This article needs a plot summary. (August 2021) |
Sex Is Comedy is a 2002 comedy-drama film written and directed by Catherine Breillat.[1] It revolves around a director (Anne Parillaud) and her troubles filming an intimate sex scene between two actors who cannot tolerate each other.
Sex Is Comedy | |
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Directed by | Catherine Breillat |
Written by | Catherine Breillat |
Produced by | Jean-François Lepetit |
Starring |
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Cinematography | Laurent Machuel |
Edited by | Pascale Chavance |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Rézo Films |
Release dates |
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Running time | 95 minutes |
Countries |
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Languages |
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Based on Breillat's experiences directing her 2001 film Fat Girl, the climax of the film features a recreation of a scene from that film, shot from the point of view of the crew, with Roxane Mesquida essentially reprising her role from the first film.[citation needed]
Cast
edit- Anne Parillaud as Jeanne
- Grégoire Colin as the actor
- Roxane Mesquida as the actress
- Ashley Wanniger as Léo
Reception
editOn review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 68% based on reviews from 47 critics, with an average rating of 6.3/10.[2] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 63 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[3]
Nev Pierce of BBC praised the direction by Catherine Breillat, writing "[She] does effectively capture the 'hurry up and wait' atmosphere of a film set, and draws excellent performances from all involved".[4]
Ed Gonzalez of Slant Magazine called the film an "ego trip",[5] while Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times said that the film is not sure "what it's really about, or how to get there".[6]
According to John Anderson of the Chicago Tribune "It may be impossible ever to watch a sex scene again after seeing Catherine Breillat's Sex Is Comedy. And that may precisely be the point".[7]
In a review for The A.V. Club, Scott Tobias wrote, "Sex Is Comedy triumphs mostly in laying out the specific mechanics of a love scene",[8] while Ruthe Stein of San Francisco Chronicle criticized the film for being "[a]nnoying, soporific and, despite its title, singularly humorless".[9]
References
edit- ^ Scott, A. O. (20 October 2004). "On a Movie Set, Using Stand-Ins for Actors and Director". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 18 December 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ "Sex Is Comedy (2002)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ "Sex Is Comedy (2004)". Metacritic. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ Pierce, Nev (15 July 2003). "Sex is Comedy (2003)". BBC. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ Gonzalez, Ed (15 June 2004). "Review: Sex Is Comedy". Slant Magazine.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (2 December 2004). "Nothing funny about 'Sex Is Comedy'". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via RogerEbert.com.
- ^ Anderson, John (3 December 2004). "'Sex is Comedy'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ Tobias, Scott (18 October 2004). "Sex Is Comedy". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ Stein, Ruthe (24 December 2004). "It's French, it's sexy, yet it's dull". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
Further reading
edit- Ince, Kate. (2006) ‘Is Sex Comedy or Tragedy? Directing Desire and Female Auteurship in the Cinema of Catherine Breillat’, The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, 64(1), pp. 157–164.
- Wheatley, Catherine. (2010) ‘Contested Interactions: Watching Catherine Breillat’s Scenes of Sexual Violence’, Journal for Cultural Research, 14(1), pp. 27–41. https://doi.org/10.1080/14797580903363066
External links
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