Coeurs (Private Fears in Public Places)

This Alain Resnais film tells a story about loneliness and truly is very sad and you’ll feel really sad while seeing it and afterwards. Gee, been a long time that I haven’t seen a movie so sad!

There are six people looking for love but their romantic aspirations are dashed at every turn. Resnais not only tells a sad story but also sets the story in constantly snowing Paris, which made me think that I have never been in Paris for winter and after feeling this terrible loneliness (typical of all large cities) I think I will never go in the winter!

But, seeing all the snow even indoors, as he uses it to denote the coldness of the situation, is just beautiful. Even if the movie is sad, visually is very beautiful. Think that I never wrote the word “sad” so many times, but don’t get me wrong the movie is quite good and there is no tears here. Is just that the director marvelously succeeded to transfer to the viewer the most unbearable loneliness feeling and that for me that is soooo sad!

Anyway the movie is based in the in the 67th stage-play by British Alan Ayckbourn and at moments has the total feel of a play, especially when the camera goes above the set to find that there is no ceiling, which of course is done on purpose and is a great effect to minimize the set and the actors, consequently accentuating the feeling of total loneliness.

The movie has extraordinary cinematography and most sets are just incredibly beautiful like the brother and sister apartment or even the bar at the hotel.

The ensemble cast do great performances and here we find Laura Morante, Lambert Wilson, Sabine Azéma, André Dussollier, Pierre Arditi and Isabelle Carré with very complex roles, especially Azéma that plays Charlotte.

The movie was first screened in last year Venice Film Festival and won the Pasinetti Award for Best Actress to Laura Morente and the Silver Lion to Alain Resnais, who also won the Etoile d’Or for Best Diretor at the 2007 awards and the Critics Award for Best Film in the 2007 French Syndicate of Cinema Critics.

If you ever want to experience loneliness this is the film that will totally make you feel it.