Prête-moi ta main

There wasn't a dry eye amongst the audience yesterday afternoon after I left the cinema, having seen this gem of a film in a sold-out house as part of this year's Hamburg Film Festival. And the tears shed were all of laughter. This film was hilarious, there's no other way of saying this. There wasn't one boring bit in it, I laughed right through it and with me everyone else of us three hundred lovers of French cinéma.

Alain Chabat was absolutely terrific. A great clown if needs be and serious if the situation calls for it. The performance was of course completely over the top, but this was exactly what the story needed and what made it work so well. Equally great was Charlotte Gainsbourg who I love to see a lot, and the mother was also a very strong performance. The sisters could have been a bit more detailed in character script-wise, but apart from that there is nothing to moan about. I had a great afternoon seeing this film while Hamburg was drowning in rain outside, and I wish films like this from France would get a regular release in Germany. But the distributors is this country don't seem to understand that the French make good films. I at least can't wait to find a DVD which offers subtitles (Hello Australia? Please?) because that film I need at home to watch several more times!

In Paris, the forty-three year-old Luis "Pipou" Costa (Alain Chabat) is a immature bachelor and successful creator of perfumes and does not have any intention to get married. However, his oppressive family that is ruled by six women - his mother Geneviève Costa (Bernadette Lafont) and his sisters Catherine (Véronique Barrault), Axelle (Marie-Armelle Deguy), Carole (Katia Lewkowicz), Maxine (Louise Monot)and Marie (Luce Mouchel) decide that Luis shall get married and they try to find a wife for him among their friends.

When Luis is having lunch with his best friend Pierre-Yves (Grégoire Oestermann), he learns that his regular waitress is depressed and not working because her fiancé left her a couple of days before their wedding. Luis plots a scheme to hire a woman to pose as his fiancée and to leave him on the day of their marriage in order that his family does not bother him anymore. He hires Pierre's sister Emmanuelle "Emma" (Charlotte Gainsbourg), who is trying to adopt a child from Brazil, to be his bride-to-be and to leave him at the altar on the day of their wedding. However his plan fails since his family loves Emma and when she does not show up to marry him, his mother has to go to the hospital and his sisters blame him. Now Luis hires Emma again to act like a bitch to make his family hate her. Meanwhile Luis falls in love with Emma and when his plan works and Emma leaves him, he misses her. Would it be too late for him to declare his love for Emma?

"Prête-moi ta main" is a delightful romantic comedy with an entertaining story, funny situations and very well acted. The charming, elegant and beautiful Charlotte Gainsbourg is one of my favorite actresses and I loved to see her in a light movie after several Lars von Triers features. The characters are interesting and we can see the stingy guy, the family that likes to snoop and interfere in the life of the members and an independent woman that is the opposite of the other women. In the end, "Prête-moi ta main" is a French comedy that will make your day (or night) better. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Noiva Perfeita" ("The Perfect Bride")

I love love. I'm a sucker for romantic comedies and as of late, I've been on a foreign film binge. Enter stage left: I Do. While undeniably predictable, the film has its charms and throws in some obstacles I didn't expect and found myself smiling as I watched it unfold.

However, my main concern was the lack of chemistry between Luis and Emma. There were no looks of intrigue, scarcely any playful banter between the two - for the most part, their interaction seemed to be simply what Luis intended it to be - a business interaction. Perhaps I'm terribly picky, but I found the leap between the conspirers' platonic relationship to romance to be a sudden leap rather than one with a bit of a build up. In that case alone, I was mildly disappointed.

But with that aspect aside, the actors do do a good job with the script they're given. Luis's family, although somewhat irritating, are simultaneously charming and overbearing and I warmed up to them in the end. I really think the men need a bit more screen time as they were hardly in it and my favorite scene (the scene with the M6) happened to be one of their few. The wedding comes too quickly for my taste, but with a few more scenes to build character relationships, this film would've been a knock out. So not bad, but not exactly the best film either.

Alain Chabat claims this movie as his original idea but the theme of reluctant lovers who finally get it together is as old, if not older, than Shakespeare.

Chabat is a "vieux garcon", happily single and not wanting any member of the opposite sex to disturb his life. He has a problem, 5 sisters and a matriarchal mum - the G7 - who decide he should be married. Enter the delightful, charming Charlotte Gainsbourg and what should be a simple plan. Charlotte has to pose as Chabat's girlfriend and then simply not turn up on the day of the wedding. No more talk of marriage from the G7. Of course the best laid plans have a habit of spiralling out of control.

There are very strong supporting roles from Lafont as the mother and Osterman as the tight-fisted brother of Gainsbourg.

There are some fantastic scenes as first Charlotte has to charm, then revolt the family. French farce with an English.

From the opening shots of the lead actor, we are given a early view on how so many mens lives are run by the women in them, and the humour that comes thru with all that goes on in the day to day of 'normal' life.

Eric Lartigau, the director picks up on how so many European men feel that they are in complete control of their lives, yet without the help/support of the women around them cannot seem to make things work. The use of facial image throughout the film is superb, and his clever positioning of the senior member of the family (mother) is spot on.

While there are more than enough laughs in the movie, it still deals with single parents/adoption and the strength of family in society. Truly rewarding to watch, and again one that only the French seam capable to make.

So far one of the best 50 or so Films I have seen this year, and well worth a five start rating. I look forward to adding this one to the DVD collection when it is released and highly recommend it to all ages.