My Girlfriend's Boyfriend

The sixth in Rohmer's glorious series of 'Comedies and Proverbs'. As ever, the plot is slight: shy civil servant Blanche escapes the loneliness of her new life in a Parisian suburb through her friendship with self-assured computer programmer Léa. When Léa goes on holiday, Blanche, who initially fancies herself enamoured of handsome engineer Alexandre, finds herself growing closer to her friend's lover Fabien. Questions of fidelity and betrayal, delusion and deceit lie at the film's heart, which is large indeed, extending ample compassion to the characters. Once again the performances of the young cast are miraculously naturalistic, and equally impressive is Rohmer's mastery of mood: a chaste and silent stroll along a canal towpath is tense with gentle eroticism, a summer party becomes fraught with embarrassment and unspoken feelings. Funny, moving, and full of insights that other directors barely dream of, it is quite simply an absolute charmer.