FREDERIC FONTEYNE
Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBBB.
Original title: Un Liaison Pornographique
Alternate title: A Pornographic Affair
Intellectual French film about a middle-aged woman (Nathalie Baye) who puts an ad in an adult magazine for someone who will indulge her in a fantasy that is never disclosed to the audience. The man who answers her ad (Sergi López) turns out to be worth even more than she’d asked for, and they start a relationship that goes from sexual to sensual. The film’s device of having the two characters narrate the tale of their relationship from a future standpoint is annoyingly contrived and slows the mood down, but the beautiful dialogue between what start out as nervous strangers and end up close friends is something well worth remembering. The film never shows the inside of their frequently used hotel room until the first time they actually make love (as opposed to whatever her secret fantasy was), examining the fascinating issue of sexuality and questioning whether it really is possible for human beings to have sexual experiences with absolute, complete detachment. Wonderful French cinema, with all the classy subtleties we love about that, plus magnificent performances from the gorgeous Baye and the very charismatic Lopez.
ARP Sélection, Artémis Productions, Canal+, Centre du Cinéma et de l’Audiovisuel de la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, Eurimages, Fama Film AG, Fonds National de Soutien à la Production Audiovisuelle du Luxembourg, Les Productions Lazennec, Radio Télévision Belge Francophone, Samsa Film, Schweizer Fernsehen, Wallons.
France/Switzerland/Belgium/Luxembourg, 1999.
Screenplay by Philippe Blasband.
Cinematography by Virginie Saint-Martin.
Produced by Patrick Quinet, Rolf Schmid, Claude Waringo.
Music by Andre Dziezuk, Marc Mergen, Jeannot Sanavia.
Production Design by Veronique Sacrez.
Costume Design by Anne Schotte.
Film Editing by Chantal Hymans.
