Skip to main content

"L’amour l’après-midi" (Love in the Afternoon)

Excellent Movie!

The Plot (wiki):
Frédéric (Bernard Verley), a young, successful lawyer, is happily married to Hélène (Françoise Verley), an English teacher, and father to one child, with another on the way. Still, something eats away at him. While going through his day, Frédéric begins to ponder the times before he was married, when he was free to be with any woman he wanted and could feel the deep satisfaction of anticipation while he chased them. At one point in the film, he has an elaborate fantasy where he possesses a magical amulet that causes all women to bow to his will (the sequence features actresses from previous "Moral Tales"). These thoughts do not distress Frédéric though, as he sees these ideas as a reflection of how true his love to his wife is.

One day, an old friend shows up suddenly at Frédéric's office. Chloé (Zouzou) was the girlfriend of an old friend, a woman who caused his friend a great deal of grief. At first he believes she only wants something from him, but over time, as she tries a series of jobs to attempt some type of solidity in her life, the two begin spending afternoons together, talking of many things Frédéric finds himself unable to talk to his wife about. Eventually, Chloé confesses that while she does not desire marriage she would like to have a child, and wants the child to be from him. In a minor state of mental anguish, Frédéric ponders the paths of staying with a wife that he loves greatly or going with a woman for whom he feels a strange deep passion. In the moments before it seems Frédéric will consummate his feelings for Chloé he flees back to his wife, leaving Chloé sprawled on her bed waiting for him. It is not shown what happens to Chloé, but upon Frédéric's return to Hélène the tears that spill from her show that something definite yet not altogether dire has changed between the two of them.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Interview with Jacqueline Seewald, Author of THE INHERITANCE

Author’s Bio: Multiple award-winning author, Jacqueline Seewald, has taught creative, expository and technical writing at Rutgers University as well as high school English. She also worked as both an academic librarian and an educational media specialist. Sixteen of her books of fiction have previously been published to critical praise including books for adults, teens and children. Her short stories, poems, essays, reviews and articles have appeared in hundreds of diverse publications and numerous anthologies. What inspired you to write your book? I enjoy writing romantic mystery fiction. The idea for this particular novel just seemed to evolve organically from my imagination. Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult? I would have to say reading the Bible was influential. As far as regular books go, I’m a big fan of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Is this your first book? How long did it take to start and...

National Poetry Month’s Feature: Poet Cherrie Amour

Poet’ s Bio: Cherrie Amour aka Cherrie Woods is a Baltimore-based, award-winning poet known for her candid, narrative verse exploring love, identity, relationships, and the layered complexities of belonging. Her work is featured in her poetry collection, Free to Be Me: Poems on Love, Life and Relationships.   She is the creator of the Words, Wine & Wings Poetry and Open Mic Show and has been featured by FOX45 News, The Baltimore Beacon , and Baltimore City Paper . Her poetry has appeared in Paterson Literary Review , Understorey Magazine , Poet’s Ink , The Pen Woman , The Fire Inside: Collected Poems and Stories from Zora’s Den , America’s Future Anthology , Yellow Arrow Journal , and Maryland in Poetry .   She is currently submitting her new poetry chapbook manuscript, Sit Comfortably Elsewhere , to publishers—a deeply personal collection exploring her life and perspective as a double immigrant.   Deliah Lawrence: When did you first realize poetry was a p...

National Poetry Month’s Feature: Poet Buddah Desmond

Poet’ s Bio: Buddah Desmond aka BDEZ (he / him / they / them) is an award-winning author, poet, artist, and singer based in the DMV. His writing shares lessons from adversity to triumph and offers messages of hope, love, faith, and persistence. He ’ s the author of multiple poetry collections, including the most recent releases  Everything I Miss(ed) At Home  (2023),  Coming Up From the Downside: Finding Joy in Our Song  (2024), and  Exotic Shifter: 11th Anniversary Edition  (2025).   His writing has appeared in  Creative Currents ,  Rebel ’ s Zeitgeist ,  Liquid Cat Quarterly ,  MelaNation ,  Mixed Mag , and  The Sound of the Collective Pen: A Poetry Anthology by Emerging Voices . He served as a healing leader in the DC-based arts + faith + social justice organization, The Sanctuaries. He ’ s currently a National Board of Trustees At Large Member (Beta Chapter) for the professional arts fraternity, Gamma Xi Phi. ...