Le temps de l'aventure (2013) Reviews

• Lovely movie. A must-see for Devos admirers

  eyeforbeauty2014-04-04

  I found this to be much better than other reviews had led me to expect. It's not a film that offers a moral or any special psychological insight. But it is very colorful, intelligent, and involving, I thought. (It is also VERY funny in spots!) This is a film that offers a quite life-like portrait of two people at a particular juncture in their lives. There's nothing spectacularly memorable in the plot, but it offers its portrait in a very lovely, rewarding way. Emmanuelle Devos is just wonderful in this. I've seen her in at least a dozen previous films, but I felt like I was only really seeing her in film for the very first time in this movie, so full and present was her role and performance. So I'd say for fans and admirers of Devos, this film is a must-see. As for Gabriel Byrne, I strongly disagree with reviews that suggest his performance was expressionless or monotone. He is after all playing a character who is genuinely bereaved, and he does convey a grim stoicism appropriate to such a situation. But that only serves to make the moments when he conveys notably different emotions even more affecting. The characters played by Devos and Byrne are not the sole characters in the film, by the way, and this is not at all a film that takes place statically in just one location (which was the impression I had gained from reviews), so the film also offers varied scenery and a lively sprinkling of encounters with other personages.

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• Drawn to Love

  flickadill2014-10-02

  What pulls us to another human being, to share all the intimacies of touch, pain, and desires? And if we are drawn to someone else, what would it feel like to just follow that desire and allow ourselves to yield, without resistance? There are times in our lives when we just want someone to care for us and hold us. Alix and Douglas are inexplicably drawn to each other, during a time for each of them that is especially lonely and difficult. Though it appears out of character for both of them, they embrace the attraction. The emotions in this lovely film are deeply felt and communicated. Alix is feeling particularly unmoored due to the failure of everyday technology, which contributes to a confusing distance from her boyfriend. Doug is experiencing the loss of love and innocence. It seems magical that they are able to find each other, comfort each other, and give each other just a bit of strength to return to their lives. Others have said there are no great morals or lessons in this movie. I think this is a movie that shows perfectly the impact we can have on another human being, if we take the chance to see each other as creatures in need of love.

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• Brief Encounter

  searchanddestroy-12013-04-27

  I went to watch this feature only because there was nothing else interesting released this week in movie theatres. I could not have watched for instance IRON MAN 3 crap, even for a million bucks. I am only human. So, I decided to watch this one. It's not my type pf film, but this sort of tale is from time to time interesting to watch. The scheme of a man and a woman meet aboard a train. Of course, anyone could think of David Lean's BRIEF ENCOUNTER. It reminds me another french movie from 1999: UNE LIAISON PORNOGRAPHIQUE, starring Nathalie Baye and Sergi Lopez. This film is made in a very touching and realistic way. Emmenuelle Devos is here at her best, although I don't like her face. But that doesn't prevent her to be a very good actress, poignant, impressive at the most. A really good film.

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• Typical talky French film describing a relationship

  Andy-2962014-01-22

  A typical talky French film describing a romantic relationship between a man and a woman. Perhaps the unusual here is that the two main actors are older than usual. Gabriel Byrne was more than 60 years old when he filmed this; Emmanuelle Devos almost 50 (both look a bit younger than their years). She is a struggling French theater actress, He is an Englishman traveling to France to say goodbye to a dear friend, though we never get to know much more than that about him. They met on the train though at that time they did not talk to each other; in Paris, she finds him again by chance outside a church during a funeral. She decides to crash the funeral, and then follows him to his hotel; she insinuates herself into his hotel room where they soon have sex, even if they barely know each other. With time, we learn more about the Devos character: she has a boyfriend in Paris she is trying to contact to tell him some very important news to no avail. The Devos character is flaky and difficult, but she is not completely unlikable. The Gabriel Byrne character, on the other hand is a cipher, as the actor has an expressionless look throughout the movie: this is possible the worst flaw of the film. There are a couple of fine scenes that has little to do with the plot: in the best one, we see her during an audition. The soundtrack has some fine classical music, though it has no relation to the plot or the movie.

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• this film was great!

  jeff-ham672014-05-09

  Yes, I have seen movies with this exact same plot, but this film is constructed so well that it keeps me guessing as to the main character's, Alix's, motivation for beginning the affair, and thus sustains my interest in watching the relationship unfold until the end. The cinematography was beautiful. I think Gabriel Byrne was hard to believe in his role, but only because I have seen him in so many action driven/ plot device driven films that the subtle, understated twist and turns of this movie seemed a mismatch for him. I loved the introduction of the family drama. What I could have done without was the constant phone calls but even they grew on me. Emmanuelle Devos was incredible and carried her part off well. I would whole heartedly recommend this movie. It is not simply a romance but a complete dramatic character study.

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