ChicRawIdol A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

writers_reign Alas, my Summary isn't going to work completely in either French or English: The French pronounce Ann Fontaine's surname Fontenay which means they're unlikely to get the Trevi word-play but on the other hand coin is French for corner so a by-lingual person will twig that I'm referring to the three corners Fontaine brings together here, not so much doctor, lawyer, Indian chief as lawyer, weather girl and bodyguard. Billy Wilder has a lot to answer for on several counts but not least for his masterpiece (or one of them) The Apartment which is a laugh-out-loud comedy for the first hour then switches effortlessly to drama and because it was Wilder he made it look so easy that everybody and his uncle Max thinks he can do it too. Ann Fontaine isn't everybody; with twelve complete films under her belt and a thirteenth in the Cutting Rooms she's a formidable talent, one of an elite group of female French directors who have given me personally hours of pleasure - I'm referring to, in any order you like, Marion Vernoux, Nicole Garcia, Valerie Lemercier, Toni Marshall, Danielle Thompson, Agnes Jaoui, Noemie Chomsky, Diane Kurys et al. If this isn't quite top-drawer Fontaine it'll do until another top-drawer Fontaine comes along. Fabrice Luchini, that most quirky of French actors both on stage and screen (and rumored to be engaged to Fontaine, who may herself still be married or may not have been married as the case may be - and you think THIS film is ambiguous) is at the head of proceedings as a top avocat shipped to Monaco to defend the mother of a gangster (Stephane Audran wasted) on a charge of murdering a gigolo; because of the delicate nature of the case the gangster supplies Luchini with a bodyguard who may or may not develop a sexual attraction to Luchini; the third element is a local weather girl with a moral compass that makes Sadie Thompson look like Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. Inevitably the up-tight lawyer allows himself to be seduced by the bimbo half his age and equally inevitably it ends in tears. Though I enjoyed it, as I have all the Fontaine films I have seen I wouldn't in this case (unlike the others) want to see it again.

Bob Taylor My laugh meter was in constant activity throughout this film, one of the most entertaining French comedies of recent years. Anne Fontaine's witty script and assured direction gave me a lot of pleasure. The first scene between Fabrice Luchini and Hélène de Saint-Père--that amorous banter out of Marivaux--set the tone for me. Luchini is at the top of his form now, much stronger than he was in La Discrète or Beaumarchais l'insolent. He portrays the erotic confusion of the middle-aged man so well. Roschdy Zem, so often used as ethnic content in his films, here provides us with the (almost) definitive portrait of the loyal servant with his own agenda (cf. Dirk Bogarde in The Servant). Louise Bourgoin has a great natural comic flair that will serve her well in future roles (she outshines that other comic weather girl Michelle Pfeiffer in Up Close and Personal).Anne Fontaine has given me so much satisfaction over the last ten years: I think of Nettoyage à sec, Comment J'ai tué mon père, Nathalie... She is a stalwart of the French film industry.

carrotwax-1 La Fille de Monaco starts out as a comedy and ends up in a disturbing but well done drama. I don't consider this a fault; Romeo and Juliet is also of this structure. If you come in expecting this to be a light comedy, you will enjoy the first hour and then be woefully disappointed, but if you expect to be drawn in by laughter and brought into a darker movie, you will find beauty in the craftsmanship of this film.The main parts of Bertrand (Fabrie Luchini), security guard Christophe (Roschdy Zem) hippie/loose Audrey (Louise Bourgoin) were well chosen and well acted.The movie is one of the best I've seen for a dramatization of the "overly sexual woman develops complete power over a respected man" dynamic. It was believable, and because of that, disturbing. In other words, a good film.

sschimel MAJOR SPOILER ALERT!!!!! I've been going to the French Film Fest at Lincoln Center for many years now, and this is one of the worst movies I've ever seen there. I am a huge fan of mysteries and this movies is filled with them, but not one of them is ever resolved. Note - There are major spoilers coming up.1. Stephane Audran looks fabulous, but did she or didn't she? A lot of the movie centers on her trial, and she is found guilty, but it's not ever clear what her motivation is (and the lame excuse mentioned might have worked for Dirk Bogarde in the 60s, but in 2009?) And she's a total cipher throughout.2. Several lines are uttered during the movie that seem like they're going to be clues, but are never mentioned again. They stick out like foreshadowing, or Hercule Poirot "Aha!" moments but go nowhere.3. The weather girl parties hearty and is a real good time gal, with a whole group of friends her own age, but falls in love with a nebishy older lawyer. Is she trying to compromise his case? maybe in a different movie written by a better writer.4. Does the body guard love the lawyer? The weather girl says yes, but since he's a total cipher (lots of them in this movie), we never know.5. Why does the lawyer take the blame at the end? 6. Why make this movie?