Priceless

Might Be a Scandal Stateside, but a Real Charmer on the French Riviera.
"Priceless" (Hors de prix) is a romantic comedy of a sort only the French would make. Jean Simon (Gad Elmaleh) is a bartender at a posh hotel on the French Riviera so conditioned to fulfill the guests' every wish that he can't say "no". Irene Mercier (Audrey Tautou) is an attractive young woman kept by a wealthy older man whom she hopes to marry to secure a life of luxury. When Irene's companion Jacques (Vernon Dobtcheff) falls asleep and spoils her plans for the evening, Irene dejectedly saunters to the hotel bar, where she mistakes Jean for a rich guest. Jean sheepishly accommodates her mistake, and they have a drunken fling. When she returns to the hotel a year later, engaged to Jacques, their mutual attraction threatens her marriage plans, Jean's job, and everyone's equilibrium.

This is a genuinely charming and funny film, but I had to laugh at its effrontery as well as it script. "Priceless" adopts a jaunty, optimistic tone at the point when Jean and Irene begin...

Charming French Film
I'm going out on a limb and giving this film 5 stars. No it's not epic long lasting cinema, but it's a perfectly enjoyable, wonderfully well made, bit of entertainment. It's in the same vein as Cousin Cousine Cousin, Cousine, or when you read the synopsis, not a movie you would want to watch. However, the French have this ability to make films that take what, to American sensibility, would be an offensive film, and make it charming.

This film is a little charming film. From the start you are drawn in, beautiful scenery, an intriguing bell man (Jean) working hard to make money. Working so hard, Jean actually falls asleep standing up while working. And the counterpart is a young woman (Irene) with an older man. He passes out drunk on her birthday and she ends up with the Jean. You can think long and hard about what Irene does or is, but why? By this time you are hooked on the charm of this film. Just go...

Priceless is Breakfast at Tiffany's updated, set on the Riviera.
This gem sparkles like diamonds on display in Tiffany's. Audrey Tautou shows her physical beauty and amazing acting range, pulling off a seemingly impossible character arc from selling her self to the highest bidder to finding true love. Twists along the way let us see the world from all points of view, a rare thing in storytelling. Having it all feel seamless and natural is an amazing tour de force by actors, writers, film crew and the director. "Priceless" is one of the very few romantic comedies that can be watched again without losing an ounce of its punch. And whoever did the costumes for Ms. Tautou deserves an Academy Award.

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