of the characters are likable and there's not hint of criticism on social inequalities. It's filmed in a "children film style" way, yet in its contents designed exclusively for adults. It makes for an enjoyable reception, but once you've seen it, it's not something you want to watch it all too soon, since "Max mon Amour" is basically attractive for the unpredictable unfolding of the story.

The summary on IMDb says "A French wife takes a zoo chimp named Max to be her lover" and this sounds so awful and tasteless that I just had to give it a quick look! So is it distasteful, gross and without merit or is it a comedy or film with something to say?

In this French-English language film, Peter suspects his wife Margaret might be having an affair. So, he hires a detective to follow her and the detective finds she does have a lover...a chimp! Instead of getting a divorce, the very open-minded husband invites her to bring her lover home to live with them!

The most important thing you need to know about this film is that it is NOT explicit or pornographic--at least when it comes to the chimp. Additionally, it's quite the absurdist film because everyone plays it straight and the couple are so chill about the whole bestiality angle...as are many of their friends. This is typical of many of the writer/director Nagisa Ôshima's films. The overall effect is bizarre to say the least but at least the acting is good. NOT a film for everyone...in fact, not a film for MOST people. Mostly because there isn't a lot of meaning behind all this...it's just absurd for the sake of absurdity and isn't actually that entertaining! More one for folks with serious head injuries and unnatural affection for animals! Or, for folks what watch it on a dare!

By the way, the 'chimp' in this movie is VERY obviously some guy in a crappy chimp costume. Also, if some woman was inclined to have a bestial relationship with a chimp, it wouldn't be especially satisfying. Chimp sex routinely lasts less than 5 seconds and the whole beating the woman to death because they are vicious would be a real turn off as well! Also, the detective is played by the legendary French comedy film director and actor, Pierre Étaix.