 Sweet Sorrow
The Violin music in this movie is sweet and sorrowful. It
is a true representation of what occurs in the hearts of the
main characters. There is no nudity (as the cover might imply)
and hardly any swearing in this movie which was quite
refreshing! It is mostly an intellectual adventure and very
romantic.
Is there anything as beautiful as love and anything as
painful as deep sorrow and loneliness of the soul? What happens
when two people connect and their hearts start to vibrate
together like violins with broken strings? Can they heal enough
to create beautiful music?
The concert violinist, Camille, is dating Maxim who is an
older man she seems to love and feels a deep commitment to. The
problem in this story is the inevitable love triangle. Maxim
loves Camille and yet he realizes she is still young and
restless. When Camille first meets Stephan she only sees him
across a room. Later she brings in her violin for repairs and
you can feel the sexual tension between them.
There is always a danger when you listen to someone and show
interest in a person’s deepest loves, their desires and their
dreams. It is well known that women fall in love with men who
are willing to listen to them. Stephan seems willing to listen
to Camille and in the process he realizes he could hurt his best
friend Maxim who he deeply loves. When the situation starts to
get complex, he suddenly withdraws his attention and this makes
Camille obsessive and needy.
While the movie tries to make us believe Stephan (Daniel
Auteuil) is at fault, he seems to be more of an innocent party
in the entire seduction. Camille is much more aggressive and yet
she has her reasons for believing she should be loved. His
physical actions only led me to believe he was genuinely
interested in helping Camille (Emmanuelle Beart) reach her full
potential as a concert violinist. The emotional undercurrents
tell a different story.
The mysterious Stephan sees the violin needs work, but fails
to see Camille’s sensitive heart needs fine tuning. When he
listens to her play, he can feel her emotions flowing freely to
his heart and we know he could be moved to passion. Yet, it is
quite ironic how he is fully capable of quickly figuring out why
a violin won’t play properly, but can’t seem to figure out
what makes a woman’s heart play. He seems to have absolutely
no awareness of how his attention affects Camille. While Stephan
no longer plays the violin, there is definitely a soul
connection between the two artists. There is a unique chemistry
between them that is on fire from the time they first meet. The
fire Camille feels quickly gets out of control.
Stephan is an interesting study. He seems fearful of life,
yet confident at his job. He seems cold on the outside, but is
simmering with desires on the inside. He sees opportunities and
then takes the opposite path. Is he selfish or selfless? Does he
see the world in a different way than Camille? She is
spontaneous and gives her heart away easily. Stephan
contemplates the future results of his future actions and
continually decides not to act. He almost seems to be living in
the past or trying not to move too quickly into the future.
We watch him observe life around him. Relationships start,
they end, they enter periods of conflict and summers of love. He
watches children playing and you can almost hear him wondering
if he will one day start a family of his own. He sees Maxim as
blessed and yet he is almost satisfied on some level with his
solitary existence. He has a friend who owns a bookstore and she
listens and encourages Stephan in the direction of a fulfilled
life.
Is there a way for Camille and Stephan to play beautiful
music together? As this story unravels, your imagination will
create your most desired conclusion. Stephan knows how to repair
violins, but can he fix a broken heart? How he can resist
Camille, we will never know. Does Stephan make the right
decision? It is up to you to decide.
Emmanuelle Beart has to be the most beautiful woman I’ve
ever seen. I kept having to rewind the tape to read the
subtitles because I was so mesmerized by her beauty and acting.
This is now my favorite French film and the kindness of the
friend who sent me a copy will not soon be forgotten!
Deliciously Intellectual and Intensely Beautiful. If you see
one French Film, “Un Coeur En Hiver” is a true work of art
in the purest sense.
Bon Voyage
Playful French Fantasy, September 6, 2006
Bon Voyage doesn't take itself seriously and occasionally trips
gloriously over romantic moments that turn into comical charades
to leave you laughing. The topic at hand is actually quite
serious (War Time panic), that is why the frivolous actions of
the main character seem so out of place and bizarre, although
instigated mostly by her fear of discovery.
Here you will find Isabelle Adjani wearing sumptuous clothes and
adorable hats and clinging to every man who will give her
safety, not to mention crying pitifully into pillows for
attention. Her adorable vulnerability is however overplayed to
the point where she starts to lose the respect of the men she so
desperately needs.
You have to love the scene where she suddenly decides to go
shopping and jumps from the car and runs into a store. She is
definitely a victim in the plot, but can't come to terms with
the accidental murder and relies heavily on wealthy men of
influence to get her out of any difficult situation that may mar
her perfect existence. She mostly runs through the movie scared
and insecure and waiting for the next opportunity to be saved.
In terms of artistic excellence, this movie flies beyond
expectation and truly raises the bar in scenes of natural
splendor, forests and gorgeous apartments. From the start you
are invited into an intimate circle of connections that
intertwine through the story with elements of romance to leave
you emotionally satisfied, while still smiling. Worth watching
for the cinematic beauty alone and the comedic elements are a
true bonus and were very unexpectedly funny.
~The Rebecca Review
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