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Liam D A Great Performance by Juliette Binoche (Dan in Real Life, Clouds of Sils Maria) in a very underrated movie Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 12/03/22 Full Review danny l Very realistic, excellent actors and the disturbance of Juliette Binoche is marvellous. It also helps understanding the life of some young sex-workers, even if the story is (most probably) very romanticised. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Juliette Binoche is the greatest European actress in an age when the European cinema does not exist already. Rated 1.5/5 Stars •  Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Ma?gorzata Szumowska's study of female sexuality gets bit lost as it moves forward, but once it remembers to return to focus on Juliette Binoche it leaves a sting. The story concerns an upper-middle class Parisian journalist, Binoche, who pursues her magazine editor's assignment that causes her to re-evaluate not only her marriage but herself. Binoche is quite amazing in the role, but this is nothing new for an actor of her caliber. The other actors are all competent, but none possesses the charisma and presence that Binoche is able to utilize to great impact when Szumowska and Tine Byrckels' script fails to articulate what she is required to show us. The main problem with this film is the director's determination to explore the professional lives of the young women Binoche's character decides to interview and ultimately even follow in pursuit of a story about immigrants and prostitution. We waste time behind doors with these young women and their "johns' and "boyfriends" --- and Szumowska seems to be confused if she it striving to make a valid commentary about prostitution or is she is more interested in simply being provocative. When it comes to the two younger female characters, it often feels a bit like a late night cable attempt at "edgy" erotica. It doesn't work or sever the film well. The real power of the film is the impact of both the exploitation of these women and strange mix of pity and jealousy of these two near-broken lives. Binoche's "Anne" is both repulsed and attracted to the idea of being paid for sex. The girls' stories serve as a sort of disturbing eroticism for her. She begins to project their adventures on to her marriage and life which she has become bored. When the film focuses here, it is amazing. As the film nears its end we see Anne slip into fantasy at an awkward dinner party. Anne is desperate for more, but she may or may not be smart enough to realize that these new "desires" are mired within a degrading objectification of female as "sexual receptacle." These girls are more than that. As is Anne. But our director is smart enough not to give too much away regarding how Anne will re-assert her sexual identity. I can't help but wonder if part of this film's problem has to do with the fact it has been written from the viewpoint of French as Second Language artists. Maybe something gets lost in translation. The sex scenes feel out of place and more graphic than required. But Juliette Binoche is an endlessly fascinating actor -- it is her performance that keeps us watching and saves the movie. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review don s I love Juliette Binoche. She is so earthy and believable. She plays a reporter who is doing a story on prostitutes, getting in-depth with them to the point of fantasizing about the stories they tell and becoming aroused by the girls themselves. Not as much nudity as you'd imagine for a NC-17 rating, which the movie clearly does not deserve. The whole thing is barely watchable though because the story moves too slowly and the girls and their johns just aren't as interesting as Binoche finds them.. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Critics and viewers alike didn't enjoy this film. Well guys it's not one to enjoy and it offers no easy conclusions. Juliette goes large on the risk taking here: there's a lot of nasty sex shown here, and lots of confusion and despair for her character. It's not comfortable to watch and there are no simple outcomes. The main character is destabilised by her encounters with two young student prostitutes. Their stories are told explicitily. She loses any sense of her own place in her marriage and with her children, and sees all male-female relationships in the context of sex and exploitation. The time frame of the movie is skewed, with the events of a single day enveloping a larger tale. Not a bad movie, but a difficult one. Thanks, Juliette. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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