You could, if you had a mind to, have a lot of fun with this, bringing in the school of thought that some directors tend to make the same movie over and over, recalling that Lelouch gave the world the ultimate chocolate box in Un Homme et une femme and now, half a century on, he weighs in with un + une; in English of course we don't differentiate between definite and indefinite articles so that 'the', 'a' and 'an' are a one size covers all whilst in France un is the indefinite article for a male person or thing and une the feminine. This gives us a new film from Lelouch which translates directly as male + female or more loosely, he plus she, him plus her. Of course if you are going to revisit an earlier success it helps if you don't replicate exactly, so, in A Man and a Woman, one of the couple worked in movies, specifically as a continuity girl as opposed to a writer, director, or actor, Here it is the man, Jean Dujardin, who composes music for films and is doing so now for a new version of Romeo and Juliet set in India. In this case the woman, Elsa Zylberstein, is as far from a racing driver as you can get; she is, in fact, the wife of the French Ambassador to India. With this sort of film it helps if the two leads are glamorous; okay, perhaps the greatest example of the genre, Brief Encounter, featured two ordinary people BUT they were played by Celia Johnson and Trevor Howard and, more importantly, they were working from a screenplay by Noel Coward. Lelouche is taking no chances; Elsa Zylberstein is drop dead gorgeous and Jean Dujardin has so much charm he sends the overspill to Vincent Cassell, who needs all the charm he can get. Charm + beauty is a great combination and Lelouche delivers a pleasant diversion that's definitely worth a look.
14 Reviews
I am Buddhist
ruminous10 March 2017
Warning: Spoilers
The director is most famous for directing the movie "A Man and a Woman". Fifty years later, he makes the film with the same theme again. The story is set in India. A woman who plays the lead who always adheres to the Oriental philosophy. But the man is a composer and an idealistic type. In this story, they go on a pilgrimage after that. This plot was not too shabby. But I can't accept these easily.
Then they met a mysterious woman who says she can cure any kind of illness and said "love is my religion". I'm vaguely Buddhist so I somehow understand to the philosophy about "the wheel of life" even though nobody taught that to me. I don't think all of the people live to suffer for the future life. And I don't know why they're always celebrities, and they have a luxury travel after a pilgrimage, after all they meet with success. I felt empty that our dreams don't surely come true if you went to a pilgrimage. I felt the same thing when I saw the American movie "Eat Pray Love". Anyway the song will finish in a 3 minutes, the movie will end in 2 hours, our life will continue.
Then they met a mysterious woman who says she can cure any kind of illness and said "love is my religion". I'm vaguely Buddhist so I somehow understand to the philosophy about "the wheel of life" even though nobody taught that to me. I don't think all of the people live to suffer for the future life. And I don't know why they're always celebrities, and they have a luxury travel after a pilgrimage, after all they meet with success. I felt empty that our dreams don't surely come true if you went to a pilgrimage. I felt the same thing when I saw the American movie "Eat Pray Love". Anyway the song will finish in a 3 minutes, the movie will end in 2 hours, our life will continue.
Embarrassing
aurelienosenda27 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
My family and I went to see this movie. We were 5, and when we got out, we were so appalled that we decided to laugh instead of crying about this lost moment of our life.
From the beginning, Elsa Zylberstein's speech during dinner at the embassy was so embarrassing that we were still asking ourselves if it was meant to be taken seriously or not. I thought to myself that if it was not serious, it might still be a good movie. But serious it was... Every scene of this movie can be anticipated. The Indian landscape? beautiful, colorful, but useless. The only real interaction between the two main characters and the country they are supposed to discover: Dujardin tickling an Indian guy's feet in the train.
An initiatic journey? they don't care about the places they pass by, nor the people. Zylberstein repeats that they still need to take "two more trains and a boat" Dujardin is bored, ME TOO.
So many elements in this movie have nothing to do with the story, you ask yourself why on earth they are shown. The story about "Juliet and Romeo", music in general (two characters are musicians). They are not linked to anything, and end up just being there...
I try to be moderate as often as I can when I review a film. But with this one... it is just too much. I came back home and watched another one, to move on.
Embarrassing movie indeed
From the beginning, Elsa Zylberstein's speech during dinner at the embassy was so embarrassing that we were still asking ourselves if it was meant to be taken seriously or not. I thought to myself that if it was not serious, it might still be a good movie. But serious it was... Every scene of this movie can be anticipated. The Indian landscape? beautiful, colorful, but useless. The only real interaction between the two main characters and the country they are supposed to discover: Dujardin tickling an Indian guy's feet in the train.
An initiatic journey? they don't care about the places they pass by, nor the people. Zylberstein repeats that they still need to take "two more trains and a boat" Dujardin is bored, ME TOO.
So many elements in this movie have nothing to do with the story, you ask yourself why on earth they are shown. The story about "Juliet and Romeo", music in general (two characters are musicians). They are not linked to anything, and end up just being there...
I try to be moderate as often as I can when I review a film. But with this one... it is just too much. I came back home and watched another one, to move on.
