SIFF #15 - Closing Night, and missed parties

If you read SIFF #14, you may note that I filled up my dance card with four movies, ending around midnight, on the last day of SIFF. As usual, I did not actually attend the Closing Night film (or party, despite the invite, which was tempting for the booze). So this post is rather after-the-fact, especially considering I saw this film at SIFF's press launch way back in early May (man! this is a long festival). So if you are curious about the Closing Night film (as opposed to the event), here you go:

Have you ever noticed that lighthearted costume-comedies are always described as being a "delightful romp". Maybe it is the puffy shirts and shiny buckled boots, or the corsets and big wigs, but there seems to always be a requirement to go skipping through a sun-lit field in these kind of movies whilst spouting witticisms. Molière (6/8), SIFF's Closing Night film, is no different. It stars Romain Duris (L'Auberge Espagnole, Russian Dolls) in the titular role as the young playwright who is tired of the lighthearted fluff comedies he performs with his travelling troupe. He decides to take a job offer from Monsieur Jourdain (the comically dorky Fabrice Luchini) who would like acting lessons to seduce the beguiling debutante Célimène (Ludivine Sagnier). This is despite the fact that there is already a Madame Jourdain (Laura Morante)! Molière falls for Madame, and a romantic comedy of errors ensues. If you enjoyed movies like Shakespeare in Love and Much Ado About Nothing, you will for sure enjoy Molière. It is fluffy, sexy, and fun, with of course a twinge of French melancholy. The gorgeous Laura Morante is particularly good, once again proving that we should take cues from the Europeans on how to cast women over 40.

Next, my final thoughts on SIFF 2007...