Film Reviews.
Every time I watch a film with Emmanuelle in, I am enchanted by her. I have worked with quite a few actresses in my life and I have found that they have a tendency to act either like themselves or how they would like to be. I will leave it to you to decide if Emmanuelle is an emotionally tortured beauty desperately searching for her true love, or whether she would only like to be like that.
As a member of Film Society and Technical Manager of Bloomsbury Television at University College London, I have learnt a lot about films in a very short time, so I appologise in advance if I make mistakes, you can rest assured that my reviews of Emmanuelle Beart's films come from both my heart and mind.
Fans reviews thoughts can be found on the letters page, submit your review here.
Un Coeur en Hiver, Is probably one of her best films to date, I am not going to go into any plots but if you like films about love and tragedy, in the Shakespear sense, held together with stunning imagery and superb acting by the entire cast then (don't watch mission impossible) watch this ASAP.
L'enfer, is also a tragedy but this is one investigating the horror within the human mind. By the end of this film you will be on the edge of your seat, crying, hoping it is all a dreadful mistake and that Emmanuelle will live happily ever after....
Manon des Sources, is a sequel to a film I have not seen, which Emmanuelle is not in, you can quickly pick up the story line however. The film is a masterpiece in it's sheer beauty, you have to really watch this film on the big screen to get the full effect of the magnificent landscapes. Emmanuelle fits into this film as the Beautiful but unobtainable woman, full of mystery and cloaked in, yes you've guessed it, tragedy. This is a very visual film but it does have some scenes of pure magic brought about by Emmanuelle's brilliant acting abilities.
La Belle Noiseuse, like most of these films has won numerous awards, the surprising thing is that it is both incredibly long and features a large amount of nudity. I will explain that Emmanuelle is an Artist's Model and the film studies how he draws and creates his Masterpiece to end all Masterpieces, there is a very nice twist at the end so do watch the whole thing (all 4 hours). If you like art then this will probably interest you if not then I warn you the plot is quite thin because it has been stretched from a 20 min film to fit a 4 hour one, or at least that is what it feels like and I do make short films. There is a two hour cut available on video, but I have never scene it.
Nelly et M. Arnaud, is well worth watching, but I would not consider it a patch on L'enfer or Un Coeur en Hiver. The relationships between Emmanuelle and the other characters are explored in depth in an otherwise mundane script. Other than Emmanuelle the characters are very transparent in their motives and desires, which leaves little for the imagination to work with. Emmanuelle however appears complex full of conflicting desires, which in the end turn out to be quite shallow. The real failure in this film is it's like of twists and it's rather lame ending. I expected far more from Claude Sautet, having seen Un Coeur en Hiver, unfortunately the lameness of the script seems to have let him down. Having said that, do watch it as Emmanuelle is customarily ravishing and just watching her play out her character is pure pleasure.
Mission Impossible, well... it's high speed, big effects, great action, complex plot. It is also hard to follow, the characters are shallow (if they exist at all) and when you do figure out what the plot is, you are disappointed that it is so uninspired and frankly out of date (except for the gadgets). Lets face it any James Bond is ten times better than Tom Cruise in this "spy" film. Emmanuelle is just a pretty face in this film, but I think this is Tom Cruise's influence (as he even casts himself as just an action man). I am sure Emmanuelle is just as capable of doing a brilliant English speaking film as she is at doing french films. She would fit better into the English cinema than the American, but I guess she wants the money.
J'Embrasse Pas (I don't Kiss), This film has disappointingly few shots of Emmanuelle and is about a young boy, who having left home to become an actor in Paris, ends up prostituting himself for money. He meets Emmanuelle and falls in love at first sight, (he's not the first or the last!). Later on they end up, in the same prison cell (for prostitution) and he manages to win her over. Emmanuelle is ravishing in this film, but she only appears towards the end of quite a long film. The film is not to my tastes so I feel unable to give any comment as to how good it is.
Une Femme Francaise, A potent emotional film in which Emmanuelle plays the wife of an army officer during the war. She loves him dearly but finds herself drawn to other men and cannot stay faithfull. Her affairs destroy her husband; their marriage is held together by their children and the strength of their extended family. I think this film suffers from over acting and I will have to watch it a few more times to decide whether it is good or bad. It is certainly worth watching if only because of Emmanuelle's stunning beauty in a well shot film. For fan's of Date with an Angel, she is blonde in this film also. I would like to hear other people's criticisms of this film because I find myself unable to form a good opinion of the film despite the fact I find it hard to criticise.