Bons baisers de France

I love this film. The scene in which Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline first hop in the stolen car in Paris tickles me every time. While she is berating him for involving her in his (mis)adventures, she turns to look at him and misses what would be a wonderful tour of Paris as all the major landmarks of Paris go by on the passenger side of the car. Love the director's sense of humor. As for Kline's French accent, I have studied in France and have a good ear (if I do say so myself), and was very impressed with Kline's regional accent ("way", for example, rather than "we" for 'oui'). As for it being a pat romantic comedy, well, of course - suppose it had been Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn, would anybody have complained?

Along with several other friends, we spent 2 weeks in the south of France (Provence) in 1998, so this nice romantic comedy has an inside track to our affections. Ryan's fiancee (Tim Hutton), doctor, goes to France on business, later calls and says he has fallen for a French girl and isn't coming back. Ryan didn't go with him because of her fear of flying. However, this news gets her on the plane, she is resolved to win him back.

She becomes seated next to a typical rude Frenchman (Kline) on the plane, he is smuggling a grape vine and an expensive necklace into France, puts it is her knapsack to clear customs. They get separated at the airport, but he catches up with her at the hotel she told him she would be at. However, she fainted when she saw her finacee with the Frenchie, and her luggage and knapsack are stolen by a professional thief that Klein happens to know. He finds the thief, the knapsack, the grapevine, but no necklace. Ryan takes off for Nice and Cannes to find Hutton. Klein follows her.

She has lactose intolerance, eats too much cheese on the train, they have to stop in a small town, which happens to be Klein's hometown. They meet some relatives, he shows her his dream of his vineyard. In Cannes they meet up with Hutton, he is amazed at what a changed person she is, she realizes it was through knowing Klein that she grew out of her shell, the stolen necklace ends up around her neck, she turns it in to the police, gets her $45,000 life savings wired from home, gives it to Klein pretending it was from sale of the necklace to Cartier.

Since she was between foresaking her American citizenship and applying for Canadian citizenship, but her passport and papers were lost, and she is a woman without a nation, she stays in France with Klein. This movie confirms my opinion that Kevin Klein is perhaps the best comedic actor alive, and even sings the closing song, sounding much like maurice Chevalier. The reparte' between him and Ryan is just so much fun. Ryan plays basically the same character she usually does, typified by her role in "When Harry Met Sally", but she always does a fine job. This movie is so much fun, and so well done, I rate it "8" of 10.

This was one of the best comedies of the 1990s - with While You Were Sleeping, There's Something about Mary, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Flirting with Disaster, perhaps When Harry Met Sally or Sleepless in Seattle.

It's a charming movie. I'm not particularly a Meg Ryan fan - (funny that I just named two of her movies in a top comedy list!). She's at her best here.

The movie is funny but has more heart than most comedies - the scenes with Luc's family are lovely and memorable - not at all overdone, just right. The movie's at its best when the principals are all together at Cannes - it becomes less humorous but very warmly romantic. The characters are so well written - there is even sympathy for Timothy Hutton's character. The chemistry between Ryan and Kline (which I wouldn't have believed before I saw it) is very much there. By the time Kevin Kline is singing La Mer over the last of the closing credits (after Louis Armstrong has sung La Vie en Rose), you'll want to see it again.

Kevin Kline is just magnificent - a quite real,interesting, amusing person is created. The Meg Ryan character's primness is irritating - but then one must see why Timothy Hutton found her so (comically, the movie's idea of primness is that she was deflowered at 18 not 13!).

You'll like it.

This is an excellent film. I have seen it several times since it's release and never tire of it. Other than the adult theme it would have been suitable for family viewing. Well casted, and a good mix of both romance and comedy. The casual observer may not catch the best part of the movie, it's soundtrack. Kevin Kline does an outstanding vocal rendition of La Mer. Cole Porter, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Van Morrison, and others.. How could one ignore this gem?

To begin with, Meg Ryan's fear of flying and the procedures she goes through to deal with it are cute. And the relationship with Meg and Timothy Hutton is entirely believable.

Once she is on the plane, going to Paris, Kevin Kline appears and introduces himself and distracts her from the takeoff. Kevin Kline really proves himself in this movie, or at least shows how good he is at accents. I was a French major in college and have been to Paris and seen much of France. His mannerisms are right on.

The things that happen once they are in Paris are 1) funny and 2) move the story along. The train trip that they have to take is another enjoyable section. And Meg learns that she really likes the cheese!

Once she sees the vineyard and begins to learn more about Kevin Kline's character, the story gets under way nicely. All in all, it's a very enjoyable time.