Watch it at Amazon
29 out of 34 people found the following comment useful :- Fascinating insights under the guise of entertaining comedy, 22 August 2002 Author: Chris Docker (eyeforfilm) from Scotland, United Kingdom
Another fabulous movie from Catherine Breillat, this time about the difficulties of shooting a sex scene in a movie. Using comedy – a new genre for Breillat – we get a backstage view of filmmaking but in documentary style. The character who plays the director in the movie is based on Breillat, the sex scene in question is taken from her earlier film ‘A Ma Soeur' as is the main teenage actress. But the film, like all of Breillat's work, is not entertainment alone. It is peppered with philosophical observations on the nature of sexuality as well as demonstrating a devotion to ‘purity' (as opposed to pornography) that is a cornerstone of Breillat's work and a devotion to real emotion. We see the director character harangue the young lead actress and actor to bring the best out in them, hypnotising them into the parts they need to play, bringing out part of themselves that the director can see in them but they cannot see in themselves until they achieve the heights of acting that she demands of them. She makes meaningful movies, not titillation, but she shows the work that is needed to produce this, and so gives us insights both into the (decidedly French) film making process and the psychology of male – female sexuality.
26 out of 34 people found the following comment useful :- Don't think that you know what kind of movie this is, just by reading the title., 12 April 2005 Author: Philip Van der Veken from Tessenderlo, Belgium
I had certain expectations when reading the title of this movie. No, I didn't think it would be a porn movie, but I hoped it would be a light-footed comedy about relations and sex. But big was my surprise when I actually saw it. It hasn't much to do with comedy or relationships. It's about Jeanne, a female film director who has a lot of troubles with her two main actors. They both hate each other, but are asked to play a difficult sex scene together. She has written and created the scene and knows exactly what she wants but she isn't able to make them do it right...If you ask yourself why this movie has such a confusing title then, I'll explain to you what might have happened. Even though this is a French movie with French dialogs, the title is in English. However, I guess they have translated the title too literally. In French it would be something like: "Sex, c'est jouer la comédie", which could be translated as "Sex is faking it". That would make a lot more sense, because the actors have to pretend they like each other and that they like to have sex together while in reality they can't stand each other and don't want to do it.The main problem that I had with this movie was that much didn't happen. It was all talking, talking and even more talking. I'm not saying that I wanted a big sex scene or a huge car chase, but this movie just seemed to drag on eternally, without offering something special. Normally I like European movies, but this one really didn't do it for me. Somehow I couldn't really care for the different characters, even though they didn't do a bad job. I give this movie a 6/10.
10 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :- On location, 24 March 2006 Author: jotix100 from New York
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Catherine Brreillat is a French director who loves to provoke her audience. She takes us along to witness how a film is done on location. The movie in production seems to be based on herself, since the person at the center of the story is Jeanne, a woman director, much like Ms. Breillat. Jeanne acts as the alter ego of the real director.Jeanne reaches an impasse at the start of filming. Not only has she picked the wrong time to photograph this movie during a cold spell, as it involves beach locations that are obviously too cold for the actors and extras. Jeanne has problems with the two principal actors, especially, the male lead who has problems accepting the way the director has decided to show him in the movie; the lead actress is no angel either.Movie making, Ms. Breillat tells us is a process like no other in a creative work of art. First, there is the writing period, in which, in this case, Jeanne, has written a screen play, that when it goes into production reveals problems the writer/director didn't think about. There is the problem of how she wants to photograph a love scene in which the young woman of the story has her first sex contact. What appeared clever in the written page, doesn't necessarily translate into an easy time in front of the camera. The actor is made to wear a false penis and has a lot of problems accepting the fact that a make up has to touch him in ways he never thought he would ever be touched by another man.The luminous Anne Parillaud is marvelous as Jeanne, the director. She makes observations about the production, the actors, and the crew that fit well into the story being told. Gregoire Colin and Roxane Mesquide play the lead actors, with all the insecurity that some actors bring to a movie set. Jeanne has to massage their egos in order to get what she wants in the end. Ashley Waninnger plays Leo, Jeanne's assistant."Sex Is Comedy" allows Ms. Breillet to give us her own take on films in general. This is a great look at the way movies are done in a typical Breillat style.
10 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :- In the mind of a Director, 22 December 2005 Author: Aaron Smith from United States
This film was very interesting to me, virtually a film within a film, which is about a very whimsical director who cleverly persuades an actress and and actor (who happen to dislike each other) in producing sexual chemistry on film. The director is faced with a fusillade of obstacles as she tries to get the two individuals to perform beautifully on film. Sex is Comedy is much more than a comedy, packed with uncomfortable quirky moments the movie also addresses the psychological and innate instinctual behavior of men and women in regards to the sometimes controversial act of sex. I loved this film, the character Jeanne played by the beautiful Anne Parillaud performs wonderfully on screen as you share in her struggle to produce a motion picture work of art.
