Let's Talk About The Rain (DVD)

Let's Talk About The Rain is the third film that was directed by Agnès Jaoui the film takes its name from a song written by George Brassens. Before I begin let me say that if the song is as bad as the film then it is not worth listening to. This film is boring from the start and as a lover of films I definitely was not a lover of this film.
Before releasing this film Jean-Pierre Bacri and his wife who also starred in this film worked together ...
...Alan Ayckbourn.

Let's Talk About The Rain is a French film in subtitles, rated 12 A with a running time of 100 minutes. Maybe it was the shoddy directing or the fact that this film lacked a decent plot, but the acting seemed weak at times. There was no real meat to this film and if there was then I definitely missed it. I've tried to write a fair, balanced review, but it has been difficult due to the fact that I didn't really get anything ... more

Let's Talk About The Rain is the third film that was directed by Agnès Jaoui the film takes its name from a song written by George Brassens. Before I begin let me say that if the song is as bad as the film then it is not worth listening to. This film is boring from the start and as a lover of films I definitely was not a lover of this film.
Before releasing this film Jean-Pierre Bacri and his wife who also starred in this film worked together on a number of Alain Resnais films, including writing Smoking/No Smoking and Intimate Exchanges by Alan Ayckbourn.

Let's Talk About The Rain is a French film in subtitles, rated 12 A with a running time of 100 minutes. Maybe it was the shoddy directing or the fact that this film lacked a decent plot, but the acting seemed weak at times. There was no real meat to this film and if there was then I definitely missed it. I've tried to write a fair, balanced review, but it has been difficult due to the fact that I didn't really get anything out of this film. It didn't leave me thinking, what a wonderful film it was.
Let's Talk About The Rain is supposed to be a comedy about middle class French life looking at culture clashes, imperfections, strengths in love and family relationships and an undercurrent of sadness. If you like to take a look at culture then you might like this film for this reason.

Let’s Talk about the Rain is a simple comedy based on family and relationships. Jean-Pierre Bacri and Agnes Jaoui are becoming popular in modern French cinema. They previously wrote The Taste of Others and Look at Me.

The plot revolves around Agathe Vilanova who is a politician that is approached by Karim, the son of her sister’s housekeeper. He is asked to star in a documentary about successful women. Agathe is then taken on a journey that makes her do some soul searching involving looking at the consequences of her own ambitions. Agnes Jaoui and Jean-Pierre Bacri have developed characters that are witty and romantic (some of the time at least!). There are times when this film are passable, but not that many!

A hectic feminist is trying to make it as a politician, but spends the rest of the film trying to fit in with the mistakes made by Karim's partner. It is a film about hectic modern day life that is interrupted by a holiday and an unexpected project which will transform the participants lives forever. It is a bit of a dull film that doesn't really go anywhere and carries on at the same slow pace throughout. If you like something at a faster pace then you won't enjoy this film.

Subplots are used in Let's Talk About The Rain to explore difficult themes such as the changes taking place within the character's personalities. The film never explores issues deeply it merely touches the surface. Jaoui's role as a feminist is a bit tragic and there isn't much interaction with her sister Pascale Arbillot.

The film begins with a small joke whereby a tall, bald Frenchman stands next to a small, bushy haired Algerian. The tall guy offers his mate a joint, but Karim refuses. As they begin to walk Michel (co-writer Jean-Pierre Bacri) carries on lecturing whilst Karim (Jamel Debbouze) responds by being hyperactive and obsessed by his own worth.

At times this simple comedy is intellectual, but it seems to lack warmth. It must have been difficult to write and to get the balance between comedy and seriousness just right. Maybe they tried to hard or didn't try hard enough, but this film will never be a big blockbuster hit. It's one of those that you either love or hate, but maybe because I like films to be fast and energetic I didn't get the feel for this film. I've seen slower films before and really enjoyed them, but I couldn't relate to this film and it didn't interest me which is a shame because I've also heard from people who liked this film. At the end of the day this is only my opinion and I've read reviews of films that people hated and I loved so take it for what it's worth, my opinion.

At times Let's Talk About The Rain is too complex and a bit too thought out where if things had been left to happen naturally it could have been so much better.

The aim of the film by Agnès Jaoui is to break stereotypes that people have of French people living hectic urban lives. The film is set in the middle of Summer when it is supposed to be red hot in the South of France, but instead the weather is very wet. Rather than being happy the characters are unhappy with the wet weather and their living environment.

Agathe Villanova (Jaoui) goes back to her childhood home where she decides to enter the career of politics. Agathe Villanova has been placed in the region to equalise the electoral list, but it is clear to see that she would rather be somewhere else. All of the characters are unhappy in their lives and relationships.

This comedy drama is often times rambling and going nowhere. It is loosely strung together with no real order. It is easy to get bored with this film and just turn it off all together. However there are times in the film where the acting is good enough to keep interest. The issues this film explores are interesting and intriguing at times. I think a person from France might enjoy this film more because they can relate to it.

With respect to filmakers, Jaoui and Bacri they keep the theme light and relaxed. They do this best when they have to tackle more serious issues and heavy dramatised parts of the film. They focus on including everyone discussing everything, but what is really on their minds. The phrase "going round the houses" comes to mind. I think that this is the main concern with this film and why, at times it doesn't work. It makes the film too focussed on speaking rather than action. A good film has to have a balance of speaking and action and it cannot be weighed too heavily on either side or it just won't work. Getting the balance right with any film is a tricky process and of course, everyone likes different things in a film. So for this reason I would ask that you form your own opinion, but for me personally I didn't enjoy it and it wasn't my type of film. It won't go down in my list of favourite films. 

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