Happy ending with obstacles

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Movie
German title Happy ending with obstacles
Original title Ils se marièrent et eurent beaucoup d'enfants
Country of production France
original language French
Publishing year 2004
length 106 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Yvan Attal
script Yvan Attal
production Claude Berri ,
Pierre Grunstein ,
Nathalie Rheims
music Christian Chevallier ,
Brad Mehldau
camera Remy Chevrin
cut Jennifer Augé
occupation

Happy ending with obstacles (original title: Ils se marièrent et eurent beaucoup d'enfants ) is a French comedy film directed by Yvan Attal from 2004 .

action

The film deals with the lives of three friends in their mid-forties. The focus is on Vincent, who loves his wife and son, but still has a lover who is also very important to him. His friend Georges always argues with his wife Nathalie, the marriage is in a kind of permanent crisis, which heats up the mood between the two and gives the marriage a kick. Another friend of Vincent, Fred, is a womanizer, but he longs for a family, for a woman who is waiting for him at home. So everyone is a little jealous of the other's life.

Gabrielle meets a stranger in a music store with whom she is flirting. However, she misses the chance to speak to him, and so he disappears, leaving her depressed. A little later it is revealed that her husband Vincent is cheating on her. It also becomes clear that Gabrielle knows this, even though he has not yet told her.

The plot jumps back and forth between different time levels. This is how you see Gabrielle, who offers her own apartment as a broker. She remembers Vincent picking up his son from Gabrielle's apartment for the weekend, which is then obviously his ex-wife. Then Gabrielle recalls an even earlier time when she lived in the apartment with Vincent. So they eat together, suddenly they throw food at each other and start a pillow fight. In the apartment you can see numerous traces of food on the walls. The spouses love each other in bed.

Gabrielle then goes on vacation alone with her son. She explains her situation to a stranger with whom she has flirted before, but to whom she also makes it clear that she does not want to cheat on her husband as well. Back at home, she continues to emancipate herself from her husband and also looks for a house in the country.

Vincente's lover meets Gabrielle by chance and realizes who she is. She is very upset - which is why she later tells Vincent that the situation has become unbearable for her.

Gabrielle and Vincent move into the house in the country, but he continues to meet with his lover.

Georges and his wife understand by mutual agreement that the quarrels are keeping their marriage alive and are content with it. Fred learns that he is going to be a father, and although he does not love the woman, he looks forward to having his child.

Gabrielle meets the stranger in the elevator to whom she is supposed to show an apartment. They go up together; first you can see the walls of the house in the background, then the sky, which suggests that everything happens only in Gabrielle's imagination or that the journey symbolically leads into a “heavenly” future. Gabrielle and the stranger end up kissing.

background

The film was shot in Paris and Marrakech . The costumes were designed by Jacqueline Bouchard . The film had its world premiere on May 14, 2004 at the Cannes Film Festival . On September 14, 2004, it was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival . The film also ran in individual cinemas in the United States, where it grossed around 252,000 US dollars . In France it had a total of around 881,000 cinema viewers.

Reviews

Ruthe Stein wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle of June 17, 2005 that the film asks the same questions as An Immoral Offer , but that the answers are far more realistic. The role of the character played by Emmanuelle Seigner is said to be badly written or she is exaggerating with her play; it gives the film the wrong note.

The lexicon of international films wrote that the film was a "lively to biting comedy" that was "intelligently developed". The actors are convincing.

Rotten Tomatoes said the film was well portrayed but lacked wit and charm.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The elevator is only permitted for three people, this could be an indication that this will not be an "affair", as your son is included as the third person.
  2. ↑ cf. imdb.com
  3. ^ Critique by Ruthe Stein
  4. ↑ Happy ending with obstacles. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  5. ↑ Rotten Tomatoes