Embarrassing movie indeed
Mesmerising romantic comedy
alexcornas14 June 2019
Wonderful movie set for the most part in India. Oscar winner Jean Dujardin plays a movie composer visiting India to work on a new wave film. There he meets the wife of the French ambassador played by Elsa Zylberstein.
Dujardin is at the top of his game, on par with the Cary Grant of the An Affair to Remember, and so is Elsa, who plays her part with incredible honesty and endearing vulnerability. The writing is brillant, all the way through, as expected from master director and writer Claude Lelouch. Some of the dialogue scenes between Dujardin and Zylberstein are some of the better written, acted and most beautiful ever created.
The portrayal of India is honest, extensive and, most importantly, respectful. It's a delightful adventure for anyone who likes smart romantic comedies, much like An Affair to Remember (1957).
Dujardin is at the top of his game, on par with the Cary Grant of the An Affair to Remember, and so is Elsa, who plays her part with incredible honesty and endearing vulnerability. The writing is brillant, all the way through, as expected from master director and writer Claude Lelouch. Some of the dialogue scenes between Dujardin and Zylberstein are some of the better written, acted and most beautiful ever created.
The portrayal of India is honest, extensive and, most importantly, respectful. It's a delightful adventure for anyone who likes smart romantic comedies, much like An Affair to Remember (1957).
Ex Oriente Lux
georgioskarpouzas7 March 2016
I have to confess that I have not watched the first film of the director about a man and a woman in order to use it as a criterion of comparison. I simply evaluate this movie independently. There is a certain aspect which I found amazingly pertinent, current and within the realities of modern western life. When the two protagonists speak to each other during certain scenes of the movie the wife of the ambassador played by Elsa Zylberstein describes certain feelings and thoughts she has about self-realization, communication with the universe and other ideas pertaining to New Age spirituality. The protagonist answers with irony. Later the spiritual longings of the lady are satisfied through a pilgrimage to the river Ganges and a visit to a modern day Indian Hinduist saint. In short she has the fascination of the affluent westerners with supposed oriental wisdom. I loved this aspect of the movie as it was portrayed by witty dialogues and the real as well as the esoteric and spiritual journey of the protagonists through India. If you observe the success of figures as the Dalai Lama with western audiences or read magazines such as the French "Le Monde des Religions" you will have a picture of this unmistakable trend in affluent Western countries as France and Britain. It forms the backbone of the film which is also a love story.
The colorful depiction of India and the lively and lovely actors as well as the music add to the total impressive ambiance of this movie. But for me the fascination with the East as a place of spiritual self-discovery and the dialogues where Anna Hamon the ambassador's wife played by Elsa Zylberstein expresses herself freely in a flow of New Age speak, stand as monuments of perceptiveness about how a considerable number of women and men in the West think, fantasize and feel about the alleged spiritual qualities of an imaginary East.
The colorful depiction of India and the lively and lovely actors as well as the music add to the total impressive ambiance of this movie. But for me the fascination with the East as a place of spiritual self-discovery and the dialogues where Anna Hamon the ambassador's wife played by Elsa Zylberstein expresses herself freely in a flow of New Age speak, stand as monuments of perceptiveness about how a considerable number of women and men in the West think, fantasize and feel about the alleged spiritual qualities of an imaginary East.
A LIving Saint
kcfl-111 July 2019
The slogan for Lelouch's "A Man and a Woman" was "see it with someone you love." I didn't have a love when it was released in 1966, and failed to appreciate the film. Since then, I've grown to admire his opus as that of France's greatest living filmmaker.
You still have to b e a romantic to appreciate a film like this or his "Bolero," "And Now My Love" or "And Now, Ladies and Gentlemen."
We have no film of Jesus, Mohammed or Buddha performing their miracles. "Un. + Une" gives us a glimpse of Amma, a modern saint, displaying her love.
It's also the best outside film about India. See it with someone you love.
You still have to b e a romantic to appreciate a film like this or his "Bolero," "And Now My Love" or "And Now, Ladies and Gentlemen."
We have no film of Jesus, Mohammed or Buddha performing their miracles. "Un. + Une" gives us a glimpse of Amma, a modern saint, displaying her love.
It's also the best outside film about India. See it with someone you love.
A Fan of Elsa and now...Amma
pammyholiday27 August 2017
Warning: Spoilers
I wish I lived in France so that I am able to watch all of Elsa Zylberstein's films. Good or bad, I don't care. She is my Catherine Deneuve. Young Catherine and today's Catherine still mesmerizes. Five-years ago, I became a fan of Elsa's after watching I LOVED YOU FOR SO LONG. I Found MODIGLIANI on YouTube--and became obsessed with the artist and his muse, Jeanne. I learned something new. Now UN PLUS UNE has directed me toward India and its unique culture.
I NEVER listen to critics when I WANT to see a movie.
