Cannes 2023: Fashionable Romance Reexamined in ‘Easy comme Sylvain’
by Alex Billington June 2, 2023
A taboo query about trendy relationships – what’s extra necessary: sexual compatibility or mental compatibility? That is the core of this sensible new romantic comedy movie from Quebec titled Easy comme Sylvain (in French) or The Nature of Love (in English). After watching it, I choose the unique French title extra. The direct translation is “Easy as Sylvain”, or “Straightforward as Sylvain”. The man she falls for within the movie is called Sylvain, and it is a story about how he’s each a easy man (translation: not so sensible), and in addition how easy/simple it’s to fall for him and fall for his charms and all of that. The Nature of Love is a little more summary and does not fairly have the sharpness of Easy as Sylvain. Although if you have not seen the movie but, how have you learnt who Sylvain is? However I digress. This intelligent movie hasn’t left my thoughts since watching, one other intriguing Cannes discovery this 12 months that can definitely make a mark inside the rom-com subgenre.
Easy comme Sylvain is each written and directed by Quebecois actress and filmmaker Monia Chokri – her third function movie following Babysitter and A Brother’s Love earlier than this. This appear to be a really private movie about Chokri’s personal romantic / sexual experiences, however she opts to have another person star within the lead position as Sophia as an alternative of taking it on herself (she was on the heart of a love triangle in Xavier Dolan’s movie Heartbeats from 2010 as nicely). Magalie Lépine Blondeau stars as Sophia, a younger lady who’s in an uncomfortably snug relationship with an mental good man named Xavier, as performed by Francis-William Rhéaume. It is apparent she is bored and at some point that each one adjustments when she encounters Sylvain, performed by the irresistible Pierre-Yves Cardinal (speak about excellent casting for this position, oh my). She will’t resist him and earlier than even she is aware of it, she has fallen fully for this new man, and shortly decides to maneuver on from Xavier. She’ll strive it out with the straightforward however attractive Syvlain as an alternative. Is it the precise transfer… or not?
I fairly like what Chokri’s making an attempt to do balancing the romance debate of clever males vs sexual males and whether or not you possibly can have the very best of each. Even when she does fall for the “dumb” man on this story, the movie itself continues to be significantly mental. Most of the conversations all through, even the scenes and setups involving her transition from one man to the following, are confidently sensible and knowledgeable. It is also fairly apparent she has expertise with these two sorts of males, and may simply characterize them and their methods and the way they speak and the way they’ve intercourse and every thing else. It is a movie that’s meant to discover this query of: are you able to discover a man who is wise and sexual gratifying?, Nonetheless, it does not give a definitive reply – it is an exploration greater than an experiment. And everybody’s interpretation of her script could also be totally different. The movie additionally loses steam after the halfway level, which is fairly nicely into her new relationship with Sylvain. By this level everyone knows what is going on on and what it is speaking about, then it solely goes a lot additional earlier than wrapping up.
It is a very sexual movie, with fairly just a few passionate scenes that can make anybody really feel scorching & bothered. But it surely’s all to show Chokri’s level – good intercourse and intelligence are mutually unique, no? No matter everybody’s opinions, it is a fascinating movie reexamining this query by means of her distinct lens. Which is refreshing to see. I imagine the movie’s clever script makes it extra pleasurable to look at than the standard tacky rom-coms being made today. Together with the casually amusing performances from the 2 leads Magalie Lépine-Blondeau and Pierre-Yves Cardinal. It is from excellent, and lacks the extra zippy, energetic angle that many viewers anticipate from so many Hollywood romances. Nonetheless, it makes up for that with these steamy intercourse scenes. There’s not even that a lot nudity, it is the wildness of two individuals who simply wish to fuck letting themselves go – on digital camera. It is a poignant reminder that, sure, intercourse is necessary to women and men and all relationships, and should not be brushed apart – no matter which facet of the movie’s debate you find yourself on.
Alex’s Cannes 2023 Ranking: 7.5 out of 10Comply with Alex on Twitter – @firstshowing / Or Letterboxd – @firstshowing
