Memorable, crazy movie

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

This might be an ironic film whose story is meant to portray what someone not in the film business thinks an "artistic" director is like and how they 'create' a movie. Perhaps the viewer is meant to supply something not included in the story or even hinted at: a director who is quite wealthy and is doing a vanity production which would allow the non-professionalism of it all. Or............. a wealthy parent or grandparent subsidizing the movie. (How else to explain a full professional and probable union crew being sent off the set (tick-tock, ching- ching) while the auteur figures things out. The director, obviously innocent of storyboarding or videoing important scenes between the two leading players in something called pre-production rehearsal, becomes "creative" instead of professional and that all-purpose, omniscient smile of hers, after seeing it for awhile, makes one think of a mad person, totally self-involved. Of course, some backer in real life did sign the check so one is left in wondering how Ms. Breillant was able to sell this script. "This might be an ironic film whose story, etc.", I said at the top of this review. No, it isn't and oh the overwhelming self-indulgence of it all!

This is only the second Breillat film that I've seen and I'm wondering which star from the heavens she dropped down from. What film has ever captured the filmmaking process so perfectly - maybe Truffaut's "Day for Night," or Tom Decillo's "Living In Oblivion?" Not better but as well. What film has ever spoken so truthfully about sex? None, simply none. Who has combined cinema and sexual discourse like this? Nobody. Not Bergman, not Allen, not even Bertolucci. Maybe Lina Wurtmuller to some degree. The first filmmaker was a woman - Alice Guy-Blaché The last filmmaker is a woman - Catherine Breillat. Performances are outstanding. Direction is outstanding.

Pretty darn good for a French film. I have not seen any of Catherine Breillat's previous films, and so have no opinions about this compared to her previous work. French cinema usually sticks to the ultimately arty films, and leaves the shoot-em-ups and star vehicles to Hollywood. That is probably a good business strategy, as no other nation's film industry will likely have the resources to compete on those sorts of projects. Films about film-making are often a bore, as it has little resonance for people not in the business. But this one held my interest much more than I thought it would. In spite of the title, (oddly in English) it really isn't much of a comedy, in spite of a few droll moments. I've only seen a few of Anne Parillaud's films, but she shows a generous amount of talent and range, from the action/psychological drama of "La Femme Nikita" to the wry comedy of "Innocent Blood". This film also extends her range as she plays a more or less ordinary woman, yet is still compelling on the screen. Kudos also to Roxane Mesquida, with whom I was unfamiliar. She plays a very inexpressive actress for most of the film, whose talent is drawn out at the end. If you don't HAVE to have car chases and explosions to be entertained, check this one out.

All of us, and certainly most filmmakers are trapped in small worlds. But it must be hell to be trapped in one that society recognizes as such. Breillat makes sometimes sensitive movies, all from within this tight shell, all with the same screams.But this one is different, a whole new tone. This time she follows a French model for films that are essays: she makes a film about a film that is an essay on sex. It works because such things are talk about movies and the portrayal of life in movies.It works because we don't have to relate to the poor girl in question, instead the filmmaker who is struggling with the representation.Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.