Love in the Afternoon Review:

The Film

In Paris a happily married lawyer, Frederic (Bernard Verley), has his family values tested when Chloe (Zouzou), an old acquaintance, turns up unexpectedly. She’s a carefree drifter while he’s got a child and another on the way but something draws him into a relationship where the pair secretly meet in the afternoons.

As Tarantino once said of Rohmer’s movies "You have to see one, and if you kind of like that one, then you should see his other ones, but you need to see one to see if you like it." Unfortunately the one I’d seen before this had been My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend and needless to say it made me extremely dubious of taking a look at another. Luckily I did and Love in the Afternoon is certainly the one to spur on further investigation of this film critic turned director. At it’s heart the movie is a very simple will they/won’t they morality tale but it’s shot through with honesty, realism and that dab of surrealism seemingly unique to French New Wave cinema.

Frederic is married but likes to think of himself as still in the game by metaphorically embracing woman on the bustling Parisian streets and employing attractive but unattainable secretaries. It’s not until it’s presented to him on a plate in the form of Chloe that he really has to decide if he loves his wife or not. The unfolding relationship of the two would-be lovers is handled with great rhythm and avoids seeming to be either hinging on fleeting lust or rooted in deep desire. Also added to the mix is the class difference with Chloe being a working class kind of girl and Frederic living the lifestyle of the bourgeois she admires so can love bridge such a divide? Chloe thinks so and states that is her aim but how strong is Frederic’s marriage? Now this may not sound like your everyday bloke’s cup of tea but Rohmer sets out not to present a rather seedy soap opera but to give what would otherwise happen every week on Eastenders a very mature and adult examination. The film is not to titillate but to closely study.

Love in the Afternoon has a tremendously timeless feel and, apart from the ludicrous amount of turtle necks and hang glider collars, remains as relevant today as it did in 1972. Like Indecent Proposal it puts forward the ‘would you?’ question before relaxing back to keep you guessing right until the final scene that is both emotional and real. Rohmer’s stately and deadpan camera seems uninspiring but does allow the actors time to get under your skin and unlike My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend they are a lot more complex with unfolding pasts, adding that extra dimension to an otherwise recycled story.

Extras

A trailer that isn't much good as it's in French but you are treated to a 20 minute short from the director. It's in black and white and is a bit quirky but gives you a look at Rohmer actually using a bit of style in his photography.

Rich Badley

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