Review: The Girl From Monaco (2009) *** 1/2

Louise Bourgoin is The Girl From Monaco

The Girl From Monaco has all the earmarks of a certain kind of romantic comedy in the European mold: the staid world of a slightly boring but successful middle-aged man is turned upside down when he improbably earns the attention of a beautiful, free-spirited young woman with whom he falls in love. Though it opens with a sweeping, sparkling, tourist bureau ready helicopter shot of the Mediterranean set to the bouncy strains of Nat “King” Cole’s L-O-V-E, soon after the opening credits the lightly comic tone gives way to a darkness that sets into the story and a sense of doom that lingers just off the sun-kissed shore.

When the tale takes a final turn for the dramatic in the last act, it may come as a surprise for those expecting something lighter from the start, but it makes The Girl From Monaco a richer, more interesting picture than it first appears on paper. It may also explain the decidedly mixed critical response the film has received on this side of the Atlantic.

Fabrice Luchini (Claire’s Knee) plays Bertrand, a highly successful defense attorney who has traveled to Monaco in order to represent a wealthy woman accused of murdering her young Russian lover. Roschdy Zem (Indigènes) plays Christophe, a resolute bodyguard assigned to protect Bertrand from the Russian mafia who may be gunning to revenge the death of one of their number. Pretty newcomer Louise Bourgoin plays Audrey, the attractive and ambitious local party girl with a Princess Diana and Princess Grace fixation who takes an unlikely shine to Bertrand. To complete the complicated triangle, she’s also the ex-lover of Christophe.

There are comic moments as hurricane Audrey upends Bertrand’s world in the middle of the increasingly serious murder trial, but there’s also the growing sense that there are consequences to even the most casual love affair. The Girl From Monaco promises to end unhappily for someone. For whom and how remains unclear until the last act, but looking back all the signposts are there. When Brigitte Bardot’s slightly melancholy La Madrague kicks in over the closing credits, the film’s glittering musical opening takes on the weight of irony.

The key to the film’s success is the character of Audrey. She’s more than just a blank sex object of the kind typified by Bo Derek in 10. She’s girlish, sexy and sexually promiscuous befitting the male fantasy, but she’s also ambitious, independent and surprisingly decent. In contrast, the men who love and leave on a whim become the villains of the piece. This isn’t just a story about the poor middle-aged man who learns not to fool around with capricious young girls.

Ms. Bourgoin (like Audrey, a former weather girl herself) was nominated for a César for her portrayal and the media seems eager to have her wear Bardot’s crown. While that may be overstating the case, director Anne Fontaine (Nathalie…) plays into the image by having Audrey dance like and even sing a tune by the ’60s sex symbol. Whether her charisma is overstated or not, Bourgoin plays Audrey just right and the sympathy she earns in a potentially unlikable character makes the picture work. You think you know her with her colorfully tacky outfits, but she surprises you.

In the moment, The Girl From Monaco doesn’t feel like it’s quite clicking, perhaps because of the uneasy mix of drama and comedy. In the end though, it takes on an unexpected depth. It’ll likely disappoint audiences hoping for a routine romantic comedy, but it offers something more for those who like some resonance with their effervescence.

The Girl From Monaco / La Fille de Monaco. France 2007 (US release 2009). Directed by Anne Fontaine, Screenplay by Anne Fontaine, Jacques Fieschi and Benoît Graffin. Cinematography Patrick Blossier. Musical score by Pilippe Rombi. Edited by Maryline Monthieux. Starring Fabrice Luchini, Roschdy Zem, Louise Bourgoin, Stéphane Audran, Gilles Cohen, Jeanne Balibar. 1 hour 35 minutes. MPAA rated R for some sexual content and language. 3.5 stars (out of 4)

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Tags: Anne Fontaine, Benoît Graffin, Fabrice Luchini, Gilles Cohen, Jacques Fieschi, Jeanne Balibar, La Fille de Monaco, Louise Bourgoin, Maryline Monthieux, Patrick Blossier, Pilippe Rombi, Roschdy Zem, Stéphane Audran, The Girl From Monaco