If I am able to sit through it once. Good. But two or three times is to me a life-changing movie. Loved the dialogue between the two leads. I didn't want this story to end. Reminded me of BRIEF ENCOUNTER. But when Amma, the hugging saint appeared, that part stirred a raw emotion in me--brought me to tears. I became intrigued. Who is this woman now on my Bucket List? I looked her up on the web. Again, I learned something new.
The airport scene in Un PLUS UNE seemed a bit off, but it did reveal the Ambassador's, false heart. I don't think he loved his wife. (He did Anna a favour). What made me truly respect Claude Lelouch as an Oscar-winning director was the ending. But you have to stick around until the credits finish rolling.
I NEVER listen to critics when I WANT to see a movie.
If I am able to sit through it once. Good. But two or three times is to me a life-changing movie. Loved the dialogue between the two leads. I didn't want this story to end. Reminded me of BRIEF ENCOUNTER. But when Amma, the hugging saint appeared, that part stirred a raw emotion in me--brought me to tears. I became intrigued. Who is this woman now on my Bucket List? I looked her up on the web. Again, I learned something new.
The airport scene in Un PLUS UNE seemed a bit off, but it did reveal the Ambassador's, false heart. I don't think he loved his wife. (He did Anna a favour). What made me truly respect Claude Lelouch as an Oscar-winning director was the ending. But you have to stick around until the credits finish rolling.
... what a time they must have had
bjarias19 October 2020
... almost nearly-like a documentary of-a-romance ... mainly filmed in a most magical of countries.. India
... casting is exceptional.. actors making it all look sooo easy-enjoyable... what a wonderful experience it must have been for them
... a-timeless-film.. watching it again anytime in the future.. it-looses-nothing
... casting is exceptional.. actors making it all look sooo easy-enjoyable... what a wonderful experience it must have been for them
... a-timeless-film.. watching it again anytime in the future.. it-looses-nothing
Thank you to Netflix
maryvictoire4 April 2020
Magnifique
sitkauwedu20 September 2021
Stay with it, it's worth it! Luscious photography, intriguing plot, romantic and some of the best acting I've seen. I gained a deeper understanding of India
and its sad, deep, beauty. And, wow, excellent direction by Claude Lelouch.
Loved it.
tarav-2280626 December 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I watched it without subtitles. My native language is English. Have to admit I didn't understand most of the words, but I could look at Jean Dujardin's beautiful face for hours and hours and never get bored. And his voice and his smile. He makes me want to learn more French and move to France or India. The movie made my dreams sweet. Somebody please tell me, do they get together at the end? I need to know. Also, the other actors were good too, but I was blinded by the light of Jean Dujardin's soul filling my whole world with joy and ecstasy and love and excitement and, and I couldn't see anything else.
Lost In Translation
arthur-benjamins26 May 2022
The main bulk of this movie has already been touched on in the spiritual sense, however with regards to the human value - TWO human beings being together and out of sorts with the world that views them, I strongly felt that this beautiful movie had something from "Lost In Translation".
I went away with my feet barely touching the ground and with a spring in my soul.
I went away with my feet barely touching the ground and with a spring in my soul.
Amazing tale of our lost (western) selves
hekeani-2239514 March 2022
Apart from the amazing setting and acting, this is far and foremost a tale about our western shallowness and approach to life in comparison to hinduist India where people don't have as much comfort but nonetheless are happier beings, without arrogance and irrelevant questioniongs that drown us in our day to day western lives. This movie was beautiful for its wit and depth that many failed to appreciate. Lelouche is not only a cinematographic master but also a poet.
What would it be like if our religion was love?
yasin-998965 July 2023
One of the most beautiful love movies I've ever seen.
A deep film whose central theme is love for ourselves and love for those around us.
Everything in this wonderful film revolves around LOVE. So for those who are sensitive souls and value love, this film will prove to be soul food.
I wonder how such an exceptional film, which does not have the slightest trace of aggression in the way it deals with all the problems of life, including the problem of cheating on the life partner, can receive a grade of 1, 2, 3.. ..what kind of people are those who give such grades?
As I said, the film is exceptional both in terms of the way the extremely charismatic actors played their roles, as well as in terms of the completely atypical scenario, the sparkling dialogues, the way it was directed, the places full of the spiritual charge where the action takes place, everything is superlative.
It would be wonderful if we had more films like this. Honestly, I can't wait to see it again.... I, who generally don't see films again....except the exceptional ones.
A deep film whose central theme is love for ourselves and love for those around us.
Everything in this wonderful film revolves around LOVE. So for those who are sensitive souls and value love, this film will prove to be soul food.
I wonder how such an exceptional film, which does not have the slightest trace of aggression in the way it deals with all the problems of life, including the problem of cheating on the life partner, can receive a grade of 1, 2, 3.. ..what kind of people are those who give such grades?
As I said, the film is exceptional both in terms of the way the extremely charismatic actors played their roles, as well as in terms of the completely atypical scenario, the sparkling dialogues, the way it was directed, the places full of the spiritual charge where the action takes place, everything is superlative.
It would be wonderful if we had more films like this. Honestly, I can't wait to see it again.... I, who generally don't see films again....except the exceptional ones.
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