REVIEW: La Belle Personne (2009)

In this wistful reimagining of Madame de Lafayette’s La Princesse de Clèves, director Christophe Honoré’s La Belle Personne transplants forbidden love and courtly intrigue from 17^th century France to a modern, high school setting. After her mother dies, Junie (Léa Seydoux) transfers schools and captures the hearts of the introverted Otto (Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet) and the fickle lothario, Professor Nemours (Louis Garrel). When an anonymous love letter rumored to have been written by Nemours surfaces, scandal ensues leading to unexpectedly dire consequences. Like his acclaimed Les Chansons d’Amour (2007) starring Garrel and Ludvine Sagnier, Honoré excels at using music and poetry to capture the existential malaise of young adulthood. However, once Nemours enters the scene, the focus unfortunately shifts to his unrequited, overblown passion for Junie as the promising interplay between the close-knit circle of friends takes a backseat. While Honoré’s romantic film eventually becomes mired in melodrama, the enigmatic Seydoux — a Anna Karina for the 21^st century set — stands out as a refreshingly thoughtful French heroine whose mother’s death inadvertently causes ripples in her life. (Liesl Swanbeck)

Opens at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas on Friday, September 4th.