Un Homme Et Une Femme (A Man And A Woman)(1966)

Does Anyone Make A Love Story More Stylishly Than The French ?
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The year 1966 was important for various historical reasons, be it political, sporting or cultural. The first American bombs fell on Hanoi, England won the soccer World Cup, the Beatles and the Beach Boys released their groundbreaking albums "Revolver" and "Pet Sounds" respectively. Amidst all this history, a little known French director, Claude Lelouch and his film "A Man And A Woman" won the Cannes Film Festival Grand Prize and later the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

Lelouch could hardly have picked a more attractive pair of actors for his lead roles. The breathtakingly stunning imagery of the close-ups and the impressionistic look of the director's brilliant camera work make Jean-Louis Trintignant and Anouk Aimee even more radiant and appealing than the viewer could have even imagined. Financial contraints might have forced Lelouch to shoot part of the film in black and white but he somehow manages to pull if off and the viewers are given a visual treat.

The critics of the film have always complained about its emphasis on style over substance. The oversimplified love story where two single parents who have both lost their respective spouses in violent circumstances, so easily meet and fall in love while visiting their children's boarding school has never been universally accepted. Perhaps, the timing of the film, released during the French New Wave film movement might have brought unfair comparisons to other French directors of the era with more complex stories to showcase.

Lelouch and his film could never compare with the likes of Jean-Luc Godard's "Masculin Feminin"(1966) or even Francois Truffaut's "Jules Et Jim"(1962" in the male-female relationship genre. Even if this film cannot be considered genre breaking in the French New Wave movement, the style of the director alone makes it a worthwhile watch. The story of a race car driver and a film script girl might at times be in love with itself and that clearly shows but maybe that is precisely what the director was trying to do.

The MTV style images might look more at home in a French music video but the film still has a lot going for it. The omnipresent music by Francis Lai has been an international sensation since its release all those years ago. This grown up love story, if that is the best way to describe the film deals with parenthood, career, past loves and losses and the anxious prospect of a new and unknown relationship. Lelouch has to be given credit for trying to juggle all these complex issues in an easy to understand love story. One thing is for certain that he makes no excuses for his style of work and seems to having fun doing it. The biggest appeal of the film might that with the title of "A Man And A Woman", the viewer might think they know what the story is all about but would want to see just how it unfolds anyway.