Le Divorce [2003] [DVD]

When I heard about Le Divorce, I was thinking "ah I bet this is going to be a movie for women", well how wrong I was. Le Divorce is quite neutral in that area, and the plot seems to be firmly on it's feet. The trailler wasn't very good either, but when you actually sit down to watch this, you see it has less Hollywood values, and more of a European feel.Naomi Watts is Roxanne, a poet who moved to Paris to be with her husband; who's obviously not happy with Roxy, and leaves home just as soon as Isabel (Kate Hudson) arrives. But Roxanne is pregnant, and she's trying to keep everything together. Isabel on the other hand, is quite a lady, who goes around seeing two people at the same time. Roxanne and her American poet friend tell Isabel she's going to get hurt, but Isabel is only out for fun. Roxanne, on the other hand, has to put up with a divorce that she doesn't want.Her parents come over to see what's happened, and they meet the parents of her husband, who are quite the opposite to Roxanne's parents. They don't really seem bothered about adultery, which shows the French/American divide on ideas and concepts, a thing which this film seems to heavily rely on.They also find out their painting; a Latour is worth a lot of money, so Roxanne's ex wants it, but it belongs to the family, so it's gets tougher for Roxy. Will she make it though?This isn't a bad movie, but on the other hand it isn't wonderful, and probably won't be picking up awards in Cannes. It's a pleasant tale, but it does lack substance, and the annoying flick from French to English will probably annoy anyone who's not fluent in French. The filming is good though, but nothing revolutionary, nothing special really. The acting isn't bad, Kate Hudson's French accent being better than Niomi's - but still the emotion doesn't seem to be very convincing to me. The soundtrack is very minimal, but when it does show itself - it's very contempary French music, old singers like Patrick Bruel, Johnny Halliday, Serge Gainsbourg and George Auric. Richard Robin's compositions for the movie are excellent.Great movie for people who love dialogue, but could have been a lot more fun.

I purchased this because I had seen a trailer for it on another movie. I had not read the reviews on Amazon.Like another unconventional movie "Unconditional Love" this is the kind of plot, cast, and mood which either charms and amuses or irritates and drives the viewer mad. Like certain kinds of food it is a love or loathe. I have watched it twice in swift succession. It has some real mistakes in pacing, plot jumps, and that indecisive "is it a comedy or a drama" quality which drives some people mad. Well get real - life is a mix of both and even the things which irritate me about this movie are redeemed by great casting, strong scenes and great style - both in the use of Paris as a backdrop and the french family lifestyle. So...............I cannot recommend this film BUT I like it a lot. This may not help you to decide to buy it or not but it gives you a clue as to why the stars vary so wildly in the reviews. I was going to give it 4 stars but decided 3 out of 5 was closer to the balance it deserves.

the premise is quiet clever, but it is truly terrible. The acting as far as it went is good, but eth story drags along full of inconsistencies and leaves you wanting to shout at the film for goodness sake get on with it. So irritating Imagine a terrible 'art house French film' with US actors and goes absolutely nowhere. You just ant to shake the characters and say how can you be so stupid. Truly terrible, I want my money back!

Charming American/French comedy drama. If you love Thierry Lhermitte (or any of the leads) you will probably enjoy the film. Fashion and the stereotypes of French and American culture feature heavily in the film: elegant French aristocracy/old money snobbery vs. unpolished, uncultured, but down-to-earth American new money. If you enjoy French/foreign language films, you will enjoy this, as there are sprinklings of untranslated French throughout. However, you only speak English and get easily frustrated by foreign languages, you may find the film spoiled for you by the short passages of untranslated French.

Loved this film. Easy fun watching with good characters. Lovely way to look at French/American culture.

Please note that this is not a romcom, but a tragi-comedy about a divorce between a Frenchman and an American lady, both with colourful families in their trail.It's a very sophisticated movie and lots of things happen, but it's not terribly meaningful nor rich in emotion. On the other hand, it's good honest traditional cinema that won't insult your intelligence. I don't regret having spent a couple of hours with it.

...after reading some of these reviews, that is. Yes, this is middle-class America meets the Parisian bourgeoisie. So? Is that not an encounter legitimately to be examined? I think so and I think this film does it quite well. The storyline(s) are rather weak but there's a lot of well-observed social detail, a rare chance to hear Leslie Caron speaking French and some excellent shots of Paris. The social interaction between the American and French families is awkward but realistically so. Keep an open mind and you might find yourself, er what did I say? pleasantly surprised.

It was an ok movie to watch.