Amour de Femme
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Movie Reviews of Amour de Femme
Movie Review: Very romantic!
Summary: 5 Stars
The actors were great in this film. There were many moments where the characters displayed their emotions through body language and facial expressions without a lot of dialogue. It's not often that movies of this genre challenge traditional paradigms and I think the movie does a good job of dealing with various issues. Great film!Movie Review: magnifique
Summary: 5 Stars
The story is well done, beautifully portrayed by the 2 leading actresses. I loved the background music, and I thought it added to the sensuality of the film. I could not keep my eyes away from the 2 actresses, one for her sheer beauty, and the other for enigmatic and playful presence. Just beautiful.Movie Review: Finally, a romantic LESBIAN movie !!
Summary: 4 Stars
After a 12 year dry spell, I finally found an lesbian movie that I could REALLY ENJOY!!! (This hasn't happened since, "When Night is Falling.")
Amour de Femme (Love of Women) is about a Parisian women named Jeanne who seems to have it all, namely she is good looking, has a fabulous looking husband, an adorable and loving kid, and a very successful career as an osteopath. The actress who plays Jeanne (the lead character) looks like an amalgamation of Sean Young, Phoebe Cates, Teri Hatcher (brown hair and eyes) and has the amazing ability to appear very different (facial wise) in every shot she's in. I've never seen an actress that has the ability to look different in every shot. The actress who plays Jeanne is about 6 ft. tall and lanky (I LOVE TALL WOMEN! <G>)
The film begins with Jeanne and her hubby David attending a birthday party at a bar in Paris. As soon as they walk in, David quickly abandons his wife to hang out with his buddies, leaving Jeanne to fend for herself. She looks alone and uncomfortable in the packed room and the viewer gets the impression that Jeanne being ditched by her husband is a very common occurrence. However, what next happens will change Jeanne's life forever. As the party progresses, a short female dancer comes out onto a well lighted stage in the bar and starts dancing very provocatively for the audience. She has been hired to entertain the birthday boy and very quickly strips off most of her clothing (besides a fancy bra and panties.) In the meantime, Jeanne is watching the dancer avidly from the shadows - a first with a blank face and moments later a smile appears on her face ... After the show, we see Jeanne aimlessly walking by herself through a crowd of people, looking bored and lonely. When she walks through a festooned entryway of the bar, she immediately feels someone behind her, startling her. She quickly turns around and she sees it's the dancer. From that point on (about 3 minutes into the film) to the end of the movie, Jeanne and Marie can't take their eyes off each other and form a mutual admiration society. The looks shared between these two women are so intense and erotic, that the nap hairs on my neck stand up every time I watch this movie. Jeanne sees Marie as the embodiment of passion, energy, and freedom and we are along for the ride as she explores her new found passion for a Marie. This is one of the first lesbian movies where I've seen desire, tenderness, and caring overtly demonstrated between two women over the course of the entire movie. I also thought that the dialogue in this movie was realistic, romantic, and compelling.
HOWEVER, I want to add that I DO NOT think Amour de Femme is a perfect movie, because it isn't. The music soundtrack of this movie is supremely annoying, distracting, very loud and inappropriate (like a previous reviewer said, it sounds like a soundtrack from a porno movie), especially at the expense of hearing the dialogue between the characters (thank God for subtitles!!) It also cheapens the intense scenes of emotion between the two women. In addition, both the women in this film smoke, and you can tell they both do this in real life by their grayish teeth. I guess they never heard of teeth whitening in France. (I'm picky I know - so sue me!) Additionally, some of the camera work in the film is very mediocre. I was repeatedly distracted when the camera went for a close up shot of an actor when the camera should have panned back so the audience could see both the emotional reactions of the women. There are also several scenes where the viewer can only see a chin or mouth of one of the actresses, and the full face of the other, leaving the reaction of the other actress a complete mystery. I also think the actress who plays Jeanne is MUCH better looking and a MUCH better actor than the female who plays Marie. I dearly wish they would have chosen a better looking and acting actress for her part, instead of one who smirks through most of her scenes. Be that as it may, if you are looking for a romantic LESBIAN film, with realistic dialogue, scenes of intense, tender and erotic emotion, and one short love scene, this film is for you. Despite my criticisms, I really enjoyed this film and it's a definite keeper.
Movie Review: A Love Story and the Conflicts of Sexuality
Summary: 4 Stars
AMOUR DE FEMME is a well-produced film that deals with the trials and agonies facing women who come out as lesbians. It is quiet, subtle, beautifully photographed, and is fortunate to have a fine, handsome cast directed with sensitivity by Sylvie Verheyde who also wrote the simple but elegant screenplay.
Made in 2001 AMOUR DE FEMME came to the screen before the popular US television series THE L WORD, a program that has provided a healthier look at same sex relationships between women, and though there have been successful mainstream lesbian films, this particular one avoids some of the pitfalls that have prevented wide public acceptance of the others. The writer/director does not surround her two main characters with the usual bar scenes and peripheral characters that can distract from the story of a sexual discovery, but instead keeps the story tight with a small cast each of whom makes an impact on the story.
Jeanne (Hélène Fillières) is a successful osteopath/wife/mother who happens to reluctantly accompany her handsome husband David (Anthony Delon) to a birthday party for his best friend Franck (Jeannick Gravelines) and there she encounters Marie (Raffaëla Anderson), a dancer, and a chemistry develops resulting in an evening Jeanne enjoys very much. Slowly Jeanne and Marie begin meeting very openly, Jeanne is honest with David about her comings and goings, but when the two women's relationship becomes physical, Jeanne is faced with decisions about her sexuality. David confronts Jeanne about Marie, Jeanne confides her shaky mental and physical state, and when David eventually confronts Jeanne in a telling way, Jeanne understands her true self and despite her deep love for her small child, realizes she must follow her heart.
The cinematography both in Paris and in Normandy, where Jeanne and Marie with Marie's younger brother Moïse (Thierno Sy) have spent refreshing moments together, is stunning. Both of the actresses are not only beautiful but also talented and yield a credible attraction and passion. The entire cast is superb. The one distracting element in the film is the sound track: there is a rumbling pedal point noise that accompanies almost every scene between Jeanne and Marie and is annoyingly distracting. In French with English subtitles. The DVD is very fine in execution, but there are not extras except for some video trailers. A comment from the talented writer/director would have enhanced the release. Recommended. Grady Harp, March 06
Movie Review: Sexual tension and sensuality
Summary: 4 Stars
Paris. Jeanne (Helene Fillieres) is married with a young son, but she's somewhat bored with life. Then she meets Marie (Raffaëla Anderson), an exciting dancer, and enrolls in her dance class. They flirt from the beginning. Marie is a lesbian, and Jeanne quickly falls in love with her.
Jeanne tells her husband about the affair and her love for Marie. Then there's the usual dealing with the husband and his threats to take her son (who badly needs a haircut). Lots of angst and rejection by friends, but it's a happy ending for the two women.
The film is filled with sexual tension and sensuality. Great performance by Helene Fillieres to create a realistic portrayal of Jeanne and her awakening to Marie.