Romantic comedies are predicated upon fantasy, a fact that French filmmaker Sophie Lellouche certainly knows. In her feature debut, 13 years after short Dieu, que la nature est bien faite!, the Parisian native calls upon the magic and mystery inherent in affectionate cinematic encounters, with help from her favourite film director.
That Woody Allen factors into Lellouche’s narrative is far from surprising given her film’s title. However, his involvement in the homage-style effort, as well as his influence upon the events that unravel, is less expected – as is the method of execution. Lellouche may take her cues from the revered auteur and centres her story on his presence, but not in the flesh. The beloved helmer lingers as a poster on the wall of her eccentric protagonist’s bedroom, instead.
Alice (Alice Taglioni, The Prey) discovered Allen as a teenager, adopting him as her metaphorical mentor. Through his films and via conversations held in her head, she seeks his guidance, using his assumed philosophies as a template to live by. Now a single 30-something pharmacist taking over her father’s (Michel Aumont, La clinique de l’amour!) store, she is urged by her parents to settle down with kindly security expert Victor (Patrick Bruel, Un Secret). Alas, any new romance is overshadowed by Allen, Alice’s figurative true love.
With frivolity driving the action – including a comedic subplot involving Alice’s older sister Hélène’s (Marine Delterme, Trésor) subversion of her youthful affections for Pierre (Louis-Do de Lencquesaing, Elles), and the decades of sibling and marital disharmony that results – Lellouche keeps proceedings as light and frothy as possible. And brief too, with little time in the 77-minute feature wasted in the pursuit of a poignant, passionate and pithy romantic comedy.
In fact, the economical effort uses its modest means to its advantage, boasting precise pacing not commonly associated with the genre. Such brevity not only allows the fantastical elements to shine, but ensures the use of cliché as an act of subversion remains clever rather than devolving to gimmickry. Only the performances waver in effectiveness, despite winning chemistry between the two lead characters. Yet, the varied outcome not only befits the slight, sweet story, but its inspiration – for what has Allen’s seven-decade career bestowed upon audiences if not an imperfect combination of the surreal and the sublime?
Rating: 3 ½ stars out of 5
Paris-Manhattan
Director: Sophie Lellouche
France, 2012, 77 min
In cinemas December 13
Distributor: Palace
Rated PG
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