Juliette Binoche is an actress capable of deep and moving performances in the finest movies of our times. Her work with Kieslowski, Carax, Téchiné and now Leconte, Haneke and Boorman has given us the modern cinematic equivalent of Garbo - a melancholic enigma.
So it was a huge surprise to see her in a French language Romantic comedy with Jean Reno. The result? Well Decalage Horaire or Jet Lag will never be mentioned with her finest movies, it is not a 'great' contribution to cinema, but it is an expertly crafted and performed piece of fluff with Binoche playing against type as a cheap and tarty beautician with winning results. In this 'movie star' mode she could give Julia Roberts and Meg Ryan a run for their money. As Rose she is funny and touching, while Reno as Felix provides all the right ingredients for her to bounce off, and their> chemistry is extremely successful. the film has its limits and at times it is a tad over the top, but with a mega watt movie star in her film Thompson can not go wrong.
I hope Binoche will return to what she does best, daring, difficult and complex portrayals of modern women, but in the meantime Jet Lag is a welcome distraction...
So it was a huge surprise to see her in a French language Romantic comedy with Jean Reno. The result? Well Decalage Horaire or Jet Lag will never be mentioned with her finest movies, it is not a 'great' contribution to cinema, but it is an expertly crafted and performed piece of fluff with Binoche playing against type as a cheap and tarty beautician with winning results. In this 'movie star' mode she could give Julia Roberts and Meg Ryan a run for their money. As Rose she is funny and touching, while Reno as Felix provides all the right ingredients for her to bounce off, and their> chemistry is extremely successful. the film has its limits and at times it is a tad over the top, but with a mega watt movie star in her film Thompson can not go wrong.
I hope Binoche will return to what she does best, daring, difficult and complex portrayals of modern women, but in the meantime Jet Lag is a welcome distraction...