I'm surprised that no-one has noticed that this isn't one film but several- several dozen, perhaps- all piled into one another. It;s a whole collection of post-war French films with assorted characters moving through them- a critique and a celebration of cinema and life. There's the road movie, the kooky teenagers film, the moral panic film, the corrupt local politics film, the love affair between a middle-aged man and a young girl film, the resistance film... and no doubt quite a few more. There's also the film about making a film where the makers' private lives reflect what happens on the set, several times over. There's also a lot of looks at reality and fantasy, morality and practicality. Blier may suggest that life is worth being thankful for- at least, Joelle is sad to lose it as she lies dying of AIDS in one version and regrets her ignorance- on the other hand, it ends with a long look at an old man who has soiled himself in a wheelchair by the sea. The old man is played by Jean Carmet though, and we've seen him acting an actor who wants to die on set. So, it's up to us whether life is something we should be grateful for.

I have, on occasion, praised Blier and probably I will do so again but not, I fear, this time. The box talks a good game throwing the names of Annie Girardot and Jean-Louis Trintignant around cavalierly, the implication clearly being they are featured players whereas in fact they merely provide cameos and arrive far too late to save what is at best an indulgence. True, Depardieu is on hand earlier and he is never bad despite being saddled with inept characterisation/dialogue etc. Charlotte Gainsbourg is never going to register on my personal radar but that's my problem not hers and she is in good company with the likes of Ludo Sagnier and Vanessa Paradis. Essentially what we have here is the sort of images we MIGHT see if we were able to see instead of just listen to a sea shell.

... and you get the film that made me understand what cinema was all about.

The simple story of two teenagers meeting at no time. The candid one, Camille, makes the audience, the more experienced one, Joelle, provides the story: in the 80s or 90s, a foolish lover decides to exploit her sickness (AIDS) to contaminate the male population of his provincial town and gain on the visits of his new patients... the clever man is a GP.

The story is made even more interesting when it suddenly jumps from one period of the 20th century to the other, France under occupation during the second world war. Whatever the period, the drama is the same.

What I liked so much in this film is the way Blier makes the last jump, when the film is no longer about the story but about the crew of the film. It is not only a simple effect, it goes on showing that life is a drama whatever the situation, that even if Joelle is an actress, still she can live the same drama.

The other great thing about this film is that you can't help comparing it with Blier's 'Les Valseuses', and read it as the story of friendship and liberty at two different times (70's for les valseuses). This is not just because of the story line, but is present at almost every shots. From the meeting of the two encounters to simple shots on the road, where both walk, one slower than the other, like an unbalanced pair.