Having seen Sur mes levres and liked it a lot, and having read reviews of this one that made it sound even better, I had high expectations.
Alas, my initial disappointment with the opening scenes was confirmed as the film went on. I couldn't believe a single character except the father's mistress, Christine, played by Emmanuelle Devos, who made the film live for the two brief scenes in which she appeared. The first of those was quite early on, and I thought that the film was going to pull itself together and turn into something really good; but she disappeared then until another short scene quite close to the end.
I found Romain Duris' performance tedious. He was not bad at the gangster bits, I suppose; but as a classical pianist, he was embarrassing to watch. To be fair, the character was just not credible -- you can't think of becoming a concert pianist if you are 28 years old and haven't practised for 10 years -- but all the swaying and drooping and bellows of anguish were so ridiculous that at times I had difficulty continuing to watch.
I have no idea what point the director thought he was trying to make, and I don't think he had much of an idea either. Was he showing that it was possible to change, or that it was not?
A complete waste of time, unfortunately. I just wish there were more films around with Emanuelle Devos. For an awkward woman with no real beauty, she has a presence and a power of attraction that are hard to withstand.
Alas, my initial disappointment with the opening scenes was confirmed as the film went on. I couldn't believe a single character except the father's mistress, Christine, played by Emmanuelle Devos, who made the film live for the two brief scenes in which she appeared. The first of those was quite early on, and I thought that the film was going to pull itself together and turn into something really good; but she disappeared then until another short scene quite close to the end.
I found Romain Duris' performance tedious. He was not bad at the gangster bits, I suppose; but as a classical pianist, he was embarrassing to watch. To be fair, the character was just not credible -- you can't think of becoming a concert pianist if you are 28 years old and haven't practised for 10 years -- but all the swaying and drooping and bellows of anguish were so ridiculous that at times I had difficulty continuing to watch.
I have no idea what point the director thought he was trying to make, and I don't think he had much of an idea either. Was he showing that it was possible to change, or that it was not?
A complete waste of time, unfortunately. I just wish there were more films around with Emanuelle Devos. For an awkward woman with no real beauty, she has a presence and a power of attraction that are hard to withstand.