Gentille

Just seen this at the London Film Festival. While Gentille does have its moments of genuine humour and gentle pathos, it feels like four or five films stitched together. The writer- director seems uncertain which of many possible stories she wants to tell and ends up developing none of them. Emmanuelle Devos works hard at turning her lead role into something meaty, but she is confounded by the film-maker's lack of conviction and apparent tentativeness over what the film is really about. Is it a mid-life crisis? A sex comedy? A study of intimacy - or of insanity? Well, it seems it's all these things and less.

Many of the characters come and go in piecemeal fashion, never properly introduced, abandoned almost as soon as they have entered the stage. The film's best bits put together might make an enjoyable short, but it wouldn't give the viewer any further insight into the main protagonist's mindset.

The result is a pleasant, harmless but ultimately dissatisfying and rather whimsical character study; like snacking on several entrées but not having a full meal.