I imagined a bit another Franck, but Guillaume Canet is so charming, and I must admit that he perfectly fits his part. Though it differs from the novel by Anna Gavalda. Paris - London trains leave from the magnificent Gare du Nord. Franck would never have got to London from the Gare du Lyon (except via the connecting suburban RER line). And here's something for the nit-pickers. So, we have no glamorous stars (though Audrey Tautou is big in France) and no shimmering background.īut it's a warm-hearted story with some real emotion and, dare I say it, a happy ending. The therapist, Phillipe van Eeckhout, is one in real life and treated Berri after a recent stroke damaged his speaking ability. One very touching scene here is when Philibert goes to a speech therapist to cure his stutter. He is a very conservative, straightforward director, but he can produce some very vivid work. I very much liked Jean de Floriet and Manon des Sources, directed by Claude Berri 20 years ago (two other literary adaptations). This also tends to sideline Philibert later in the film. The part of Philibert's love interest Aurelia is severely truncated (the result of putting a 600 page novel into 100 minutes of film). Guillaume Canet lets us see his gruff chef's soft side and Francoise Bertin also evokes sympathy for someone made tiresome by old age. I've seen her in several other films and her performances are similar. Audrey Tautou has just about got the market for sexy French waifs sewn up. (I haven't a clue what this film has to do with hunting and gathering). The French title 'Ensemble C'est Tout' ('Together, That's All') says it all, really. It is Pauline who draws Franck and Camille together. Philibert isn't gay it's just that his romantic interests lie elsewhere. Soon she is striking sparks off grumpy old Franck. When Camille falls ill Philibert invites Camille to convalesce at his place. Franck is pre-occupied with looking after his elderly grandmother Paulette (Francoise Bertin), who is hospitalized after a fall. He shares his rather grand but dowdy apartment, his grandmother's former home, with the gruff Franck (Guillaume Canet), a womanizing chef. Notwithstanding a stutter, he aspires to a career on the stage. She lives in a garret in the same old apartment building as Philibert (Laurent Stocker), who is young and good-looking, but is the French equivalent of a dim gentleman. Camille (Audrey Tautou), an art school dropout, works as a cleaner, or 'surface engineer' as she likes to be called. French directors find romance in the humbler areas of Paris as well as the flashier parts. The French formula for romantic comedy doesn't depend on the characters being rich, young and handsome, an opulent setting, and no old people (except for very minor characters).
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