12 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :- All about a director directing a film and little more., 27 February 2005 Author: George Parker from Orange County, CA USA
"Sex is Comedy" is an open ended light drama about a film director, Parillaud (Nikita), working on a film toward the sex scene between her young male and female leads. There's no story in this film which simply shows how a director might work with her cast and crew while trying to squeeze, cajole, or otherwise evoke the nuances she desires from the a recalcitrant male lead and his reluctantly willing partner while wrangling cameras and crews and the foibles which beset a film director at work. This film conjures some insights into what being a film director involves and the hard work required of cast and crew while making a film and, I suppose, the techniques and methods of this film's director, Brelliat. There are similarities between the sex scene in this film and that in another Brelliat film, "Fat Girl", which is little more than noteworthy. "Sex is Comedy" doesn't walk on the edge of pornography as do other Brelliat films and will be of most interest to those interested in film direction Brelliat style. (B-)
7 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :- Unbelievably boring movie., 20 February 2008 Author: dr_wolfi_d from United States
1 hour and 40 minutes of talking--boring talking, and more talking and then some. It is hard for me to grasp how an actress like Anne Parillaud, who shone superbly in Femme Fatale, would sign up for such a piece of crap! Unbelievable. If you need a nightcap, this movie might help, although I would prefer some nice classical music. unfortunately, i just found out that i have to write 10 lines for my comment to appear--that's almost as unbelievable! so, short and succinct one or two sentence commentaries expressing one's core take on a movie is not enough. geez, people. i made my point and don't to waste your time with more, unnecessary words--as this movie does. Wolfgang
8 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :- Sharp and deeply sexy, 1 April 2005 Author: evilpuppet from United States
I like Breillat's movies, but this one is the best I've seen at balancing animal warmth with sexual intelligence. Anne Parillaud is electric, and the script is amazing - especially considering it's supposed to take place on the set of another of Breillat's movies. You don't have to agree with her take on everything to get a lot out of this. It made me think a lot about vulnerability and power. Try to imagine a male director with Jeanne's openness - not impossible, but a little mind-bending. The unannounced sexual undercurrents that are always present when humans get together to make anything is held up to bright light here, but not a cold light.
3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- An interesting concept, but a little lost in itself., 29 January 2008 Author: zclfd65 from United Kingdom
Sex Is Comedy is a film based upon Breillat's personal experience in filming a sex scene. Trying to inspire a performance that meets her particular demands, Jeanne (Anna Parillaud), the director (based on Breillat) has to overcome the obstacles of her own perfectionism and the obvious animosity between her stubborn actor (Gregoire Colin) and actress (Roxane Mesquida). The Actor is more concerned with playing up to the crew members off camera than putting in a convincing performance on camera, whilst the Actress is more concerned with talking to her boyfriend on the phone than focusing on the film. Jeanne struggles throughout to create the scene as she sees it in her head, but through an oddly intimate relationship with her personal assistant, The Actor and The Actress, manages to coax the performance out of them in a strongly emotional climax.Just as frustrations arise for Jeanne, i too found myself getting a little frustrated at the lack of pace - though this, perhaps, is the point of the film; documenting the arduous nature of film-making and the difficulties that can arise in trying to artificially create an intimate scene between strangers who may well hate each other. In this respect, Sex Is Comedy is a reflection on the nature of cinema – Breillat is raising a mirror to the camera and giving us a 'behind the scenes' look at the problems which present themselves to directors, crews and casts.At times, however, this concept becomes a little confusing. The boundaries between the film within the film, the film itself and Breillat's personal experiences becomes so blurred that it was difficult to discern quite what where we find ourselves. In short, whilst the film very interestingly focuses on the idea of mise-en-abyme, i found myself spiralling into the abyss without knowing quite how to take myself out of it.
3 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :- I have to make the truth, 30 May 2006 Author: cwx from Riverside, California
I wasn't surprised to read a comment by the director to the effect that she made this film as an antidote to all those "making of" DVD featurettes, as that certainly struck me. I do confess that I have a penchant for "meta," but I found this film to be very accessible and entertaining, and not even in a labored, self-consciously clever way, which is certainly a bit of what you expect in a film about film-making. It is very "French" in that there are a great deal of outlandish, yet occasionally compelling theories about how film-making (and even sexuality) "works," but since the director doesn't quite play herself (using an avatar instead), we're left with a lot of choices (since I'm pretty sure she's constantly contradicting herself). Apparently Catherine Breillat specializes in hard-to-watch films, but I'd definitely say this one doesn't qualify. I really enjoyed the dialog, the balance between the cinematic and the natural, the relationships between the director character and her assistant and actor, and so on. Highly recommended.
1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :- "Words are lies, bodies are truth—I have to show the truth", 30 June 2008 Author: Rents (Renty_Loves_Christmas) from London, England
A witty little French film, Sex is Comedy (2002) is the story of a female director (Anne Parillaud) and her many attempts to shoot a passionate sex scene with two actors (Gregoire Colin and Roxane Mesquida) who hate each other. Under the direction of Catherine Breillat, the film provides fantastic insights into human nature under the guise of comedy, giving us not only a lot to think about ourselves as people, but also gives us an intimate (no pun intended) backstage view of the art of film-making. The film is sprinkled with plenty of philosophical observation, including that of the nature of sexuality, including an obsessive (on the part of the director) commitment to purity in the act of filming a sex scene, as opposed to pornography, something it can easily fall under. With these ideas in hand, Miss Breillat crafts a funny, provocative film that impresses with its intelligence and subtlety.
Add another comment
