Linkshoch Wonderful Movie

Jeanskynebu the audience applauded

Tayyab Torres Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

jasontheterrible It is amazing the French can churn out so many well-acted, complex stories about relationships and American filmmakers cannot even get close. An unattractive loser is thrown a life-line by his wife's brother and given a job as a camp counselor (sailing instructor). The camp is aflame with currents of lust, rebellion and resentment. Camille is so angry about her own coming of age insecurities and controlling father who is living in the past thinking she should still be his little girl, that she despises him and attacks everyone. Everything she does now is to hurt him and assert control of her life, even if only symbolically.She goes after the counselor who is a decent man but himself buried in troubles. She cannot go anywhere without flopping or showing her magnificent boobies. She is one part flirt and 9 parts hormonal nightmare. The gentle old guy submits and she leads him down a path of self destruction and lunacy taking herself out along the way.

Ed Fulton Let's see; a 17 year old girl falling for a guy 2 1/2 times her age, 10x ugly to her 10x gorgeous, stupid beyond comprehension, a mentally disturbed teenage mind inside a 50 yr. old man's body ... what's not to like? With all that, the poor girl obviously just couldn't help herself. Wow.The age difference is the least of the problems (not really a problem at all, by itself). But the characterizations of both protagonists were just so overdrawn, and in a very sloppy way. It was great that the directors let us see the lovely Isild Le Besco running like a gazelle on several occasions, but they made the viewers pay dearly for that privilege with their awful screen writing (the two were the same, if you look at the credits). Definitely the worst French film I've ever seen, and in the bottom five of movies I've seen from anywhere.

madcardinal The photo on the DVD case may lead you to believe "Camping Sauvage" is an erotic masterpiece. Unfortunately, it falls far short of that. First, Isilde Le Besco looks too old to authentically portray a nubile nymph, and her acting in this film is uninspired at best. Also, there's the mystifying question of why she's attracted to the nearly anorexic, homely ex-con - simply because he's in close proximity? That's not a very compelling motivation. I don't remember seeing a news story about all French women suddenly developing persistent problems with their vision, so we're left with an inexplicable attraction. Second, the tone and atmosphere of this movie are so arid emotionally and spiritually, the viewer simply has no reason to care about the characters or their actions. It's like you're watching a bunch of insects performing a random dance in an utterly meaningless, godless universe. Well my question is, why should I care? The three stars are for the attempt to make a frank and forthright film about this provocative subject matter.

Alex Caulfield I went to see this for Denis Lavant's face. He's up there with Kinski in my book in terms of a poetic cinematic visage. Anything he's in is worth watching based on this virtue alone.Good directors know how to work with this and can make the movie be very rewarding. But unfortunately, there is nothing special here. The focus is on the character and the story. So we have a series of medium shots all throughout. This is a sad shame. He seems to know this. He locks his jaw with less vigor, and there is no pursing of the lips.Notice the way he looks when in jeans. Lavant is the only 40-something man who can pull this off. I believe it's a posture problem. He has the frame of a 15 year old, but his mannerisms are those of an adult. Carax worked with this by making him wear those tattered baggy pants.Lavant apart, this is a very good example of how not to make a movie. It lacks form. It might as well have remained the newspaper clipping it was inspired by. In fact, it seems like they took the journalistic approach: factual and logical. Not cinema.Also, they quote his limp from _Lovers On the Bridge_ here, for the finale. Cheap shot. But it made me very happy.