Very Opposite Sexes (2002) User Reviews

Four funny, revealing stories of dissolving relationships

[ALB · 8/10 · 8 March 2003]

This romantic comedy is probably one of the very few to focus on the dissolution of relationships.

Using the format of interview segments spliced with flashbacks, several stories unfold: older woman seduces younger man; professor pursues student; extremely attractive woman pairs with insecure man, etc.

Showing the views of the two partners back to back reveals how the same events can look differently to the two participants. The juxtaposition is revealing, and quite funny in several instances. At a screening in Philadelphia, viewers were asked whether the film seemed optimistic or pessimistic. The nearly evenly divided response seems exactly what writer-director Eric Assous intended.

"Love" in the megacity

[mookie-1 · 8/10 · 23 November 2002]

Paris, the city of two million with a surrounding area of another eight million, is the setting for this film. Director Eric Assous wanted to make a film which shows love according to the real statistics of the real world, rather than the typical Hollywood (or Bollywood) film where boy meets girl and they live happily ever after.

"One main difference between a French film and an Americian film," Assous said "is in a French film everything is possible while in an Americian film it's always the same."

In this "documentary" (done in a similar way as "Une liason pornographique"), we see four relationships; the beautiful beginning, the boring middle and the inevitable rapture.

The personages which Assous use are the extreme personages which one could find in any megacity, be it Paris, London, New York City or Shanghai. In three of the four relationships, we see a "social have" (for whom love comes easy, partners are easy to find and easy to dispose of) and a "social have-not" (those who get tampled upon by the "social have"). In one of the four relationships, we see intellect (or really, the image thereof) go up against non-intellect.

Thus, what happens when: 1) a "successful" businesswoman of around 40 years old seduces an unemployed and unconfident 28 year old; 2) a lonely and obsessive 39 year-old IT worker comes up against a very beautiful 28 year old estate agent; 3) a nice but "failed" woman of 33 meets the man of her dreams and 4) the literature teacher (51) who tries to "change" his young and very opposite of 26.

We see here the brutal side of love, the side which often ignored, even made into a taboo. Love has two sides, the beautiful side where we all feel so happy and the horrible brutal side -- this film opens us to that brutal and uncomprimising side.

"Don't think there is one person who can make you happy," the support-group moderator tells the support group of broken hearts.

"This film is based upon the statistics," Assous said. "It tells the other side of the story."

Assous has been writing scripts for many years now, his work is quite varied (he's done TV scripts as well) and his partner Véronique Boulanger gives a very impressive performance as the sweet and loving Gabrielle who has "failed" in life.

Whether this is a sad film or an optimistic film, Assous leaves that up to the viewer. In any case, it's a very impressive example of why the French cinema is so unique, unlike the film factories known as Hollywood or Bollywood.