FILM-FORWARD.COMReviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
HAPPILY EVER AFTER
Married men Vincent (Yvan Attal) and Georges (Alain Chabat) listen rapt and envious at the
exploits of Fred (Alain Cohen), an unassuming pick-up artist. Not at all conventionally good
looking, Fred has daily conquests (with Giovanna or Marie, he can’t remember). Unbeknownst to
his friends, Vincent has a secret - a girlfriend on the side. Returning to his home after spending a
night with her, Vincent sheepishly lies to his wife Gabrielle (Attal’s real-life wife, Charlotte
Gainsbourg), telling her he crashed at a friend’s. She perceives the truth all too well. Just when
the mood turns serious and she’s about to confront him, they both act up rather than face the truth, removing all the food from
the refrigerator and squaring off at the kitchen table. They scream throughout the ensuing food fight
while their son sleeps in the next room. They’re so bourgeois they aren’t the least concern about
staining the immaculate white walls of their Paris apartment. Gabrielle, though, certainly
gives consideration to her marriage. In a tense, almost dialogue-free interaction, she trades furtive
glances with a handsome stranger (Johnny Depp), while listening to the same song at a Virgin
Megastore. Also making a cameo appearance is the serene Anouk Aimée.
Scenes of impressive subtlety and thoughtfulness centering around the pensive Gabrielle are
overshadowed by the antics of the middle-aged men. Their constant kidding around weighs the
film down. Throughout, there is a frustrating lack of self-awareness among them. Vincent, at times, is overbearing. He has the annoying habit of announcing his
arrival home by approaching his wife from behind and scaring the daylights out of her. And
while at the movies, he’s hushed for talking loudly by a fellow patron. He angrily insists that the
man first say please. Unlike director/writer’s Attal’s feature debut, My Wife is an
Actress, Happily Ever After digresses; there’s a sense it doesn’t know how to end. But
refreshingly, the film contradicts its own title - it doesn’t cut corners by offering clear-cut
resolutions. Kent Turner
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