ags123
Five episodes in a married couple's life, presented backwards. No special effects. Plenty of sex. What a blessed relief to come across an adult film for a change. Actually, every film by Francois Ozon is adult in nature, whether he's having pure fun (8 Women), playing mind games (Swimming Pool), or here, in a character driven story like "5X2." Its success depends heavily on a great script and great performances, and all are in evidence. The couple first appear to be unlikable, but the more we learn about them, the more sympathetic they become. The film gets sunnier (literally and figuratively) as it regresses all the way to a bittersweet ending - their happiest moment that we know won't last. Ozon respects the audience's intelligence. He doesn't spell everything out for us. There's much to ponder and debate after the film is over. My only criticism is all that smoking. Haven't the French gotten over that yet? Smart use of Paolo Conte's haunting song "Sparring Partner." Beautifully done.
Claudio Carvalho
The end and beginning of the love of the French couple Marion (Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi) and Gilles (Stéphane Freiss) is disclosed backwards through five moments in their lives: 1st moment: They divorce and have one last brutal intercourse without love.2nd moment: With their relationship shaken, they have a dinner party with Gilles's gay brother Christophe (Antoine Chappey) and his younger mate, when an infidelity is disclosed at the dinner table.3rd moment: The troubled pregnancy of Marion and the delivery of their premature son Nicolas, with the total absence of Giles.4th moment: Their wedding, when Marion commits adultery with an unknown guest of the hotel.5th moment: .When they meet each other in an Italian resort and begin their relationship.This simple and realistic movie recalls "Irreversible" (2002), since the screenplay discloses five moments of the relationship of a couple chronologically backwards. I believe the first intention of François Ozon is to remember that behind every divorce, there is a couple that loved each other in the past, that decided to marry each other expecting to live together and raise a family of their own. However, relationships usually deteriorate and time destroys everything including love. In these fragmented glimpses of the lives of Marion and Gilles, the viewer does not see exactly when their love ended, but after their initial encounter, there are many signs suggesting the beginning of the end: the adultery of Marion in the wedding night; the absence of Gilles in the birth of his son; his consented participation in an orgy in the presence of Marion, visibly showing one sort of last attempt to save their empty marriage. Further to the good screenplay, the outstanding and strong performances of the sexy Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi and Stéphane Freiss give the credibility to the characters. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Amor em 5 Tempos" ("Love in 5 Times")
dwpollar
So-so drama about a relationship that goes bad(kind of). The movie starts with the divorce papers being signed and then goes backwards all the way to their first encounter together. This awkward style is actually pulled off pretty well by director and writer Francois Ozon but what's wrong with the movie is that you don't really understand why things started in the first place and why it ended the way it did. There are hints, but nothing is really spelled out. It's more a chronicle of what happened with very little detail on the why's. This might work if the viewer cared about the characters but Ozon does very little in the area of background with the people involved in the story. With no depth in the characters, it is a very flat experience for the viewer. I'm usually impressed with European films because of their focus on the characters but this one didn't do anything for me despite Ozon's critically-acclaimed background.
leplatypus
This movie wasted my time. Writing this review will not repeat this & I hope it will be useful for any potential viewers to know what they risk:The story is a reverse romance: from the ending to the meeting! But the morality of the couple is very loose: from rape to cheating (on wedding day!), among group sex or missing the child birth...Here's the menu delivered by a French "culturally correct" director.What's bothering me is the lack of his involvement: what's his message ? Maybe he dares to see what can happen under the veneer of relationships, but he offers no solution when bad things comes...Every one could have tell the same things. For a "talented" director, the audience can ask for more: so easy thus so forgettable !
AD
