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Games of Love and Chance

Play trailer Poster for Games of Love and Chance Released Nov 25, 2003 2h 3m Drama Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
78% Tomatometer 18 Reviews 72% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
In the slums of Paris, a group of students -- primarily North African and Southeast Asian immigrants -- are staging a class production of the Marivaux play "Le Jeu de l'Amour et du Hasard," about the inevitability of class distinctions. Lead actress Lydia (Sara Forestier) takes to the material, encouraging and bullying the other students to take the production seriously. Meanwhile, her friend Krimo (Osman Elkharraz) plays her love interest on stage and harbors real affection as well.

Critics Reviews

View All (18) Critics Reviews
Tom Keogh Seattle Times Mostly a monotonous din of kids trashing one another. Rated: 2.5/4 Oct 14, 2005 Full Review Frank Scheck The Hollywood Reporter It is a provocative and potentially rich premise, to be sure, but the execution here is somewhat lacking. Sep 16, 2005 Full Review A.O. Scott New York Times This graceful and sympathetic look at how the lives of teenagers intersect with a work of literature won several César awards in France. Rated: 4/5 Aug 31, 2005 Full Review David Walsh World Socialist Web Site At its best, and calmest, the film treats the lives of these kids, pariahs in the media and official French political life, with respect and seriousness. Feb 15, 2021 Full Review Erica Abeel Film Journal International Viewers here can't help but respond to the raw emotions and acting ability of the largely nonprofessional cast. Mar 1, 2007 Full Review Sean Axmaker Seattle Post-Intelligencer Abdellatif Kechiche's beautifully observed tale of high-school kids in the projects outside Paris... plays like a Cassavetes project in a fresh, young mode. Rated: B+ Oct 14, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (48) audience reviews
Audience Member long movie with no real ending. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 02/24/23 Full Review Audience Member Awesome film, what a great surprise! This films tells the story of a bunch of student forced to study an 18th century play by Marivaux. while the class is rehearsing reality come close to the play when Krimo falls for Lydia. It's a very smart film, very well done and brilliantly acted by a bunch of non professional kids that truly shine in this amazing film. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Un film sur les quartiers bien de chez nous. Ca crie, ca hurle des enchainements d'insultes a la seconde pour simplement se dire bonjour. C'est lourd ! Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member I had several problems with the film L'Esquive. There were some good things about it, but there were some things I could not get past. All of the problems I had with this movie were because the point of the movie was to be real, but there were parts that were not realistic. The thing that bothered me the most was the incessant arguing. I have no problem with the fact that they were arguing, but the way it was done was wrong. I felt like either side in an argument were just throwing out words rather than actually responding to what the other person was saying. It became apparent during the argument between Lydia and Frida. I noticed it in the dispute between the shop owner and Lydia at the beginning of the movie as well. There were several other parts that this happened including the confrontation of Magali and Lydia's friends. There was no attempt at debate. It was just shouting, and it did not seem very real to me. The arguing was such a large part of the movie, yet to me, it was not done very well. I also think it lacked any emotional connection to the characters and the audience. It really never developed the relationships between any of the characters in the movie except Lydia, Nanou, and Frida. However, those three were constantly fighting so it was still difficult to interpret their relationship. The relationship between those three was one that they all looked out for each other. None of the other characters seemed like they were that close. It did not describe how they met or why they are friends, other than the fact that they look after one another, but it never explained why they chose each other to be friends, and not any of the other people. Therefore, the audience lacked a connection to the characters. As a viewer, I felt distanced from the people in the movie. I think many people would say it was boring because you, as a viewer, were not involved. I could have cared less about the outcome of the relationship between Krimo and Lydia. It accomplishes some good things in its cinema verité style, but it is poorly executed in the end. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Audience Member C'est loin de nous laisser une belle image de la France, mais ça tient quand même le coup. Même si ça nous donne le goût de nous balader en France avec une bouteille de Tylénol dans sa poche (NIQUE TA MÈRE! NIQUE TA MÈRE! NIQUE TA MÈRE!), l'effet ressenti est assez intéressant. Le film, en soi-même, recèle beaucoup trop de longueurs, mais je suppose que c'est là un peu l'effet recherché par Kechiche. Toutefois, l'analyse de la pièce de Marivaux est assez sensée et l'interprétation qu'en font ces jeunes acteurs en dit long sur ce qui y est écrit entre les lignes. La fin m'a particulièrement plu. C'est loin d'être le pire film au monde, mais c'est encore plus loin d'être le meilleur. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Bon film sur les jeux de l'amour et du hasard dans une cité de banlieue, ou les principaux protagonistes montent une pièce de Marivaux pour le lycée, intéressant de voir le parallèle entre les deux et les tensions et relations entre amis, ex, filles/garçons, avec de jeunes acteurs très bons. Donc bien, mais il faut apprecier le contexte (la cité) et la culture qui s'y rattache. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Games of Love and Chance

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Movie Info

Synopsis In the slums of Paris, a group of students -- primarily North African and Southeast Asian immigrants -- are staging a class production of the Marivaux play "Le Jeu de l'Amour et du Hasard," about the inevitability of class distinctions. Lead actress Lydia (Sara Forestier) takes to the material, encouraging and bullying the other students to take the production seriously. Meanwhile, her friend Krimo (Osman Elkharraz) plays her love interest on stage and harbors real affection as well.
Director
Abdel Kechiche
Screenwriter
Abdel Kechiche
Distributor
New Yorker Films
Genre
Drama, Romance
Original Language
Canadian French
Release Date (Theaters)
Nov 25, 2003, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Aug 26, 2005
Release Date (DVD)
Aug 23, 2005
Box Office (Gross USA)
$6.2K
Runtime
2h 3m