L'homme de sa vie

This film is so well photographed, produced, acted, scripted, etc., I feel a bit caddish for complaining about any aspect of it.

The photography is beautiful, lush at times, and often original. Much of the story takes place in dreams, or in a dream-like state, and the cinematographer does a good job conveying as much.

The film returns repeatedly to segments of an all night conversation between the two male leads, revealing nothing particularly extraordinary. Their dialog is the kind college kids have when they're talking about The Meaning of It All. But aspects of that discussion are played off against events occurring around them in the days that follow. It's a nice structure, one that lends itself to the dreamy photography.

I think the film could have been truly great if just a bit of the thematic and visual metaphors had been scaled back. This slight excess is noticeable, and that, I think, is a shame. Don't get me wrong--this is so far and away above the quality of most gay cinema it's definitely worth seeing, and thoroughly enjoyable.

I think Netflix has categorized this film as Foreign, rather than as Gay & Lesbian. It's French, so it clearly belongs to the former, but it is also a top tier example of the latter.

I keep forgetting name of this movie and I describe it as the French movie with the two guys talking all night and the sheer drapes flowing in the wind. I found it to be one of the best gay movies ever. It's honest and deeper than most. It's also very French. Which is fine by me. But it won't be for everyone. A couple of years after watching it I choose it again thinking it was something I hadn't seen. A few minutes in I realized I had and watched it all over again.

Filmmakers invest a great deal of creativity and inspiration into their work, so I hesitate to write a negative review, but I'm compelled to make an exception here.

What a pretentious, self-indulgent waste of time. It steadily succumbs to self-conscious artiness, drunk on its own sense of contrived poetry.

It's sumptuously filmed, but ultimately shallow, empty, and a little boring. There's a good story waiting to be told that gets lost in useless side plots, languorous panoramas, and tedious conversations.

There's a germ of a very good idea in the screenplay, but I just don't feel that the writers fully grasped what they were undertaking.

Don't waste your time.

A lovely film about a somewhat-romantic friendship between a straight married man and a gay single guy. An interesting note is that this story was written and directed by a woman, Zabou Breitman. The dynamics between the men, more subtle and conversational than physical, allow us to learn more than if the issue of sex was raised quickly. The romance is not about sexual attraction, but the role people play in he life of the other that bring forth emotions. This is a rich film, combining philosophy with sensuality, whimsy with beauty. While the pace is slow, there are twists along the way, beautiful cinematography, humorous bursts and many believable characters to keep us interested. Well worth viewing.

Summer somewhere in France. A couple and their young son invite family and friends to enjoy a warm rural holiday at their old but comfortable summer house. A neighbor, a middle-aged single man, is invited to join the first night's outdoor party. It is quickly revealed that the man is gay. He and the husband start a tentative friendship. How far will it go?

Beyond the apparently simple plot line, what struck me about this film were the visual aspects. A playful camera delights us with unconventional angles, framing, superpositions and transitions. Combining beautiful cinematography and great editing, the end result is a superb film. The tango music is icing on the cake.