Le libertin

A must for those who are not fully foolish to be Hollywoodish!

The reason to pass my comments on this nice French movie was the vote on 05/18/00 equal to 4,7... Really, some IMDb customers miss great atmosphere of the comedy and superb play of the cast.

I definitely want everybody, who never saw charming Vincent Perez, to catch him and the rest in this artificial picture from the life of 18th century philosopher Denis Diderot. Never heard that he was so romantic to walk nude during the creation of his encyclopaedia, never imagined that this didactic tutor (Diderot at the age of 60s was a pen friend of Russian tzarina Ekaterina the Great, when she was 30) was so light. Seems that duet of Perez and Fanny Ardant has a personal sound (just to recall that Vincent dated Jacqueline Bisset).

Movie was shown at Russian satellite channel (NTV+) before it obtained great success in cinemas. Really Russians have better taste than 24 voters rated it from 1 to 6. Please, wipe such bad results and watch Le Libertin again!

Played as farce, this quasi-realist setup of Diderot and friends running a semi-secret printing press for his "scandalous" encyclopaedia is great fun.

One could really see this as a french equivalent to a "Carry On.." film, as it relies more on the ensemble casting than on one major player and, for the most part, everyone does their bit. Absurdist fans will love the "pig organ" and the general puncturing of pomposity all round.

Perez himself seems admirably unfazed by long sequences of full-frontal nudity and is supported more briefly by some of the female cast (notably Vahina Giocante) although it's a long way from being a "sex comedy" - just rude.

This is a wonderful film. It's a shame it is so difficult to see here in the US. I had to go to great lengths to first obtain a PAL copy from France that has no English subtitles, download a subtitle file online, and then use 3 different programs to rip the DVD, process the video and add subtitles, and then burn it to a DVD I could watch on my TV. But it was worth it. It is fun satire on morals and religion that reminded me a bit of the even more wonderful SIRENS. Given the subject matter and frequent full-frontal nudity both male and female, it is no wonder it has had little or no exposure (no pun intended) here in the puritanical USA. I have to admit, I was mostly interested in this film because of Audrey Tautou. Her screen time is very short, but for about half that time she is nude...and a glorious sight it is too. But I'm glad it turned out to have so much more going for it. Highly recommended... if you can understand French or have the ability to make your own subtitles.

It is quite important to remember when watching comedies that humor is a very personal thing.

If you are offended by vulgarity; if you hate Benny Hill, and can't see the fun of Barbara Windsor's bikini popping off; and think that concept that breasts have nipples is outrageous; if you think broad humor is a pointless waste of time then this really is not the film for you.

If you thought that France = sophistication, therefore this must be high-brow: then I simply suggest that you get out a bit more.

But if you had read the packet before you watched it you would already know this.

This film is a 'diversion'. A farce. An enjoyment. Treat it as such and you'll be rewarded.

A French film set in France in 1789 when the encyclopedia was banned. This was a historical comedy filled with sex, religion and frontal nudity! It was about a man named Denis Diderot (Vincent Perez) who was the creator of the encyclopedia. His wife, Madame Diderot (Francoise Lepine) and his daughter Angelique Diderot (Vahina Giocante). And Audrey Tautou starred as Julie d'Holbach.

This movie was filled with extremely funny moments, the funniest ones were; the "Pig Organ", they were pulled by their tails to create a melody. I was impressed with that. Next, was when Diderot got a boner when seeing Madame Therbouche (Fanny Ardant) while she was painting a portrait of him naked. " Growing start of steadfastness". A cute scene with Baronne d'Holbach (Josiane Balasko) walking her pet pig on a leash and it was dressed up. And lastly, an Adam and Eve scene with Mr Diderot chasing his wife around the garden naked with the Baroness and Le cardinal (Michel Sarrault), the very dramatic one watching.And then, the Cardinal sniffed table salts and the Baroness says:" I feel queasy! I need fresh air!" HA!HA!HA!

There was a terrible scene with the Baroness's pig cooked up as a lunch and she replaced her pig a canary. SHAME! There were also some LOVELY things to see in this film like, the Turkish baths and messages. Beautiful. And the party thrown for the Cardinal with dance music, fire works and wine. Quite something. And at the end, Diderot FELL IN LOVE WITH MADAME THERBOUCHE!!! Uh-oh!

It's lovely to see, hear and have conversations in French. Fun movie! With dance music!