Les petits mouchoirs
Encyclopedia
Little White Lies is a 2010 French comedy-drama film written and directed by Guillaume Canet
, starring an ensemble cast of François Cluzet
, Marion Cotillard
, Benoît Magimel
, Gilles Lellouche, Jean Dujardin
, Laurent Lafitte, Valérie Bonneton and Pascale Arbillot
. The original French title is Les petits mouchoirs, which means "The small handkerchiefs". The film was released in France on 20 October 2010.
Prior to the trip, another major problem arises when one of the friends, osteopath Vincent (Benoit Magimel), confesses his attraction to nervous-wreck restaurateur Max (Francois Cluzet); their initial tête-à-tête is one of the film's comic highlights. Both are married, and Max clearly isn't game, so when they arrive later with their families at his pristine seaside cottage, tensions are sky-high. The group's stress level is further goosed by pot-smoking rebel Marie (Marion Cotillard), lovesick actor Eric (Gilles Lellouche) and the even more lovesick Antoine (Laurent Lafitte), all of whom are suffering from failed or failing relationships.
.
. It was released in France on 20 October 2010 through EuropaCorp Distribution, who launched it on over 550 screens.
, who thought it was too long, strangely cast, and that all of its female characters were stereotypes. Le Parisien
s Marie Sauvion was more ambivalent and divided the review in a pros and a cons section. The pros were that she found the genre in itself sympathetic, and how the film manages to use individual scenes to give the viewer a feeling of participation and shared enjoyment. On the negative side, she thought it was too unsubtle and predictable, and uses too much music to intensify emotional scenes, "In case we didn't understand when to be moved?"
Guillaume Canet
Guillaume Canet is a French actor and film director.Canet began his career in theatre and television before moving to film. He starred in several films like Joyeux Noël, Love Me If You Dare and The Beach...
, starring an ensemble cast of François Cluzet
François Cluzet
François Cluzet is a French film and theatre actor, best known in the English-speaking world for starring in the 2006 French film "Tell No One", based on the novel of the same name by the American author Harlan Coben...
, Marion Cotillard
Marion Cotillard
Marion Cotillard is a French actress and singer. She garnered critical acclaim for her roles in films such as La Vie en Rose, My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument, Taxi, Furia and Jeux d'enfants...
, Benoît Magimel
Benoît Magimel
Benoît Magimel is a French actor. A prolific actor who was 14 when he appeared in his first film, Magimel has starred in a variety of roles in French cinema....
, Gilles Lellouche, Jean Dujardin
Jean Dujardin
-Life and career:Dujardin was born in Rueil-Malmaison. Dujardin first became famous on the French talent show Graines de star in 1996 as part of the comedy group Nous C Nous, formed by members of the Carré blanc theater. From 1999 to 2003 he starred in the French version of the comedy television...
, Laurent Lafitte, Valérie Bonneton and Pascale Arbillot
Pascale Arbillot
-Filmography:*1999 : Le Sourire du clown*1999 : L'Extraterrestre*2001 : Grégoire Moulin contre l'humanité*2002 : Plus haut*2004 : Clara et moi*2006 : Un printemps à Paris*2008 : Parlez-moi de la pluie...
. The original French title is Les petits mouchoirs, which means "The small handkerchiefs". The film was released in France on 20 October 2010.
Plot
In a Parisian nightclub, party man Ludo (Jean Dujardin) takes off late at night on his scooter, where he's blindsided by a truck. Lying between life and death in the hospital, Ludo is visited by his band of longtime pals, who decide that the gruesome crash shouldn't prevent them from embarking on their coveted summer holidays.Prior to the trip, another major problem arises when one of the friends, osteopath Vincent (Benoit Magimel), confesses his attraction to nervous-wreck restaurateur Max (Francois Cluzet); their initial tête-à-tête is one of the film's comic highlights. Both are married, and Max clearly isn't game, so when they arrive later with their families at his pristine seaside cottage, tensions are sky-high. The group's stress level is further goosed by pot-smoking rebel Marie (Marion Cotillard), lovesick actor Eric (Gilles Lellouche) and the even more lovesick Antoine (Laurent Lafitte), all of whom are suffering from failed or failing relationships.
Cast
- François CluzetFrançois CluzetFrançois Cluzet is a French film and theatre actor, best known in the English-speaking world for starring in the 2006 French film "Tell No One", based on the novel of the same name by the American author Harlan Coben...
as Max Cantara - Marion CotillardMarion CotillardMarion Cotillard is a French actress and singer. She garnered critical acclaim for her roles in films such as La Vie en Rose, My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument, Taxi, Furia and Jeux d'enfants...
as Marie - Benoît MagimelBenoît MagimelBenoît Magimel is a French actor. A prolific actor who was 14 when he appeared in his first film, Magimel has starred in a variety of roles in French cinema....
as Vincent Ribaud - Gilles Lellouche as Eric
- Jean DujardinJean Dujardin-Life and career:Dujardin was born in Rueil-Malmaison. Dujardin first became famous on the French talent show Graines de star in 1996 as part of the comedy group Nous C Nous, formed by members of the Carré blanc theater. From 1999 to 2003 he starred in the French version of the comedy television...
as Ludo - Laurent Lafitte as Antoine
- Valérie Bonneton as Véronique Cantara
- Pascale ArbillotPascale Arbillot-Filmography:*1999 : Le Sourire du clown*1999 : L'Extraterrestre*2001 : Grégoire Moulin contre l'humanité*2002 : Plus haut*2004 : Clara et moi*2006 : Un printemps à Paris*2008 : Parlez-moi de la pluie...
as Isabelle Ribaud
Production
The script took five months to write. The cast lived for three days in May at the house which would be used as a principal filming location, so it would feel familiar to them when they returned in the summer. The film began production in August 2009 and ended in October. The shooting took place in Paris and Cap FerretCap Ferret
Cap Ferret is a headland, situated at the south end of the commune of Lège-Cap-Ferret in the French department of Gironde. The headland takes the form of a spit, which separates the Atlantic Ocean from Arcachon Bay...
.
Release
The film premiered at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival2010 Toronto International Film Festival
The 35th annual Toronto International Film Festival, was held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between September 9 and September 19, 2010. The opening night gala presented Score: A Hockey Musical, a Canadian comedy-drama musical film. Last Night closed the festival on September 19.2010 TIFF included...
. It was released in France on 20 October 2010 through EuropaCorp Distribution, who launched it on over 550 screens.
Reception
The film was panned by Philippe Azoury of LibérationLibération
Libération is a French daily newspaper founded in Paris by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in 1973 in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968. Originally a leftist newspaper, it has undergone a number of shifts during the 1980s and 1990s...
, who thought it was too long, strangely cast, and that all of its female characters were stereotypes. Le Parisien
Le Parisien
Le Parisien is a French daily newspaper covering both international and national news, and local news of Paris and its suburbs. It was established as Le Parisien libéré by Émilien Amaury in 1944, and the name was changed to the current one in 1986...
s Marie Sauvion was more ambivalent and divided the review in a pros and a cons section. The pros were that she found the genre in itself sympathetic, and how the film manages to use individual scenes to give the viewer a feeling of participation and shared enjoyment. On the negative side, she thought it was too unsubtle and predictable, and uses too much music to intensify emotional scenes, "In case we didn't understand when to be moved?"