5/5 Carole Bouquet in English!
  by Arnold Cusmariu
I watched this to see if Carole Bouquet can act in English. Yup, she can. I don't know if she's made any more movies in English, I hope so -- though I'd much rather hear her speak French. She could read the phone book in French and it would still sound great. I hope she's recorded French poetry on CD.

As to the story, well ... males, one English and one American, take it on the chin big time. Can you imagine being married to Bouquet and not doing everything possible to make her happy, including encouraging her to pursue interests that might conflict with yours? Me neither. So, she gets fed up with her English husband (Pryce), divorces, and off she goes with his American publisher (Walken), a sleazy operator type who's into scoring. This dude turns out to be not that much of an improvement, though for a while it looked as though he might clean up his act now that he's managed to get his grubby little hands on hands on a modern Helen of Troy (after a fairly minor skirmish, not full-blown war.) Can you imagine being married to Bouquet and then letting your mother get in between the two of you to cause trouble? Me neither.

All this may be due to the (female) director's take on men. I dunno. I was hoping for a happy ending, where Bouquet's character finds a man who is worthy of her. Such men do exist, but not in this movie. I won't spoil it by telling how it ends. The ending is not bad, just not great.

A not so small matter relating to names. Bouquet's character is named "Swallow," which could be an English translation of her French name, "Hirondelle," the little bird that is a harbinger of spring. The verb form is too disgusting to contemplate and I wish the director had been more careful here. Why would a French woman of strong character Anglicize her name anyway? As to Walken, he gets to be named ... Vanni Corso. Say what? Vinnie is a good Italian name, which comes from Vincent (Vincenzo). Vannie is from ... what? No, I'm not gonna offer "Vanna" as an option. Again, I wish the director had been more careful. Walken should have put his foot down on this one.

Still, all in all an enjoyable movie with adult content and adult situations, very well acted, showcasing Bouquet's beauty, screen presence, and acting skills. The two guys are kinda sorta along for the ride, but with Bouquet around, who really minds? I didn't.

P.S. There's some monkey business in this movie, literally. One day, Bouquet's Brit husband comes home with a new gift, a little chimp. What a chump, I thought. Then I remembered the chimp Bouquet's character lives with in "Bingo Bongo" and the joke came thru. Nice touch, very!

5/5 A film that transcends the mere anecdote feature!
  by Hiram Gomez Pardo (Valencia, Venezuela)

Carole Bouquet is still one of the most beautiful actress ever born. Her face is a real Symphony; and her alluring fits perfectly with this role: she is a gorgeous model happily married with a talented but neglected novelist, he is possessively neurotic and needs her as a child needs her mother, but by these destiny's trickeries she has the chance to meet the editor of the firm in which his husband is hired, an entrepreneur, ambitious who is immediately attracted to her. She will be the driving force in this formidable comedy that will make us to reflect about a question without answer: Does the ideal man exist for such woman? .

Some lines are particularly incisive and acidic in this clever plot, a brilliant film measure by measure.


1/5 STARING BLANKLY AT THE SCREEN.
  by Tim (Australia)
There is a scene towards the long and tedious movie A Business Affair where the character Vanni Corso (played by the often stylish Christopher Walken) is seated with his Italian mother at the dinner table, and for a minute or so he stares blankly at the camera. One senses Walken has had enough of this piece of romantic schlock by now, enough of a meandering and befuddled script, enough of Carole Bouqet's weak attempt at a French accent. No doubt the Video/DVD cover will pitch a different caper, may even describe this tripe as "comedy", but I fail to see the comedy after having paid [money] in a second hand store for the DVD version. I knew in my heart why this was only [money], and yet, I am a sucker for a bargain, and wanted to be consoled by the store attendant ("Christopher Walken looks so young!") when I knew I had bought a lemon. There is nothing funny, nothing at all that warrants the association with any "feminist" viewpoint, and not even a decent soundtrack (spare me the French accordian music please). I fear that if that was my last [monry] and I may be eating the video cover this came in, scribbling over the title and hocking the DVD as a blank CD-R. Stare blankly, longingly at this one, but don't stare for too long at your purchase, or you will regret and be forced to find another buyer like I am doing now.

5/5 superb direction
  by
The story line of this movie has been described by other reviewers, so I'll just say that it is one of my favorites. The acting is first-rate: English actor Jonathan Pryce always turns in a creditable performance, and Carole Bouquet, as the main character, more than carries her share of the plot. Christopher Walken is not to be missed; he plays the comedic nature of his character to the hilt. What is amazing is the way director Charlotte Bronestrom manages to balance perfectly comedy and tragedy, to play off the serious message underlying the plot with the absurdity of human behavior. She doesn't miss a beat and gives us a film that is funny and sad, frivolous and serious at the same time--much like life itself.

5/5 AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER...
  by Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle)
This is a marvelous movie with wonderful performances by Christopher Walken, Jonathan Pryce, and the exquisitely beautiful Carole Bouquet. It is the story of a woman (Carole Bouquet), who is married to an egotistical, self absorbed Englishman (Jonathan Pryce), who is a well known writer and highly acclaimed literary figure. Christopher Walken plays the part of an Italian American publisher who is looking to sign up some English authors for the American market. He wines and dines Pryce, who ends up signing with him.

Meanwhile, Pryce is suffering from writer's block, while his long suffering wife is typing out her own manuscript. Pryce speaks to his wife contemptuosly about her effort. She gives her finished manuscript to Walken, who likes it and agrees to publish her book. This angers Pryce, who actually tells Walken not to publish it, so enraged is he by his wife actually having a thought that does not evolve around him. Walken meets with the wife and sees her as the beautiful, warm, intelligent, and articulate woman that she is.

Delighted to be treated like a normal person, rather than an appendage of her husband, Walken and Bouquet begin an affair that culminates in divorce from Pryce and marriage to Walken. She finds out that once married, however, Walken basically expects her world to revolve around him. In essence, Pryce and Walken are basically one and the same. She ultimately leaves Walken, writes another book, and becomes a best selling author in her own right and a woman of independent means. She comes into her own as a person, and is no longer another's doormat. This is the story of her liberation as a woman.