The Apartment (L'appartement)
Max is on his way to Tokyo. He lives in Paris and likes to flirt but has decided to get married. By chance, he seems to have seen Lisa, his greatest love, in a cafe. Max forgets everything, his trip to Tokyo and his fiance. Obsessed with meeting Lisa he finds out where she lives and hides in the apartment. However, a different girl, called Alice, finds Max in the flat. Alice looks quite similar to Lisa, and they have sex. To complicate matters further, Alice is also the girlfriend of Max's buddy Lucien and Lisa is followed by an older man.
Member Reviews
Angelina Jolie doesn't have anything on Monica Bellucci! - Jujubes
I saw Josh Harnett & Diane Kruger's remake before I saw this original version and the ending is different. The original opens with the most telling scene (which explains the core character's personality and his choices) and a lot less predictable than the remake. You cannot compete when Monica Bellucci is in the movie (and I am saying this as a straight woman ;-)
The characters are all flawed, at times not so likeable (each had done something bad), and I had a hard time accepting Max's choice at the end (even though the opening scene, if you pay attention, would explain the way he acts). For once I actually would have loved a happy ending which I normally hate in typical Hollywood movies, but this is Monica Bellucci!!!
The only thing I can say that the remake did better was Rose Byrne...she's a hell lot more attractive than the one in the French version. I had a hard time having the movie tell me that the wannabe looked like Monica Bellucci. Not by a long shot!! Other than that, the movie is interesting, at least it's original.Hitchcock lite - luminol
The film opens in a Jewelry. Max has got the choice narrowed down to three rings. The jeweler coyly assigns an alluring feminine personality to each diamond ring---a careful observer will notice these are also perfect descriptions of the three women in the story. He's got an important business deal in Japan. On the way to the airport; he has a business meeting in a cafe, during this same meeting he decides which ring he wants. He runs downstairs to the telephone to confirm his choice with the Jeweler. It's occupied. While in the washroom, he thinks he overhears the voice of a girlfriend from his past (a lumious Monica Belluci in an early screen role---she met future hubbie Vincent Cassel during this shoot) Is this just cold feet or has he really stumbled across the illusive Lisa who vanished without a trace from his life two years earilier? With nothing but a hotel key, he abandons work and his future wife to find her.
The film is a stylish mystery romance with the director delighting in walking the audience through his twisting, turning hall of mirrors. Despite the ages of the men in the story, emotionally they're still petulant adolescents; where love is just another prize in the cracker jack box. The story is also a testament to Alice's perseverce, the film would have been much stronger had it featured more of her motivations. Interestingly enough, the Zip page recommends several Hitchcock films, this film contains several visual quotes and themes from his films.
Member Reviews
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Angelina Jolie doesn't have anything on Monica Bellucci! - Jujubes
I saw Josh Harnett & Diane Kruger's remake before I saw this original version and the ending is different. The original opens with the most telling scene (which explains the core character's personality and his choices) and a lot less predictable than the ...Hitchcock lite - luminol
The film opens in a Jewelry. Max has got the choice narrowed down to three rings. The jeweler coyly assigns an alluring feminine personality to each diamond ring---a careful observer will notice these are also perfect descriptions of the three women in the ...