Actor Yvan Attal follows up on his 1997 directorial debut of I've Got a Woman with this wry romantic comedy about a regular guy dealing with his wife's fame and career. Yvan (Attal) is a youngish sports writer who, through some improbable luck, finds himself happily married to the beautiful Charlotte (Charlotte Gainsbourg), a fantastically popular movie actress. All is going swimmingly for Yvan until a stranger plants the seeds of jealousy and doubt in his mind over his wife and her libertine
profession. Meanwhile, Charlotte is in London, starring in a movie with a very seductive and sophisticated Terence Stamp. Soon misunderstandings pile upon misunderstanding until Yvan's marriage is on the verge of collapse. Can he keep his marriage together? This film was screened at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi
Both Yvan Attal and Charlotte Gainsborough are thoroughly appealing, as their unblinking honesty and openness shines through even the film's silliest bits.
Attal's hang-ups surrounding infidelity are so old-fashioned and, dare I say, outdated, it's a wonder that he couldn't have brought something fresher to the proceedings simply by accident.
God help the poor woman if Attal is this insecure in real life: his fictional Yvan's neuroses are aggravating enough to exhaust the patience of even the most understanding spouse.
It's the kind of movie that ends up festooning U.S. art house screens for no reason other than the fact that it's in French (well, mostly) with English subtitles and is magically 'significant' because of that.
The marriage between a successful actress and a sportswriter suffers as a result of jealousy, distance, and the nature of her profession.After watching this film, you shouldn't wonder why relationships in Hollywood last as long as milk on a hot day. Yvan Attal's deft, comic story-telling renders all the awkwardness a
man might feel while watching his wife naked on screen. And the scene in which he surprises her on set only to find the entire cast and crew naked is truly hilarious. I'm glad that the film stopped at sexual jealousy and didn't suggest that Yvan was emasculated because his wife's success eclipsed his own. Such a plot would have been cliche and reduced Yvan's character to nothing more than a typically insecure male.Terence Stamp is perfectly cast as the cad co-star who crosses the line between creating "on-screen chemistry" and seducing another man's wife. His lecherous looks make him dangerously charming, and there is the right amount of self-aggrandizing to make his character worthy of comic ridicule. I was fully prepared to go as high as four stars until the end. I don't know what Attal was thinking, but the story never resolved. We never know what motivates this couple's decision, and as a result, it's difficult to determine what exactly Attal is saying about these characters or the business of filmmaking.Overall, though, My Wife Is an Actress provides some brilliant moments and is filled with charming performances.
March 18, 2011
Jim Hunter
Super Reviewer
Cute, fun, entertaining. Its cuter when you think about the fact that Yvan Attal is writting/acting out his own story and marriage w/ Charlott. Sweet and cute and real
No quotes approved yet for My Wife Is an Actress. Logged in users can submit quotes.
Submit a Quote from 'My Wife Is an Actress'
A quote can be a single line from one character or a memorable dialog between several characters. Please make your quotes accurate. Quotes will be submitted for approval by the RT staff.
Example:
Luke: Alright. I'll give it a try. Yoda: No. Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Top Critic
