Yvonne's Perfume

Adaptation of a novel by Patrick Modiano, "le parfum d'Yvonne" represents another Patrice Leconte's success. To make this film, the director drew from several elements dating from his previous movies. Thus, the doctor Meinthe (excellent Jean-Pierre Marielle) is very close to Michel Mortez in "Tandem" (1987) while Yvonne's sensual beauty evokes Mathilde's in "the hairdresser's wife" (1990). So, Leconte turned a novel into a personal movie.

This movie tells a past love story that brings on a deep nostalgia due to gorgeous summer pictures enhanced by a luminous photography. It's almost a poetic and dreamlike work. And however, this happiness is too good to be true. Indeed, behind this idle and free life, hide zones of shadows. Victor Chmara claims to Yvonne that he is a wealthy Russian earl but he's nothing of the sort. He's just a young man who fled Paris so as to avoid his military enlistment (we are in 1958 and at this time, it is the Algerian war). Moreover, he wants to go to the USA but Yvonne refuses because Victor can't speak English. So, she leaves him and there's this famous sentence that says: love stories, in general don't have a happy ending. It is true.

Leconte built his movie on a long flashback and he alternates the story with two of the main characters' current situation. From this moment, we can take down a strong contrast between the shiny pictures of a celebrated and distant summer and the dark photography to connote a dull present that shows the main characters' distress and bitterness (especially the doctor Meinthe).

A beautiful and bitter movie. If you are a fan of Patrice Leconte, don't miss this one.

Patrice Leconte is one of my favorite director. Although this film is not one of his best, it's still worth watching. It's burning with sensuality. Great characters: from the eccentric doctor René to the Marmaduke look-a-like dog. Good performances by Marielle, Girardot and Majani. Too bad it's her only film. This movie tells the story about two persons in love. But love, as every true movie fan will know, is not always the easiest thing. Verdict: not the best Leconte, but a very enjoyable way to spend 89 minutes.

Seen at home, in Toronto, on September 20th, 2005.

76/100 (**½)

As the audience of this movie you will drown into the atmosphere of boredom from three non-characters who are heading straight for the ending you all expect from the beginning. I still liked it though.

I have really no idea if I like this film for its good points, or to intensely dislike it for the bad ones. The title should have been, in my opinion, ' Villa Triste ' as it is not only a better title ( based on Patrick Modiano's novel ) but because who cares or knows what perfume Yvonne wears ? I only watched the film as I like Modiano's work, and as I have not read this specific one I hoped for better. I am convinced the book has more merit than Patrice Leconte's film. Bad things first. Sandra Majon was one of the most tepid actors I have ever seen, and in this film the passivity of Hippolyte Girardot's acting in a complex role was in my opinion quite simply lazy. And then there is a sad old homosexual played by Jean-Pierre Marielle that showed off every pathetic gesture that presumably the director thought every ageing homosexual should, or does have. The music is relentlessly soft focussed when it is not maudlin, and so is the camera work in far too many scenes. Now for the good points. It does have a few powerful scenes and to avoid spoilers the Algerian War raging in France in 1958 was sometimes put to the foreground and the regret of wasted and passing years movingly shown. I do not want to give away more except to say the ' erotic ' scenes were dull, and repetitious and totally unconvincing. I give it a 5 for an attempt to put a Modiano book on screen, and for the ambiguity of motives adequately conveyed. As I said my opinion of this film is in the balance, but with more thought probably veering towards the bad.

A truly beautiful film by Patrice Leconte. As usual Patrice Leconte provides us with a magnificent blend of a fine cast (a memorable performance by Jean-Pierre Marielle as Dr. Rene Meinthe), beautiful music and photography and a captivating story. A film less known than Patrice Leconte's "Le mari de la coiffeuse" but equally enjoyable.