A conundrum: how do you tell your oldest and closest friend that you are in love with his wife? Although based on English writer Julian Barnes’s novel, Love etc. takes what might be seen as a characteristically French subject matter, l’amour fou. Pierre (charming, eccentric, flirtatious, irresponsible) and Benoit (steady, reliable, supportive) have been best friends for what seems like forever. When Benoit gets serious about a girl, Marie, who he meets through a small ad., this inevitably alters the well-worn structure of their friendship, and Pierre looks like the one with most to lose. But as time goes by, and Pierre and Marie are thrown into spending more time together, the dynamics of the triangular relationship begin to shift.
Director Marion Vernoux has assembled a strong ensemble cast, and whilst Yvan Attal and Charles Berling acquit themselves well as the friends, it is Charlotte Gainsbourg’s performance as Marie that sticks in the mind; subtle and nicely underplayed, it mirrors the gentle tone of the film itself.