5X2

RATING 2.5

(Director: Francois Ozon, R, 90 min, English subtitles)

In the beginning of the film, we see a couple getting a divorce. From the way they treat each other, it's obvious that Gilles (Stéphane Freiss) and Marion (Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi) don't belong together. The movie then goes backward in time to show that Gilles and Marion have always had issues they overlooked. In one vignette, Gilles talks about his infidelity in front of their company during a dinner party, in another he makes himself scarce while Marion is in the hospital delivering their son.

But just in case you think all the problems are Gilles' fault, you see Marion sneaking out on her wedding night to get some action because hubby passed out before consummation. It's interesting to note how even their wedding ceremony lacks romantic vows - instead they read the lawyer-lingo articles of the wedding contract - it's so impersonal, you already don't believe love is involved. The most telling encounter shows how the two met - on holiday, only Gilles is there with his girlfriend, Valérie (Géraldine Pailhas). It's the start of a not-so-beautiful love affair.

These two characters are hard to like: Gilles is a jerk who thrives on power trips and has a pattern of having affairs and then blaming it on his partner for "forcing him into the arms of another woman" - so he doesn't have to take responsibility for his actions. Marion seems to place herself in situations where she has to struggle, then submit to the will of a man - she's so passive and totally vulnerable to men like Gilles. By the end of the movie, you've had enough of both of them.

The problem with deconstructing this particular relationship is that almost nothing is shown to justify why they ever stayed together as long as they did. Except for when they're having their affair on the beach, they don't look happy. They both exhibit a loving relationship with their son, Nicolas, but you don't get the feeling that either of these two would be unselfish enough to stay together "for the sake of the child".

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Movie Chick Cherryl:
"Telling a story with reverse chronology is a device that should only be used to make a good story better, but this isn't much of a story to begin with. We get that their marriage was in trouble from the beginning; how can you build trust on a rocky foundation? The story never delves deep enough into the characters to really say anything significant - 2.5"